Help! Serious Electrical Problems!, The weirdest thing I've ever seen... Options

[bufferdan]

Croomer, Im pretty sure you should be pulling 12v at the alternator with the car off. Just like BlackCelica said, there is a main power wire that runs directly off the battery through a fuseable link in the fuse box then to the alternator. So its not relayed therefor you should be getting 12v all the time to the alternator.

[bufferdan]

Get a decent sized wire...or even a jumper cable. Hook it to the battery + and then directly to the Alternator +. Try and start the car now

This post has been edited by bufferdan: Apr 15, 2005 - 8:34 AM

[stormtrupr]

have you checked all of the fuses with a multimeter? i had my amp fuse go and it still looked perfectly fine, also, have you checked to make sure voltage is going accross the fuses to the other side? again with my amp fuse, the one was broke even though it looked fine but the multimeter showed infinite(or really high) resistance(means it was broke) i then proceeded to buy a new fuse and all was good for a couple days until i my amp wouldnt work again. Turns out not only was the first fuse broke but, the connections to the fuse werent making good enough contact. i had 12 volts on the battery side but nothing on the other side of the fuse....you have probably checked this but just trying to help

good luck!!!

[Akimbo]

last time i had problems it was neither the battery or the alternator, but it was the charging fuse. Maybe that'll help people, cuz we overlooked it.

[Coomer]

Get a decent sized wire...or even a jumper cable.  Hook it to the battery + and then directly to the Alternator +.  Try and start the car now
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Tried this tonight just for testing purposes, and it did nothing.

have you checked all of the fuses with a multimeter? i had my amp fuse go and it still looked perfectly fine, also, have you checked to make sure voltage is going accross the fuses to the other side? again with my amp fuse, the one was broke even though it looked fine but the multimeter showed infinite(or really high) resistance(means it was broke) i then proceeded to buy a new fuse and all was good for a couple days until i my amp wouldnt work again. Turns out not only was the first fuse broke but, the connections to the fuse werent making good enough contact. i had 12 volts on the battery side but nothing on the other side of the fuse....you have probably checked this but just trying to help

good luck!!!
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Fuses are all good. I tested them all today with the multimeter.

last time i had problems it was neither the battery or the alternator, but it was the charging fuse. Maybe that'll help people, cuz we overlooked it.
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Where's the charging fuse?


Today I worked on the car, and now some stuff is working, but some stuff isn't. When I turn the key to accessory, the airbag light turns on. When I turn it to on, the brake light comes on(e-brake), the check engine light comes on(always does when the car is on and not running), etc. When I turn the key to start the fans turn on, but that's it. The door open indicator doesn't turn on when I open a door, the trunk light doesn't come on with the trunk open, etc. The dome light fuse(in the engine bay) is good, but neither side is hot. The little chime thing that sounds when the key is turned to on and your seatbelt isn't on or when you have the key in ACC with the door open doesn't sound either.

I spent a couple hours at the Toyota dealer looking through the BGBs for answers, but couldn't find any. This is just a complete nightmare.

[Batman722]

remember when you got rid of alot of extra wires in the engine bay a few weeks ago ? Time to recheck all your connections. If a connection is weak, it won't allow all of the current needed. That might explain some power but not enough when you turn the key. I bet one or two are not are barely making a connection and causing this.

That could be the problem

[Coomer]

I unwrapped the harness and inspected all of the connections. They all look good.

What do you guys think of the voltages at some places testing at 8-10 volts initially and then gradually rising to 12.4 over the course of a few seconds? That really confuses me.

[Coomer]

I just realized that even with the four gauge wire going from the battery to the alternator, it's still reading +4 volts at the terminal? What do you think is causing this?

[Dm_Vinny]

Coomer,

Me personally I'd start off tracing everything. If I cant find anything wrong than I'd swap out the wires for new ones, if it still dont work, replace the alternator, I'm not sure but is our alternator have a built in regulator? never checked, if it doesnt that swap out the regulator.

[madmods]

What did you actually wire from your alarm? Starter kill? Did you cut your ignition wires? You door lock wires?

