Been noticing that my idiot lights turn on and off while I'm driving but don't feel any difference in how the engine feels or anything. I recorded the lights on my way home from work. If anyone could tell me what to check id appreciate it.



Thanks in advance guys

 

Chances are the alternator is having issues as the idiot lights coming on is a warning sign of such activity. Does this occur during the day as well?

 

Usually that would tell you that your Alternator is about to go.
But you could try checking the connections at the alternator,especially the 2 wire Plug(connector) at the back of it for corrosion.
another guess is a cold solder joint in the idiot cluster,but then again your clock is still functioning when this happens,so I am opting that it is not the problem.

 

^ this was my first thought. You can check all the connections and grounds. And then I'd take it to one of the chain auto parts stores and have them check the alternator output.

 

Yeah it happens almost every time I drive regardless of day or night

 

My clock has always had issues with turning off and stuff. It always resets so idk if that would be a bad connection on the cluster?

 

It could also be caused by the W/B wire running from the alternator to the Alternator Warning Light Relay in the CPU. If this wire grounds out then the idiot lights all come on. When the alternator fails the W/B wire receives a ground which then is sent to the warning light relay which then turns on the idiot lights. Thus your problem is likely a function of a failing alternator or a wire accidentally grounding out.

 

Thanks for the input guys. I'm most likely going to remove my alternator and see if I could get it tested for output and see what happens and go from there.

 

Interesting. ..

 

I got my charging system checked and tested at work and everything checks out fine so possibly a wire is loose or being grounded out to the chassis somewhere?

 

Testing alternators are a precarious thing as it doesn't always prove effective. One thing you can do is to unplug the two wire plug from the alternator and then unplug the largest plug from the CPU and in each of the two plugs will be a White/Black wire (not Black/White) and take an ohm reading on the W/B wire to see if it is a low ohm reading or not. If it is high then it is grounding. If it is low then shake/giggle the W/B wire near the alternator and see if the ohm reading stays the same or not.

The Yellow/Blue wire in the large CPU plug runs to the idiot lights. When this wire has a ground on it turns on the lights. Given this, the wire may be grounding out and causing your problem.

 

now that you mention the CPU I had taken apart the passenger side under dash area to see if the alarm had its own relay or something (this was before I knew S5 alarms are in the CPU) and as I was trying to disconnect the multi wire CPU plug the lights flashed just as they do in the video. is it possible the plug is coming loose?

 

Actually. I made a mistake earlier and assumed you had an S4 when you actually have an S5. Difference being is the alternator warning light relay on the S5 is found within the idiot light unit and not the CPU.

 

So all the lights coming on in the cluster is the actual warning of the alternator going bad?

 

Yes, or the relay in the cluster is receiving a ground signal or the relay is problematic. If you shook the W/B wire off the back of the alternator and the idiot lights twiched on and off then that takes some of the trouble source away from the alternator.

 

Word. Forsure man. I think all the connections are fine but ill double check. And as the lights on the cluster turn on the voltage drops just a tiny bit and my dash lights dim for a second. I think it might be a bad alternator

 

You can briefly unplug the two wire plug containg the W/B wire and see if the lights still flash while taking the car for a short jaunt. If they don't then you know the alternator is the source of the problem. Doing so will help narrow down the problem.