All kinds of electric problems. Please help!

[DiamondStarCar]

Wow. That's all I can say. Not even two weeks of ownership with my beloved dsm and I hate it. Last week I had trouble starting my car and driving it. When it WOULD start, it would idle fine with no CEL or anything. Then I would put it into first to drive away. As I let off the clutch the car stated to trun off and on...seriously-as I was driving. So I would give it a little more gas, and the same thing would happen only much more aggressively. I unplugged the alarm (that doesn't work anyway) and suddenly my car started without having to jump it, the idle surge was gone, and overall it ran great. So here I am a week later and I have the same problem...only the alarm fix won't work this time....its already unplugged.
I would like to say it's my alternator now. Here's my new symptoms: car doesn't start without a jump, after it's started and I begin moving, the car turns on and off as Im driving, there is a loud clicking coming from behind my cd/radio (ecu???) and the "ABS"-antilock brake lamp lights up on the guage cluster (usually only when I push the brake...sometimes always during the on/off extravaganza). I also get a CEL for about 5 sec after I push the clutch back in after it turns off on me, but then it goes off. I cannot drive it anywhere to have it looked at an this is probably something really simple that my brain can't seem to figure out. BTW, I used the search and I found all kinds of alternator information, but that only covers part of my problem (not starting, pw and pl don't work, the "beep" when I open the door is all low bc of low power, etc.) Speaking of that, I thought it was the battery, but my volt meter says "12.5-12.6v"...right where it's supposed to be. Please help, I need to get this car running so I can make a logical decision on if I really want to keep this thing or sell it. Thanks,
Chris

 

[luv2rallye]

Check all the ground cables for no corrosion, clean, and tight (battery to engine, battery to body, engine to body). Check and test all fuses (engine compartment and inside kick panel). With engine off turn on headlights, radio, and wipers - battery should still read over 12.2v. With engine running it should read over 14v.

 

[DiamondStarCar]

Come on guys, please help, I know one of you knows something else. Thanks btw luv2rallye. Grounds seem to be fine. Im going insane. Please help!

 

[CatchMe]

A failing alternator will do alot of strange things to the electrical system on a dsm. You also could possibly have a bad ecu. Good luck

 

[ACKERSON]

What kind of alarm do you have? Most good alarms, if you unplug them, won't let you car run. They usually have a starter kill or fuel pump kill switch built in. The clicking you hear could be the relays inside the alarm clicking on and off.

 

[DiamondStarCar]

The guy had a Viper alarm, which happens to be a good system according to people I know. Yeah that is an excellent point, ACKERSON. Howerver it runs now, even with the alarm unplugged, and the guy that had the car before me rewired the stock fuel pump with a higher guage wire. So I doubt it has the fuel pump shutoff. However, if it did, how would I know? This guy obviously did alot of his wiring himself. I also took the car up to the local walmart (haha, i know) to see what they had to say...they check your battery voltage and alternator voltage for free. My voltmeter said 12.5v even when the car's headlights wouldnt work (as if the battery was dead)...so I charged it up on a battery charger. Then it worked fine for about 15minutes, then as it was idling in front of my house, the "abs" lamp came on and stayed on. So to "fix the abs" I simply pulled off the negative cable and put it back on. Now it runs fine. It should also be noted that when I turn the car on and start the engine, the volts jump up to 13.5, but according to the techs at wal mart, it "fluctuates" instead of staying right at 13.5. I did an alternator change on my last talon and it fixed the problem with the battery running dead and all that good stuff, but I didn't have the same strange problem i'm having now (see my original post for those problems again). The search has been VERY helpful, but I believe 4g's was too much to pay for this car and now I refuse to spend anymore money until I am 100% positive what the problem is. Oh yeah, all the fuses under the hood are still in great shape. Thanks for the feedback.

-Chris = :thumbdown (right now)

 

[Doug99RS]

Pull out the ECU and check for capacitor leakage. I've ran across a few 1g's that have had a start and stall problem which the ECU was toast. This is a free check and it's easy to spot. I'd post a few links for you to check out reguarding Leaking Caps but I'm on dial-up right now and working off of only one monitor. Kind of hard to have a bunch of windows open.
Doug

 

[DiamondStarCar]

This car is crazy. Now it's running fine, but a guy I work with told me that when the voltage fluctuates like it does on my car, that means the alternator is going out (a diode inside the alt. itself failed according to him). So i've fixed a couple other minor problems until the problem presents itself again. Then I will get a new alternator, for right now im good. Thanks to all for the help.