[Coomer]

Coomer,

Me personally I'd start off tracing everything. If I cant find anything wrong than I'd swap out the wires for new ones, if it still dont work, replace the alternator, I'm not sure but is our alternator have a built in regulator? never checked, if it doesnt that swap out the regulator.
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I actually found out that I am getting +12 volts at the alternator. Before, I was just testing with a bad ground.

What did you actually wire from your alarm? Starter kill? Did you cut your ignition wires? You door lock wires?
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I never cut my ignition wires, and my door locks are aftermarket. Right now, there is only wires ran for the positive brake input, door trigger, parking lights, ignition 1, ignition 2, and starter, and they're all completely taped off.

Can anyone explain what causes voltages to start from 8-10 volts and then rise to +12.4 volts over the course of a few seconds? This effect gets worse as the ground for the multimeter is placed further away from whatever I'm testing.

[madmods]

Coomer,

Me personally I'd start off tracing everything. If I cant find anything wrong than I'd swap out the wires for new ones, if it still dont work, replace the alternator, I'm not sure but is our alternator have a built in regulator? never checked, if it doesnt that swap out the regulator.
[right][snapback]272359[/snapback][/right]

I actually found out that I am getting +12 volts at the alternator. Before, I was just testing with a bad ground.

What did you actually wire from your alarm? Starter kill? Did you cut your ignition wires? You door lock wires?
[right][snapback]272360[/snapback][/right]

I never cut my ignition wires, and my door locks are aftermarket. Right now, there is only wires ran for the positive brake input, door trigger, parking lights, ignition 1, ignition 2, and starter, and they're all completely taped off.

Can anyone explain what causes voltages to start from 8-10 volts and then rise to +12.4 volts over the course of a few seconds? This effect gets worse as the ground for the multimeter is placed further away from whatever I'm testing.
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What actually are you testing to get this spike from? Any relays in there?

[Silvan]

Take one cable off from the battery, and measure the current running trough the electrical system. (don't start try to start, your meter will melt) If the current is very low, most likely you have a corroded connection, acting as a resistor.
(resistor restricts current not voltage)
But I can't give you a answer about the voltage going up from eight to twelve volts.
The only thing I can come up with is that the current that can be drawn is so low, the voltage collapses.

[Coomer]

OK,
I managed to get the car started and running yesterday. Now here is what still doesn't work:

Headlights and parking lights will not come on unless the car is on. The engine doesn't have to be running, the key just has to be in the on position.

The CD player won't turn on.

The clock doesn't come on.

Door open indicators, trunk light, dome lights don't work at all.

[946thGenGT]

How did you manage to get the car started? Or are things just starting to magically fix themself? Weird...

[Coomer]

How did you manage to get the car started?  Or are things just starting to magically fix themself?  Weird...
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A couple of the wires I ran were causing too much resistance, so when I removed them, the car was able to start. Hopefully tomorrow I can figure out what's up with the rest of the stuff...probably something small again.

[946thGenGT]

Any updates?

[Batman722]

remember when you got rid of alot of extra wires in the engine bay a few weeks ago ? Time to recheck all your connections. If a connection is weak, it won't allow all of the current needed. That might explain some power but not enough when you turn the key. I bet one or two are not are barely making a connection and causing this.

That could be the problem 
[right][snapback]272183[/snapback][/right]

How did you manage to get the car started?  Or are things just starting to magically fix themself?  Weird...
[right][snapback]272898[/snapback][/right]

A couple of the wires I ran were causing too much resistance, so when I removed them, the car was able to start. Hopefully tomorrow I can figure out what's up with the rest of the stuff...probably something small again.
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booya - update ???

[Coomer]

Not yet. I don't have time to work on the car until the weekend most likely. School/work kills me.

[Coomer]

OK,
So the car is worse than ever now. On Monday, it wouldn't start after work. Monday night I compression started it, and the RPMs fluctuated from 1,500-3,000, shooting back and forth. I immediately shut off the car and had it towed home, and now I'm stuck with no idea what's wrong.

The headlights and parking lights still work with the ignition on. The dome light, door open indicator, seat-belt-not-on indicator, stereo, trunk light, and clock still don't work.

What's interesting is that on one fuse, I'm getting resistance between ground and one of the sides of the fuse? Should I be getting resistance at all? To me it seems like I shouldn't, since +12v shouldn't be hitting ground, but maybe other stuff factors into resistance. Anyone know if this is normal?