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View Full Version : Relay madness need help.


240Lover770
08-03-2014, 05:03 AM
:picardfp: so i was trying to keep from posting but im irritated and tired at the moment and ive probably googled myself to death. so i would like some help from zilvia. i apologize for the lengthy post. car is a 92 SR'D hatch

My issue: a few weeks back i decided to use the 2nd fan for more cooling on my flex a light setup. ran good for about 2 weeks then it fried a blue relay. even the female end was a little burnt. at the time it happened i was on the way to work and had to pull over because i noticed the car over heated. used a spare relay and got to work. fast forward i bought an equivalent(not oem) relay from the parts store and plugged it in. it fried that relay within 10 min of driving.:picardfp:
so i switched back to the oem blue relay..car was fine. fast forward a day> im riding home from work one night and realize my cluster lights are a little dim. no biggie i keep driving. right when i pull into the drive way,the cluster pretty much goes suuuuuuper dim. all lights are barely on at this point and the car struggling to stay on. i shut it off and try to start it again, it tried to turn over but didnt do any full revolutions so to speak. i unhook the battery then hook it back up. all lights are bright again PFC read 10.8v for battery voltage. tried to start again. it wanted to turn over but didnt. heres another kicker...pulled the key out and my pfc stayed on along with the accessory lights on the cluster. i also noticed the check engine light blinking. the seatbelts also went back and fourth like the car was fully on.:facepalm: at this point i gave up and unhooked the battery and called it a night.
next day i get the battery fully charged and checked at the auto store and bring it home. hooked everything up and car ran first startup. i brought up the voltage on the commander and it read 11.9. so i took it out for a drive and decided to head back to the parts store to get the alternator checked. pulled in the lot and pulled the key out....PFC commander and accessory lights were still on..smh so i hurry up and start the car and drive back home. while driving i noticed the voltage kept dropping. by the time i got home i was at 10.8v.

soo i parked and pulled the key out and pulled the big 75A fuse then the EGI relay and put them back. everything was fine except the EGI relay. as soon as the plug touched the female end it clicked. i did it a few times to see and every time it clicked. i checked all wired under the relay box and checked alternator wires. they all looked fine. looked at the ecu wires,they all were fine.

so i guess ive narrowed it down to the EGI relay. what exactly is causing it to keep clicking to where the PFC stays on? whats causing the accessory lights to stay on? and whats draining my battery and causing it not to keep a charge besides the maybe the alternator?

3problems in one basically. any advise or help will be appreciated. let me know if you need more details on something.

Ilya
08-03-2014, 07:23 AM
If you are lowered, check the harness above the front wheels. How is the fan wired up and the fan controller and the PFC?

240Lover770
08-03-2014, 12:08 PM
If you are lowered, check the harness above the front wheels. How is the fan wired up and the fan controller and the PFC?

i think the fans are wired to a direct power source so that they stay on while the engine is running. pretty sure i no longer have a harness on the passenger side wheel well. it was all automatic stuff and was chopped. ill double check the driver side. but that harness should be tucked out of the way.

Ilya
08-03-2014, 01:27 PM
So something is not working to tell your engine to turn off electricity. Most likely is the ignition switch or a short. A volt meter and a fsm is your best bet. You never know how the guy before you wired up the engine or any other fun features. People are stupid when it comes to wiring.

240Lover770
08-03-2014, 02:57 PM
So something is not working to tell your engine to turn off electricity. Most likely is the ignition switch or a short. A volt meter and a fsm is your best bet. You never know how the guy before you wired up the engine or any other fun features. People are stupid when it comes to wiring.

the thing is the guy is a wiring guru. but heres and update.
UPDATE:
while the power FC was still on i scrolled through the sensor check option and saw that WTRT flashes and AIRT flashes. like its trying to tell me its bad but the wire still works. like its intermittent or something. so ill figure out what those abbreviations mean this is also when the relay clicks when i take it out and put it back in.i also notice that if i start the car and turn it completely off with out going to ACC first, none of this happens. its when i switch to ACC then pull the key out is when everything stays on. only way to turn off the PFC and the accessory lights is to pull the EGI relay and the big 75A fuse for the accessory lights....weird. but i have been in the FSM. im gonna look more today. i also have a friend coming over with a multimeter. still woud like some pointers from you guys

GT_Cruiser
08-03-2014, 05:06 PM
Had the same issue as you, at first tried using the AC fan relay circuit and temp sensor with a FAL dual 12in system...kept blowing fuses and relays and toasting heavy gauge wire. Went full manual with a honkin' big relay and direct 50amp fused battery connect. No trouble since then but requires a manual switching on and off of fans. I live in AZ so heat is a bugger out here and the FAL dual 12's get the job done. I would like to hot wire one with the temp sensor and let the other rely on the AC circuit but have not met anyone good at setting that up. I don't mind the manual dependency as it makes me more a part of the machine and I added a red off blue on switch to remind me, but you have to be mindful for any you let get behind the wheel to do the same. No heating problems since...3 years and counting but still hopeful we can put it on automatic...

240Lover770
08-03-2014, 05:21 PM
Had the same issue as you, at first tried using the AC fan relay circuit and temp sensor with a FAL dual 12in system...kept blowing fuses and relays and toasting heavy gauge wire. Went full manual with a honkin' big relay and direct 50amp fused battery connect. No trouble since then but requires a manual switching on and off of fans. I live in AZ so heat is a bugger out here and the FAL dual 12's get the job done. I would like to hot wire one with the temp sensor and let the other rely on the AC circuit but have not met anyone good at setting that up. I don't mind the manual dependency as it makes me more a part of the machine and I added a red off blue on switch to remind me, but you have to be mindful for any you let get behind the wheel to do the same. No heating problems since...3 years and counting but still hopeful we can put it on automatic...

as of right now the fans are working fine on the spare oem blue relay i put in. im still trying to trouble shoot why all these other things are happening. currently reading schematics and being pissed off in the heat of hawaii

240Lover770
08-03-2014, 08:57 PM
bump it up. still no solution

Ilya
08-03-2014, 09:23 PM
You should not be able to pull the key out while in ACC...

Airt and wtrt look like air temp and water temp respectively.

240Lover770
08-03-2014, 09:26 PM
You should not be able to pull the key out while in ACC...

Airt and wtrt look like air temp and water temp respectively.

No I meant I would turn the key to ACC then fully turn the key to the off position and pull it out. The PFC and accessory would still be on after that

240Lover770
08-09-2014, 09:07 PM
:facepalm:Embarrassing update : it was the alternator. My thing is why would the car do ALL that just to say hey your alternator is bad. :facepalm:

Ilya
08-10-2014, 09:48 AM
Low voltages case brownout condition in many electronics in the car. 10v instead of the expected 14 is almost a third of the power difference

240Lover770
08-11-2014, 12:19 AM
Low voltages case brownout condition in many electronics in the car. 10v instead of the expected 14 is almost a third of the power difference

definitely right