Sounds like you have some loose wiring somewhere. Maybe check behind your guage cluster. Check your fuses, make sure they are fine and all seated properly. Also could be a bad relay as you said, kinda working half-assed, you'll probably have to lift them off from the relay box and check those - I'm not familiar with the specific layout of your electrical system so you'll have to try to locate those yourself or maybe someone with your car can assist you better.

 

Thanks for the help, Faja. Do you know if there would be another fuse/relay hub anywhere other than under the hood and right inside the driver's side door? We checked most of these and everything seemed ok. We'll be more thorough, but the car's half an hour away, so I want to head over there with a pretty good idea of what's up.

 

Those are the 2 most likely places they would be. If you said you checked those, then I would see if there is a loose wire or harness connector - mostly likely at the guage.

 

Alright, thanks. I'll keep you posted. Thanks, again.

 

most electronics will still work if the battery is to dead to start the car..id get a battery its only 60 bucks if it dsnt fix it but if it died to the point of needing a jump start then its not healthy(unless you left something on to drain it) id try that

 

We didn't have a chance to check the fuses/relays today, but when we went to get my car it started right up. I'm still getting the weird issues, but mechanically the car is running fine. It shouldn't be the battery.

 

I pulled the instrument cluster out, but I don't notice anything awry except for this extra plug:

http://rickatnight11.com/pictures/car/cluster_pin.jpg

I don't see where it would plug into, though, so I think that's for an optional part my car doesn't have. So, it seems like the problem rests somewhere down the line where the wires come from. Any ideas anyone?

 

check grounds to bcm

 

What's the BCM, and how do I check the grounds?

oh and check for draw on battery with test light or with peanut bulb with lead wires on it.

Do you mean check if the battery has any power?

 

oh and check for draw on battery with test light or with peanut bulb with lead wires on it.

 

take negitive terminal off battery put and test light or peanut bulb with lead wires.in series with battery.touch neg side of battery with point of test light clamp the neg battery cable terminal just to check if u have draw on the battery when key is of.make sure all doors r close when doing this test and everything in car is off.if testlight glows and then goes off u dont have a draw on battery. i saw where u your friend tested the battery u may have voltage there but not enough amperage.

 

I don't have a test light, so I'll need to go pick one up, but since the engine can turn over and drive fine (not to mention the radio, speedometer, seats, etc all work) would't that mean the problems not at the battery?

After looking up what a BCM controls, that seems pretty likely. How can I test that? I'm not even sure where it is.

 

behind the glove box.

 

Well, I pulled the whole glove box off to take a look. I don't know what I'm looking at, though. Visible from the passenger seat (to the right) I found these:



Ducking underneath and back behind those I found these:



I also found this thing:



(I disconnected and pulled it down for the picture. It wasn't disconnected like that.)

What should I be looking at, and how do I test it? Thanks for your help.

 

Is your windshield wiper and headlight switch one integrated piece or 2 separate pieces. It's possible you have some sort of malfunction either at the switch itself or wiring harness at the steering column - just throwing out some ideas.........

 

It's an integrated piece. Why would that effect the tachometer?

 

Probably not but it could explain some of the other issues. You did say the tach works on and off so it could be some loose connection. Check the headlight switch, make sure you clean all the contact terminals either with some electronic cleaner or fine sandpaper. There are some threads on the forum that show how to do this.

 

The reason I'm hesitant to blame poor contact terminals or a loose connection at one of the components is because they all stopped working at the same time. One day everything's fine, the next everything goes wonky. That's too coincidental for all of these things to merely start malfunctioning. Not that this is coming from a mind that knows cars at all, but scientific method drives me to believe that there's a single point of failure that's causing all of these seemingly unrelated functions.

 

Yes, you could be 100% correct in your assumption. We're just offering possibilities and I'm sure thru' process and elimination you will find the solution at some point but until you or someone else comes up with the definitive answer you will still have to eliminate some of those possibilities. I know it's a PITA but I can also tell you're determined to lick the problem

 

I really do appreciate the help. I hate to take this to the dealer, but I feel like unless someone knows what would be effecting all of those things and how to test/fix it, the dealer's the only one that will know how to fix it immediately. They have all the wiring diagrams, etc. It's stressing me out, though, because I know how expensive it's going to be, even if it's a simple fix.

 

Try NickAltima's suggestion with a new battery. See if you can get a jump and while still connected to the other car test some of the stuff that is not working like high beam and wiper just to rule out the battery issue.

 

The battery is actually fine. It wasn't dead after all. When we went to check out the car last week, it started right up. I drove it back, and mechanically it ran fine. It's just those electrical things that still aren't working. I can still walk out, start it up, and drive it around. It doesn't need a jump.

I believe the headlights work when the light sensor perceives that it's dark, but I can't make them go on with the switch. Neither turn signals nor high beams work from the switch either.

 

I believe the headlights work when the light sensor perceives that it's dark, but I can't make them go on with the switch. Neither turn signals nor high beams work from the switch either.

This definitely sounds like a headlight switch problem!!!

 

Same here, except the wiper switch also has this problem, as does the tachometer. (Actually I lied, there's one thing on the wiper switch that does work: the wiper fluid pump.) So what would effect all of these things?

 

You said the wiper switch and headlight switch is integrated so it's possible that some of the prongs are not making contact properly. The pump could be a different terminal on the same switch. The only thing I'm not sure of is the tach but that could be a separate issue even tho' it happened at the same time. You said the tach works sometimes, did you happen to test either the lights or the wiper when the tach was working?

 

Well, seeing that all your problems (except for the tach) seem to be tied to one common place (the steering column), maybe you can check the switches, both of them and/or the harnesses they are attached to.

 

That makes sense. I have the plastic cover off of the steering column (needed to to get the instrument cluster out.) I checked all of the connections, and everything seems tight and secure. What do you think my best option is for troubleshooting it?

 

Just disconnect the harness, look at the wires/terminals on both ends, see if everything is aligned up properly or no broken pieces. Reconnect and just try lights or wiper. If still no go, you might have to look at the prongs on the switches themselves and see if they are making proper contact, spray with electrical cleaner if you have any and reconnect and test again.

 

do you have a multimeter or a test light?

 

No, but it looks like I'll need one. I checked the plugs and everything seems shipshape. Still no response from wipers or lights, though.

 

i dont have anymore input lol faja is deff helping out..i complain about this site ALL the time about people who give stupid answers or dont know what they are talking about..i give faja some credit b/c this is the 1st and ONLY time ive seen someone come back with some decent feedback and try to actually help beside myself when there is someting im pretty familiar with..so just a quick thanks faja the forum appreciates you..btw im saving you for help on future problems i have lol if thats ok..seeya guys rightatnight hope u find the prob steering column probs are horrible lol ull get it figured out tho lol

 

It just doesn't feel like a problem at the steering wheel. All signs point to something further down the line. I just don't know what that is. I think I'm just going to have to bring it into the dealer. This sucks.

 

I've run out of ideas too Rick. If you do take it to the dealer let us know what the problem was as now I'm just as curious as you are except I don't have to pay for my curiosity

BTW, thanks for the positive words Nickaltima - appreciate it!! :givebeer: