Electronic Gremlins: Electrical Problems That Are Driving You Crazy

1085 messages, Last post on Oct 29, 2009 at 11:41 AM

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#51 of 1085 SRS warning by alcan Apr 04, 2002 (2:50 am)
Airbag systems have a reserve power supply to ensure the system will work in the event of a frontal impact which damages the battery. The next person who disconnects a battery and then gets a face full of airbag won't be the first. SRS system repair should not be attempted by anyone other than a trained pro, dealer or body shop.
#52 of 1085 Engine stalls after starting - 95 Dodge Neon by woojac Apr 08, 2002 (4:31 pm)
Need some help with a strange starting problem on my 95 Dodge neon (5 spd) About 50K miles on it. The car will start well and immediately stop after 1/2 second. It will do this 2 or 3 times before staying alive. Giving it some gas will keep it going, but sometimes it will die after that again. Sometimes you turn the key and there is just a clicking noise. A dealer replaced a voltage regulator about a year ago and it solved the problem temporarily. I cleaned off the battery terminals to see if that was the problem. Seem to be getting good contact. Battery voltage seems fine. Battery is about 3 years old. Clutch is depressed all the way and held in (so in theory no interlock problems(?)). Many thanks for any helpful hints!
#53 of 1085 1997 Lincoln Town Car Gremlin by softfade64h Apr 09, 2002 (5:53 am)
Intermittently when in stop and go traffic, my engine will just shut off. I am usually forewarned that this is about to occur because the radio will stop playing or pop several times. the car so far has started up immediately, even while in neutral and rolling along with traffic. Another "luxury" feature of the car is that the radio should play for 10 minutes after the car is stopped (until a door is opened). What I've had occur several times is that when the car is stopped, there is a 10 - 15 second delay before the radio will continue to play. This has happened sporadically. I took the car to the dealer. Of course they found everything else wrong with it and convince me that those issues were the problem. the alternator has been replaced, the injection system has been cleaned and air/fuel sensors has been replaced. Well, $800.00 later I'm still fighting this gremlin. Someone please help!
#54 of 1085 1992 Lincoln Continental Head Lights Flickering by hhua1 Apr 12, 2002 (4:30 pm)
Our Cont head lights sometime flickering in random interval. Does anyone has this problem or knows how to fix it? Thanks in advance.
#55 of 1085 Fix for 92 Ford Aerostar Horn, Cruise Cntrl., and Airbag by mab91862 Apr 13, 2002 (6:23 am)
Wanted to post what finally fixed the Ford Aerostar problem. I did the subscription to www.alldata.com, and pulled up the schematics. It turns out that the "clock spring" assembly, behind the steering wheel, was the common point. I went to the Ford dealer, they wanted to hook it up to the diagnostic plug, for $95, and check out the "Fault Code". Using the schematics, I was fairly sure that it was the "clock spring" assembly, so I had them just change it out. It fixed all 3 problems. I asked for the old part back, took it apart, and saw the problem. The ribbon cable, that is wound up, had pulled off from one of the connectors in the assembly. It looks like the "clock spring" assembly is one of those components that is meant to fail eventually. If you hear of anyone having problems with controls mounted on the steering wheel of a Ford product, it would be a good bet that the "clock spring" assembly is bad.
#56 of 1085 94 Escort Wgn - Parking lights come on by themselves by clutchless Apr 30, 2002 (2:07 pm)
My girlfriend bought a used Escort Wgn in October 2001 and has recently (the past month) been experiencing a strange electrical gremlin. After she takes the key out of the ignition the parking lights will come on by them selves. You can't turn them off by switching them on and off, in fact the only way to get them to turn of is to open and close the tailgate (sometimes you need to do it a few times). The worst part is that sometimes you can get them to go off, but they come back on later (and drain the battery). We took the car to the local Ford dealer, he found nothing (could only duplicate the problem once). He DID say that Ford Rangers have had this problem, and the fix is a costly replacement of the complete headlamp assembly and switch. Any advice?
#57 of 1085 any warranty left? -- oh, wait, that's a 94. sorry. by swschrad Apr 30, 2002 (10:11 pm)
it wouldn't be the complete headlamp assembly and switch, I don't think... but there could be an electronic module funky or some control switches dirty. there were a bunch of GEM module goofinesses in Exploders around 1999-2000 that caused wipers to go out and stuff, there might be a TSB out that pins your issue to the GEM or another module, check alldata.com. headlights are a safety item, also check the nhtsb.gov site for a possible recall, which could put the cost for the repair on ford. otherwise, try a junkyard for a salvage module.
#58 of 1085 light problems by redline65 May 02, 2002 (3:30 pm)
I need some help troubleshooting an electrical problem for my '99 Intrigue GL. Here is what is happening: When I have my foot on the brake and the right turn signal on, both front turn signals flash. When I have my foot on the brake and the turn signals off, my right rear amber turn signal illuminates, but does not flash. When I have my foot on the brake my left rear brake light doesn't illuminate. I changed the brake light bulbs, but it didn't help. Any ideas?
#59 of 1085 Electrical Stooges by rudy2000 May 03, 2002 (9:24 am)
I am an Avionics Technician by trade. I once had a Ranger that drove me nuts with electrical failures. Turned out that the engine wire harness were brital with age. When I would fix one problem, another would pop up. Ford offered no help with replacement lugs/spades, and finding them at electronic stores was not possible either. The dealer said the only fix was to replace the engine harness. But being an electrical type, I was able to reuse/find something close that would work. My point is finding intermittent electrical failures is difficult at best. There is no time limit on trouble shooting. The dealer will charge $45-$65 per hour to trouble shoot, and they might not have any more skill than you do! With that, I think an independent electrical repair shop might be a better choice for hard to fix problems because they charge less, and they specialize in electrical. Also, I think Ford's wire assembles are the worst in the industry, even MG's were better. Rudy
#60 of 1085 RE #54 Lincoln Head Lights Flickering by hhua1 May 03, 2002 (6:49 pm)
Ordered the headlights switch from Checker Auto for $20 plus tax, replaced it, there was burn mark at the connector. I can feel the switch was very hot after taking it out, right after the lights was used for a while. So far it working fine with the new switch. Lincoln dealer checked the VIN# and it not under recall and want to check the car out at the rate $65/hr.

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