89FC Alpino White

Hey if you are reading this thanks before hand, just for thinking about helping. So i have an 88 TII that is having some really weird electrical problems. One day i started my car, and i have to hold revs for a little while and warm it up because i have no cold start for my car to hold idle. So i try letting it hold idle after a little while of holding the rpms. It almost died because it wasn't quite warm enough to idle and it got to the point where all the idiot cluster lights came on but i saved my car from dying. Once i did save it from dying and got back to holding rpms those idiot cluster lights and shift up light etc. never turned off. So im like "huh" weird, but ok. So i just warmed it up and then later on turned it off hoping those lights would go away the next time i started the car.

This was not the case, they have since been on and only go away on occasion. Also sometimes they all turn off when the car is just idling. It seems like this has escalated into a whole bunch of more problems. First weird thing i noticed was, my sub woofer wouldn't work when those lights were on. Second, the next day i noticed my lights would get brighter anytime i rev'd. Third, i noticed my windows went up faster than i ever knew they could. Fourth, one of the few times i went WOT while having this problem my car didn't seem like it wanted to power out past, i'd say about 5500k, so as soon as i felt a power loss i put the clutch in and shifted to a higher gear and drove normal. Other times it would power out just fine.

Onto what i have done to try to figure out the problem. I have checked all of the fuses in both the main fuse box and the engine's fuse box. I have checked most of the engines harness for melted/burnt/broken wires. found one broken fixed it but it didn't solve the problem. Tried re-grounding as many things as i could think i could re-ground. I got my alternator tested and it was bad. Only producing 11.23 volts. Tried replacing with a used s4 alternator and go to turn the key, i now have no power at all when i turn the key. I have power but turning the key does nothing at all, my "room" lights still come on when i open the door and my headlights will still pop up. But when i turn the key it doesn't turn accessories such as my stereo, windows, logicon etc. on as it should. So even with the key all the way forward i cant open my windows or turn on my stereo. I'm totally lost, really could use help.

So questions.

1. If my car was wired to run an s5 alt with the L/S wire hookups and i put an s4 alt on there with the L/R wire hookups, would the s4 alt even work? (my alt before was an s5 alt, worked fine until i knew it was going bad)

2. Is this a short in my harness?

3. Are there any other things that could cause this?

4. Should i start pulling my dash looking for shorts behind there?



I really really would appreciate anyones 2 cents. Anyone!

Thanks Again.

Landon303

iTrader: (25)

Hey dude.

First thing that immediately came to my mind was alternator, & sure enough that's what that was, causing the warning cluster lights to be thrown.

All you can get to "work" is the interior lights, but no radio, or ANYTHING connected to turning the key into "ON' or "ACC"? Do the headlights come on?

I had that exact case on mine. I ended up having a cable that lead into the fuse block, under the hood, that had a bad connection. It was where the OEM female crimp on fitting, crimps onto the wire itself. I jiggled EVERYTHING wire wise to find it. Basically, just started grabbing all the wire harness, in a systematic way, starting at the battery, & just shaking it, with the key in the "on" posistion, seeing if I could bump some continutity into the short, & hopefully find it. I ended up finding it after about an hour haha.

I'd be glad to take & upload a picture of it, let me know, but that is my suggestions. Good luck, you're almost there

89FC Alpino White

Landon303 i appreciate the reply. I will try following all the wires front the alt and the battery. Does anyone know about my first question though?

Thanks again.

satch

iTrader: (1)

The idiot lights coming on were a function of the alternator going south.

What alternator was originally on the car that you replaced? I think you stated it was an S5. Is this correct and you now replaced it with an S4. Is this correct? Either way the S5 and S4 alternators are wired up differently.

The B/W wire on an S5 gets constant voltage while an S4 B/W wire would get switched voltage.

If you hooked the S4 alternator up to constant voltage I think perhaps it would likely drain the battery.

89FC Alpino White

thanks Satch. Well i know my battery isn't drained but isn't the b/w wire also the ignition switch on an s4 alt? if it is and the s5 alt worked before does that mean my car cant have an s4 alt because of the different wiring setup??

sorry im kind of a newb when it comes to electrical and all these sort of things.

Thanks again.

89FC Alpino White

Also Landon. My headlights do still work yes. Its just the "ON" and "ACC" dont do anything as if the ignition switch isn't doing anything. Could this have to do with the s4 alt? being as i used to have an s5 alt?

satch

iTrader: (1)

The B/W wire on an S4 alternator comes from the 15 amp Engine fuse in the interior fuse box while on an S5 the B/W wire runs to the Engine fuse box. Two completely different things. The B/W wire at the ignition switch is definitely not the B/W wire for the S4 alternator. The car can have a different alternator but they must not be wired the same.

The reason why your headlights work is because they are powered up by the Head fuse in the Engine fuse box and don't require a key in the ignition to work as it is completely unrelated to the ignition switch.

What you need to do with regards to the S4 alternator is to wire it up properly if you want it to work. It's that straightfoward.

You need to recheck the Main fuse again as it may have blown when you wired up the S4 alternator improperly.

