ggino85

iTrader: (1)

EDIT: i got the car started and made it home. I'm now trying to figure out exactly why it wasn't starting. If something just got wet or an alternator problem? The voltage gauge reads at around 10v with just the ignition on but then jumps to 13v when motor is running.

Hello everyone, i really need some help. I drove the TA up to my work in the mountains. It had been a really wet day here but it was not raining when i was driving. As i was pulling into work, maybe going 10mph this happened.....

Car shut off, low oil light flashed (oil is full), then gauge voltage dropped to 0 (but radio and lights were on), Oil pressure maxed out (even though engine was off) and temperature gauge is maxed out (even though engine is off). The odometer is only showing a dim light, no mileage numbers or anything. The radio lights up bright and normal and also the headlights light up. The engine will crank but not fire......I have wanted a few hours now and the same symptoms exist. The gauges still read, temp maxed out, oil pressure maxed out, and voltage at 0. But the car has power, the radio turns on and the lights flip up and turn on. Whats weird is that the air bag light stays on even when the ignition is off. This never did this before.

I have checked fuses under the hood, did not look at the ones on the side of the drivers door jam.

Anyone have any ideas, I'm completely at a loss

DietCoke

iTrader: (18)

got water in somewhere, or your 98 pcm took a crap, which they're known to do.

GTkllr

Could also be a ground. Had a pretty similar thing happen to mine, gauges maxed out, or drop all the way down. car would shut off randomly, but also run when I turned it back on. Found it was the grounds behind drivers side head were loose. Tightened it up and haven't had a problem since!

ggino85

iTrader: (1)

It sat all night and when i tried start it in the morning it fired up for a split second and then died and would not fire up again. The air bag light is still on and when you turn on the ignition, the gauges will zero out but when you shut off the ignition, the gauges will max out again and stay maxed out until you turn on the ignition again. Also the odometer is still not showing mileage or anything, just a dim red/orange light.

and the last thing i forgot to mention was there is definitely a burnt electrical smell coming from around the steering wheel.

ggino85

iTrader: (1)

Im going out to check the grounds on the head now.

edit: it got too dark outside for me to check the grounds on the head. but.......

I was out poking around with a flashlight and i noticed that the alternator has a red and white wire coming from its plug on the top, but as i follow the two wires up toward the main harness it somewhere turns into only a red wire. So the white wire is taped up somewhere. Im going to get underneath and see whats up. The previous owner must have done something funny with this wiring. I'll take pics tomorrow.

Don't know if this is something that would be causing my issues but it definitely needs fixing.

ggino85

iTrader: (1)

I did some research on here and i learned the wire i was referring to in the previous post is the exciter wire and the 98's only have one red wire coming from the harness, so mine is normal. The plug for the alternator was replaced but it looks like it was done correctly. Either way i took the exciter wire out and wiped it down, i don't have cleaner up here in the mountains. Then i checked the bolt on the back of the drivers head, it seemed tight but i got a wrench back there and turned on it, it tightened about an 1/8 of a turn. Then i checked all the ground wires, I found one ground wire that was connecting to the battery was slightly exposed. It looks like one of the pulleys rubbed on it at one point. The wires don't appear to be damaged just the insulation. So i taped it up with electrical tape. Then i hooked my battery back up and gave it a shot......low and behold she started right up. The odometer is working and everything is normal except the check gauges light is still illuminated on the dash.

Anyone have any idea what could have been the issue? dirty exciter wire plug? grounds on head? exposed battery ground? or do you guys think the alternator just got really wet and today it finally dried out? Im scared to drive it home not really knowing what the issue is or was.

GTkllr

Hmm..hard to tell without being there to test things. If I were you I'd drive it around a little and see what happens. Coulda been you fixed the problem by just moving the wires, cleaning the connector lol electrical problems are touchy sometimes.

ggino85

iTrader: (1)

I was thinking the same thing (drive it around), the only problem with driving around up here where I am is there is no cell service. Once you leave the property you are own you'r own for about 45 min until you hit cell range. I've been randomly starting it and letting it warm up but i know eventually I'm going to have to take the plunge and drive her lol.

ggino85

iTrader: (1)

Well.....i bit the bullet and drove home and it made it. Not problems at all! I did notice my dash lights would dim a little every time i pressed on the brakes. My voltage on the dash read exactly at 13v. But she made it home! thanks to all for your advice and tips.....now I'm going to try and see why my lights are dimming. Maybe i need to do the big 3 upgrade. I do have a 10' and an amp. The dimming happens whether or not the stereo is on, I'm not sure the big 3 upgrade would cure this issue but I should probably do it anyway.

ggino85

iTrader: (1)

I finally had some free time so i put the car up on ramps and i have been checking things out from underneath. The positive wire that goes to the back of the alternator was missing its little boot cover. Well.....not missing, just wasn't covering the stud/wire + connection on the alternator (could water have got on there and caused my issue?)....

I don't see anything out of the ordinary...like burned wires or corroded anything....while I'm at it I'm going to tighten my heat shields for the thousandth time, I really want to just take them off but they cover the fuel lines. I think the headers are too close to run the car without the heat shields.....what do you guys think?

It started raining so I'm waiting for it to stop so i can go back out and look underneath some more.