help! car is having electrical problems

[blackwidow]

ok, this just started tonight.

when i hit the brake the left turn arrow on my dash lights up dim. that happens even if the accessory is off.

then, if im driving and i hit the brake, then the left turn arrow, while the brake is on its jus that dim arrow, if i release the brake it flashes real fast.

heres the catch...the ABS light is coming on at random times.

whats wrong? a fuse? blown turn signal relay?

[Mike Jung]

Check that your battery terminals are clean & tight.

Check your battery condition is good, after fully charging.

Check your alternator is working properly.


I would guess: the alternator is shot or that the battery is shot (& the alternator will be shortly, from trying to charge the battery).

[blackwidow]

why wouldyou say that? i have a custom builkt 150 amp alternator and an optima yellowtop battery. that had better not be the problem.

oh, BTW, the right turn signal works fine.

[Mike Jung]

Keep in mind I am just guessing...

Sometimes your blinker flashes real fast & your ABS light coming on sometimes...could be related to a low voltage/electrical power issue (like: a bad battery or a bad alternator).

I had funny things happen to my Clifford alarm system, when my stock AC Delco battery went bad & when a garage didn't tighten up my battery terminals after working on the engine.

Last summer, I had a under-charging alternator...which caused dimming of everything.
When you are stopped & the brake is deppressed, the car at idle doesn't produce much juice.

[blackwidow]

yea thanks for the help.

after thinking a bit...ive come up with some other ideas as to what might cause this:

i have the ASE chip. maybe thats it?
also, ive never changed the rear drum pads and ive got 76k miles on it. maybe its that?

im still pretty sure its the turn signal relay...but then that doesnt explain the ABS light.

[iceman]

ABS systems is one of the first to go with low voltage and will display a light as well.... Mike is not misleading you with telling you to check your battery/charging system.

[blackwidow]

im not saying hes misleading me but ive checked my system and its fine. like i said...ive got a custom 150 amp alternator, an optima yellow top battery, and ive got a voltmeter inside the car. id know if there was anything out of the ordinary.

tomorrow ill recheck all of my connections again and all of my fuses. ill probably also change my blinker relay.

[iceman]

Try yanking your system fuses for a day.. No harm in ruling that out 100%. Also a good idea to swap that blinker relay too.

Braking + a turn signal lighting up is just odd. Not getting this on the lights themselves, just the indicator, right??

Hope I helped :/

[blackwidow]

yea thanks...ill post up if it get it fixed.

[Stalker]

I had a similar problem on my '94 cavalier... the battery was going dead and had a real ****ty connection and the abs light started coming on.. replaced the battery, problem fixed.

[DJ Crash]

I had the same problem and when i took my car in, they had to replace the "turn signal + wiper control" unit in the steering column. It cost a lot to get it done too....damn dealers. And yes....the turn sigal + wiper control unit is all one piece. I just hope for you that this isn't it.

[swordfencer]

What you are describing sounds like a floating ground somewhere. Look at your left rear taillight wiring harness for any wires that are loose or burned. Chances are you have a ground that is loose and is crossed with your brake light circuit. Believe it or not, see if you have a burned out bulb back there too. I actually had a wierd problem where a bulb burned out and the turn signal filament crossed with the brake filament, causing my brake lights to flask real dim when I used the turn signal.

Good luck trying to find that if that is indeed the problem. Those problems can be very difficult to find.

[93grandamSE]

haha mine has problems too....
the other day i was driving bumpin(i only have a 1k watt amp and 2 12 inch subs)
all the sudden its like the car died when the bass hit....then went back to running by itself....so i turned the system off and the car totally died on me.....funny thing is...it cranked over but NOTHING electrical worked....no stereo no power locks not even flashers.....so i tow it to advanced auto....they put it on theyr computer....found it was my ECM again....so i go to pull it out and it like hits metal....sparks EVERYWHERE and then *ding ding ding* and int. lights came on.....lol so now i have to have a bottle cap to hold the ECM against metal or it wont work...
then lastnight my car wouldnt start....the speedo and everything was lit up....but i didnt have headlights on.....headlights wouldnt work again and everything....i wiggled the ECM and wallah it sparked and worked....lol
and whenever my bass hit my voltage meter inside goes WAYYY down to almost redline lol....when my blinkers on it pulsates....same as when i put my brakes on...maybe its just possessed lol