There is a Black wire that provides constant voltage to the ignition switch and anything that works w/ the key to ACC or On or Start demands that this Black wire has voltage on it. If the Black wire has no voltage then the ignition switch is rendered completely useless, so check the Main fuse and if that is good then find the Black wire/cable under the dash and ***** it with a pin and read if there is voltage on it or not. No key necessary. The Black wire should be located to the side of the steering wheel which is closest to the driver door. This Black wire runs to the ignition switch in the same plug as a B/W wire.

89FC Alpino White

So...how exactly do i hook up the s4 alt if the main fuse is good??

satch

iTrader: (1)

There are two plugs connected to the Main relay, one has 2 wires while the other has 4 wires. Focus on the 2 wire plug which has a solid Black wire in addition to the Black/White wire. Tap into this B/W wire if you can. I would solder the wire from the alternator into this wire. When soldering apply the heating element of the soldering iron to the wire itself and as it heats up then touch the wire with solder and the solder should melt onto the wire to create a good solder connection. If you attempt to touch the solder to the heating element to drip the solder onto the wire then you will invariably cause a cold solder connection which will be a cause of future problems.

The alternator not being hooked up properly is unrelated to the ignition switch problem you have unless the Main fuse was blown due to the alternator wiring then there would be a relationship between the two. You could also have disrupted the connection at the Engine fuse box to the wire that supplies voltage to the ignition switch when connecting up the S4 alternator.

89FC Alpino White

sorry im such a newb...but is the main relay the engine fuse box?

satch

iTrader: (1)

Absolutely not. It is located by the Brake master cylinder and trailing coil and is mounted up against the driver's side fender and is a metal box that has two plugs to it underneath. Not to be confused with the Starter Cut relay (which has one plug and not two) for those cars equipped w/factory alarm.

89FC Alpino White

i dont think my car has a main relay because i found the little metal box but it only has one plug going to it and one fat wire?? does this mean my engine is s5?? i think certain parts of my engine are s5 but i have s4 radiator caps, since i have the 2 caps, 1 on the stem and one on the rad its self. i have an s5 turbo as well but i still assumed it was s4. being as it is an s4 chassis. do the s5's have this main relay, or is it in a different spot or something?

Also how do i check the main fuse since it cant just pull out of the fuse box?

satch

iTrader: (1)

All S4's and S5's came from the factory with a Main relay.

The Main fuse is screwed into the fuse box from the side. There is also a wire/cable coming from the Main fuse. If this wire/Cable has voltage then the fuse is good. The wire from the Main fuse drops below the fuse box by about a foot or to a black plug which you could check for voltage at that point to determine if the Main fuse was good.

If your previous alternator had the B/W wire from the two wire plug on the back going to the Engine fuse box then it is likely an S5 alternator especially if the wire had constant voltage. If the B/W wire only had switched voltage (meaning w/key to on) then it was an S4 alternator.

89FC Alpino White

well i know for sure it was an s5 alt but if it worked with an s5 alt. does that mean s4 wont work without certain modifications.

thanks again satch for helping me out soo much.

satch

iTrader: (1)

This has been stated already!

" Like a I was a trying to a say," the S4 B/W wire needs switched power and not constant power.

just startn

iTrader: (33)

B/W= Black/White

89FC Alpino White

sorry ya. well im stuck on finding this main relay...i see the one with four wires going into it but theres nothing else. ive looked under the trailing cooils and all around it.

satch

iTrader: (1)

Does your car still have the emissions solenoids?

89FC Alpino White

ok i found the main relay...so do i solder the the mostly black with a white stripe wire for the alt to the b/w wire on that fuse.

satch

iTrader: (1)

Did you find the two wire plug on the Main relay that has a Black/White wire and a solid Black wire. If you did then solder the B/W wire in this two wire plug to the B/W wire of the alternator that is plugged into the back of the alternator.

89FC Alpino White

so i solder the black and white alt wire to the black and white main relay wire, correct?

so there would be only one wire running to the alternator after i do this??

sorry if i'm dumb and making you frustrated with me.

satch

iTrader: (1)

There are a total of THREE wires going to the alternator. ONE is bolted to the side of the alternator. The other TWO are plugged into the back of the alternator. This plug has a W/B wire and you guessed it a B/W wire. ONE plus TWO equals THREE wires!



B+ terminal (Black wire), L terminal (W/B wire) and R terminal (B/W wire).

89FC Alpino White

yes i realize this butttttttt....when i solder the b/w wire from the alt plug, do i still want that connected to the alt or only to the main relay b/w wire.

satch

iTrader: (1)

Of course you still want it connected to the alternator or there wouldn't be three wires connected to the alternator, would there? Plus the only difference between the S5 and S4 alt. is one gets constant voltage on the B/W wire while the S/4 gets switched power instead. If the B/W wire was then disconnected from the S4 alternator then how would it receive switched power? And if the B/W wire was disconnected to the alternator then where would the wire that is to soldered to the B/W wire at the two wire Main rely plug connect to? Nothing?

89FC Alpino White

got it done. i havent drove it yet cuz i need to adjust the idle screw but its fixed im 99% sure.

thanks man for helping and for putting up with my newbness.