Electrical help, car stays on

[NCFWDDSM]

I'm a long time owner of a 2g fwd, just bought a 1g awd and got it running but have a electrical issue.

When I connect the battery the car comes on without the key. Not the engine running, the accessories. The driver seatbelt goes back and forth constantly. Both turn signal indicators are lit up. Anti-lock light is on and something is ticking near intake manifold.
When I put the key in and start the car the seatbelt starts working fine, but the turn signals stay lit and don't work. After a few minutes the check engine light comes on and i have no way to check the code yet. Most everything else works fine.

The car is stock exept a fmic. Has a new alternator. Just did the water pump and timing belt. All the fuses are good. Any ideas what can make the car stay on like this and has these strang issues?

 

[jayson427]

I would google a wire diagram for your car and see what everything runs to that you have issues with and go from there.

 

[Mickey6]

That sounds like an electrical issue in your ECU. I had a twin turbo stealth once upon a time and like a jackass....fried the ECU due to a bad ground. I'd look over all of your grounds as well as checking the code with a multimeter.

Heres a link to different ECU codes and how to read them with a multimeter depending on what diagnostic port you have.

http://www.troublecodes.net/mitsu/

 

[Talyn]

That sounds like an electrical issue in your ECU. I had a twin turbo stealth once upon a time and like a jackass....fried the ECU due to a bad ground. I'd look over all of your grounds as well as checking the code with a multimeter.

Heres a link to different ECU codes and how to read them with a multimeter depending on what diagnostic port you have.

http://www.troublecodes.net/mitsu/

The ECU has nothing to do with the circuits he has having problems with, the ECM light coming on, is probably a separate issue.

Sounds to me like you have a short somewhere, usually when an electrical circuit is acting like that, it is power from another circuit coming into contact with it. Check for damaged wires shorting out on each other.

 

[Mickey6]

The ECU has nothing to do with the circuits he has having problems with, the ECM light coming on, is probably a separate issue.

Sounds to me like you have a short somewhere, usually when an electrical circuit is acting like that, it is power from another circuit coming into contact with it. Check for damaged wires shorting out on each other.

I realize the ECU has nothing to do directly with the stuff he is having issues with, but they all share the same power source and I'm sure your well aware of how crazy electrical issues can be. You can have a fault in one system and that fault can cause other systems to act erratically even though there is nothing wrong with the system displaying the erratic behavior. Especially if theres a short like you described or voltage issues. I remember troubleshooting a helicopter in the Marines in a system pretty similar to "power steering" in the flight controls. The problem ended up being something totally separate than the system that had displayed the erratic behavior.

 

[NCFWDDSM]

Thanks guys. My brother has a ecu I can try. It's worth a shot and not to hard to swap out.

I found a problem with the alternator. The cable was touching the case and blew the fuse. I fixed the problem but that did not help with all my other problems.
I think I forgot to say that my tach is not working also. When the alternator fuse was blown the tach started working. Now with it fixed no tach again.

I will try that link on finding the code with a multimeter. I didn't know about that.

 

[spyderdrifter]

Sounds like a short to voltage problem. When you get the opportunity, you should do voltage readings on each wiring segment, and as already stated, find a wire schematic so you can trace the wires. They all may end up linking together somewhere, so the short would affect them all.

 

[NHerron]

Is there any funny buisness going on under the steering column? Like wire splicers etc. Look around for burnt wires in the fuse box, kick panels etc

 

[NCFWDDSM]

Still no luck with this. Heres what i tried so far.
New ecu.
New mpi relay.
New ignition switch
Fixed problem with alternator grounding.

Ive been looking for bad grounds or shorts but most of the wiring on this car seems pretty good. I still dont know what code or codes are on. Thats next.
Open to any ideas.

 

[NCFWDDSM]

PROBLEM SOLVED!
I wasn't having any luck with this electrical problem so i took it to a shop.
3sx in harrisburg nc. It took them a while but they said the problem was the car had a 92 fuse box in it. (the car is a 93). They replaced the fuse box and everything works fine now.
Now I can proceed with my build. The goal for now is a very reliable/street car in the 325hp range. Once i achieve that i'll be thinking about making some real power
Thanks for all of your help.

 

[NHerron]

Sucks you had to bring it to a shop and fork over the mola, but at least you got it

gl with the build