Crazy Dash Lights

Maybe the CPU has a virus.

On a serious note, there may be a relay that controls those particular components, (maybe on fuse panel or under hood in a black box), that is periodically malfunctioning. You should be able to find the one that controls the dash functions. I'd try replacing that first. They're relatively cheap, and they just plug in.

A virus? ......that is funny. If it is a virus maybe I could kill it......if it is alive.

I'll check into the relay you mentioned. Thanks.

Ah the joys of an intermittent connection. I should first warn you that you may not ever find out what is your problem. You'll only find out a batch of things that seem to make no difference.

My first thing I'd look into is the ground lines to the dash. OOOPS I almost forgot the real first thing you should do. Before you poke around anywhere in the dash, identify which devices in your car need to be reset with service/security codes whenever you remove the battery. Your radio, and GPS are possible examples. Have the security codes you need before starting to troubleshoot anything.

Now since your intermittent connection affects many things at once, look for the wires that provide the ground connections for your dash. Look also for pinched cables. I would also look for poor fuse connections.

Yeah. Good to check grounds. I'm out of my league here. My newest vehicle is a 99, and I can still disconnect/reconnect the battery without wreaking havok.

In fact, if I disconnect/reconnect the battery in my wife's 97 Camry, the check engine light stays off just long enough to pass inspection.

It's worked for 2 years now. No money or troubleshooting required.

I agree with Fred. As usual.

It can't be a main power cable or the whole car would go goofy when the problem occurs.

Sounds to me like the ignition switch is having problems...It does have an "Avoid Like The Plague" rating..The problems most common are electrical...This site(see link) lists the complaints, actions taken, and results...

http://www.carcomplaints.com/Chevrolet/Impala/2002/

Look on the bright side: At least it isn't a Cavalier !

Believe it or not this has a worse rating than the Cavalier...

Just a guess, but I'd suspect that the problem will be somewhere along some sort of common electrical lines. What kind of gauges are these, anyway? Ammeter, oil pressure, RPMs, what?

If you've got some electrical background, you could swing by Autozone and see if they have a Chiltons or Haynes manual that has the electrical schematics in it. Then, kill the power (assuming it's not a living entity. And don't get us started on the meaning of "sentient". ) and locate the lines that are common to the gauges and warning light control circuitry and start tracing them out one at a time. They'll probably be wrapped in a harness, but that can't be helped.

Look for frayed wiring, or wiring that is rubbing against something (probably metal), loose connections, and possibly bad connectors. Intermittent problems are the worlds worst thing to troubleshoot, and probably put here just to teach us patience. Above all, be safe!

Oh, wait! One thing to check before going through all that trouble. Take a look at the fuse box(es) and see if it's possible you have a loose fuse. It won't be blown or your problem would be permanent. That's quick, easy, and cheap, which means that it's probably not the source of your problem.

I do have SOME electrical background. Actually, I ran the electrical system for my entire house (with the help of a couple of books and internet advice)....and had it checked out by my wife's cousin, an electrician. HOWEVER, 12V systems in cars and campers are something that I just haven't been able to get a good grasp on. I guess it's the grounding thing. What I usually do when I have a problem is check to see if there are good ground connections. A couple of times I have found loose grounds which solved the problem. But, with a tightly closed in system with the newer cars, it's getting harder and harder to do.

I agree about cars being made harder to work on! I think Detroit has a staff hired just for that purpose. Engineers that went over to the Dark Side!

I'm still kind of leaning toward a grounding problem or maybe (I hope not) an intermittent problem with what Saturn calls a "body control module". It's probably called something else on your car but serves the same function, a centralized brain to control everything from door locks to brake lights and on and on. You might do some Google searches on that and see if you get any decent hits.

my 2002 grand am does the exact thing. i was driving with a code scanner plugged in and it did it more frequently when it attempted some emissions test through the scanner. the fuel gauge and tach maxed out and then fell to zero like it had stalled. although it did not stall. i do have an occasional short in the oxygen sensor cabling giving the trouble code which annoys me. only does it when warm i believe.

