Posted: 9/9/2009 12:55:14 PM EDT
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My daughter has a 99 chevy prizm
the problem- brake light comes on and car has NO power and i could only get about 50mph out of it and it was trying to die while going down the road, this problem is intermittant and has only happened twice she said that while driving home she could smell an electrical type fire, I could definately smell the electrical burn odor in the car. the engine light only flashes when its having this problem how do i get the trouble codes to come up? |
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My daughter has a 99 chevy prizm the problem- brake light comes on and car has NO power and i could only get about 50mph out of it and it was trying to die while going down the road, this problem is intermittant and has only happened twice she said that while driving home she could smell an electrical type fire, I could definately smell the electrical burn odor in the car. the engine light only flashes when its having this problem how do i get the trouble codes to come up? Theres your problem you have a short. GL finding it |
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now WTF is it? its capped and i cant tell where it goes without more dismantling anybody know where i can find a schematic? I know its related to the brakes b/c of the brake light and when i started the car one of the relays started buzzing and when i hit the brake petal 2 relays started going nuts and the car died. the offending connection 
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Looks like you might possibly have a bad relay somewhere. Maybe the diode across the switched terminals at the relay went out and its stuck in the ON position all the time sending +12V at who knows how many amps through those wires. EDIT..... Have the alternator tested. It could be overcharging also. |
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Looks like you might possibly have a bad relay somewhere. Maybe the diode across the switched terminals at the relay went out and its stuck in the ON position all the time sending +12V at who knows how many amps through those wires. EDIT..... Have the alternator tested. It could be overcharging also. I plan on changing the relays that were buzzing i'll have to pull the alternator to get it tested, the offending part doesnt appear to be damaged except for the burns, something else heated that connection up, after hearing the relays buzz that was one of my guesses I'm trying to find a diagram to find out what that connection goes to, no luck yet |
| Pulled up wiring diagram....that may be a ground splice pack. Verify continuity to ground with meter on one of the unburnt wires. If it is ground pack it terminates to g103 at drivers inner fender area at radiator core support at top. Check for a loose ground in that area. Repair smoked wiring and replace/rig splice pack as ness. |
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Pulled up wiring diagram....that may be a ground splice pack. Verify continuity to ground with meter on one of the unburnt wires. If it is ground pack it terminates to g103 at drivers inner fender area at radiator core support at top. Check for a loose ground in that area. Repair smoked wiring and replace/rig splice pack as ness. according this Question
I have a 1999 Chevy Prizm (which is really a Toyota Corolla), which is having significant electrical problems, with no apparent cause. The problem started with the headlights and auxillary radiator fan running even with the car turned off with no key in the ignition. Additionally, we are unable to start the car any longer. We have ordered the factory service manuals to assist in the repair, and found that if we disconnected the DLR module which is located above the glove compartment, the lights and fan will no turn off, and the car will start. However, with the car running there are no lights, and if I turn on the left/right blinker, in addition to the signal on the dash panel blinking, the brake light blinks and the ABS light blinks. Furthermore, if I turn on the AC, the car immediately dies, and if I turn on the 4 way flashers the car immediately dies. Assuming the problem was with the module, we pulled it out and could identify several of the electrical components that appeared to be burned. We purchased a new one and installed it, but it did not solve the problem. At this point I took the car to the local Chevy place (1/2 hour away) and after 1.5 hours, the best option they could come up with was that the multi-function switch in the steering column was bad (a $400 switch). The service manager I have known for several years, and he recognizes I can't afford to sink $400 into this switch. He recommended that we find a steering column at a junk yard that we could pull the switch out of. We found it easier to simply replace the entire steering column ($75.00), since it's only 4 bolts and the plugs. Unfortunately, this did not solve the problem. At this point, we are pretty much stuck. The best the dealer can suggest is that it is in the wiring harness someplace, but I can't afford to pay them to hunt for it. I'm hoping someone has seen this problem before and might be able to direct me more quickly to what the solution might be. Answer
Yes I have seen this problem a few times, the dealer is correct, the problem is in the wiring but it can be repaired in most cases, the problem is under the dash on the left side, there is an electrical connector that has a lot of ground wires going into it, the connector may be taped to the wire harness, the problem is that the ground connections get corroded and build up resistance which causes the wires to overheat causing all kinds of strange problems. The solution is to cut out the burned wires and solder in new wires and clean the connections. Have the dealer look for this connector, it has a bunch of white/black wires going into it and coming back out, the connector is plugged into a socket, all it is is a ground bus connector, fixing it will solve the problem, because of this the DRL light relay may also need to be replaced because in most cases it shorts out when this happens. |
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I think were all on the same page here with the ground splice/bus etc....be sure to check the ground at the fender. That would in fact be the physical ground. The splice pack is there merely as a convering point for the grounds. I would imagine that the most "toasted" wire in the pack/bus whatever would in fact be the main ground feed for the remaing converging wires.
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Quoted:
I think were all on the same page here with the ground splice/bus etc....be sure to check the ground at the fender. That would in fact be the physical ground. The splice pack is there merely as a convering point for the grounds. I would imagine that the most "toasted" wire in the pack/bus whatever would in fact be the main ground feed for the remaing converging wires. i'll do that, the wire that looks to have started it is the biggest guage |
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fixed bad wiring bought all new relays as soon as i hooked up the battery the park and tail lights came on with no key in the ignition, i found the relay to the park/tail lamps by pulling them until the lights went off, i changed this relay with the other new ones and still the lights stay on. ipulled the Daytime running lights relay and the headlight relay the park/tail lights stay on. is there another relay somewhere not mentioned in the owners manual, sounds logical since most of the relays are not identified in the book or on the fuse box or anywhere else.
wtf |
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the car is running but (it quit running earlier because i forgot to plug up a relay  )
anyway the current situation is the car runs fine and everything works BUT when i turn it off i have to unplug the park/taillight relay to get those lights off and unplug the Daytime Running Lights module to turn off the headlights or unplug one of the headlight relays Is there a way to check the DLR module? I've been able to find one online and it was over $200 |