I have a similar problem with my 03 Monty Carlo, every 10 to 12 days the antitheft system will engage and keep my car from starting. I wait about 10 min and it resets and everything is fine until the next cycle. I replaced a lot of stuff trying to find the problem, so I don't recommend you doing that. The dealer of the car was no help as well. I finally found the answer I needed after reading the owner's manual from front to back. The remote control to lock and unlock the car was tied into the security system. If you stop using the control the computer automatically assumes the car has been stolen so it activates the antitheft system which keeps the car from starting, the system is designed to reset itself after 10 min and allows you to start the car again. I believe the dealer has the ability to shut this off, but I am not sure. You may have a similar problem with the computer resetting itself because of some preprogrammed system that has stopped working properly. If it does not preset a problem then I would just leave it alone, this is usually the cheapest way to go. Just a thought

"We are to become the change we want to see in the World"

Maybe you have or had a 'little feller' living behind the dash, the kind who likes to gnaw on wires. I have had several experiences involving such antics. Up until recently, I was of the belief that such gnawing was to eat the wire insulation but I learned that it is actually a tooth honing activity. Who'd a thunk it?

One of my neighbors had traded his wife's Yaris for his daughter's Jetta and left the Jetta outside for a few days. He called me to take a look at why it would not start and I found a harness of about 8 wires leading into a component of the control system all chewed off. In his case, it may have been a rabbit (no connection) as, when I opened the hood to inspect, I was startled by a small rabbit hiding near the severed wires. I don't know which of us was more startled, but the rabbit evidently found a home elsewhere. Fortunately, there was enough wire left at the connector to splice and apply heat shrink to each wire.

My mother in law had the same problem, plus I have found nest, chewed up paper, and in one case I found what looked like a badger in the frame of one car, I poked at him and he got out of the frame and ran away. Those animals can be a problem that's for sure.

I do not believe in coincidence. There is a common power supply, or ground, or both that causes your problem. Look at a wiring diagram for your dash. Hopefully you will find out where the ground point is for that circuit. If the Haynes, or Chilton manual does not get that specific, find the power supply for the items in question. Tap into it with a small light. Then watch if the light goes out when the circuit goes dead. If the light goes dead also, work your way backwards in the power supply circuit till the light does not go out. That will be the bad connection.

If the light does not go out, it is a ground for the circuit, or the bad connection is closer to the gauges and warning lights than where you have tapped into the circuit with your test light.

Are the lights that illuminate the gauges also going out? If they do, suspect the ground. If not, suspect the power supply. Good luck.

Just wanted to let you know that I have been reading your responses. Thanks. Unfortunately, I tweeked my back, again, and I won't be able to do any serious investigating for a while. Keep sending suggestions. I'll keep reading.

A clarification: When the guages peg, all of them peg. The speedometer goes all the way up and returns, same thing for ammeter, temp. guage, etc. And all of the warning lights come on for a second or two then go off. I hope the remedy is something as simple as having an exorcism performed.

I think you have an alternator problem. Often; before it goes completely gerfuncta, the voltage regulator will allow some funny currents. Sometimes high, Sometimes low, Sometimes alternating (AC I mean). I guess it's from the electronic components like rectifier diodes breaking down before they fail. If this is the original alternator, then it is just about right on time (10 years) for it to fail. If it's a rebuild, they are often faulty right out of the box.

Have the alternator tested at an alternator rebuild shop. They usually know more than the average technician. Also the next time you have driven the vehicle for more than an hour, open the hood an put your hand on the battery (carefully). If it seems overly hot, then it's a definite sign your alternator is failing. I've seen the case actually melt from being overcharged by a funky alternator that was causing the same symptoms you described.

PMoon might be on to something there with the alternator idea. I'm no mechanic but it sounds pretty reasonable. You might be able to sort of check that out with a voltmeter with the car idling in the driveway. If it's the alternator, revving the engine while watching the meter might give you some idea if that's the problem. Autozone can check your alternator, but you have to pull it off the car so they can put it on their tester. A rebuild shop might be able to test it in place, I don't know.

And, I know this is going to sound goofy, but I'm an Okie country boy, so what the heck. How about getting one of those plugs that goes into the cigarette lighter socket, like this one:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/RoadPro-12V-Fused-Replacement-Cigarette-Lighter-Plug-Leads-/200707077066?pt=Car_Audio_Video&vxp=mtr&hash=item2ebb12f3ca

and connecting it to the voltmeter. Then get a rider and have them watch the voltages while y'all take a drive and see if it'll happen again. Just be careful not to short any wires!

Hopefully, if it's just a loose wire responding to bumps & shakes in the road, you'll be able to get a glimpse of what's happening to the 12VDC system.

Anyway, good luck with all this mess. I bookmarked the discussion and will check it every couple of days to see how things are going.

Your about due for another "scheduled" event.

Are you ready to capture the moment?