All lights went off on dash except air bag?

[Penelope Garcia]

Please forgive me if this has been covered!! I started driving (no issues) and all of my dash lights and radio went off. I couldn't power the windows up either. The interior lights in the from and back came on. The car was a little harder to steer. I parked it and turned ignition off. When I immediately restarted it it was back to normal. Any idea? Is it safe to drive home? I'm posting from the parking lot because I am not sure. Thanks!!!

 

[fudge12]

Check the battery. The LS is known to do very weird things when either the alternator or battery is on its way out. Do you have an after market sound system installed? Try disconnecting it and see if you're able to recreate any of the issues.

 

[Penelope Garcia]

Check the battery. The LS is known to do very weird things when either the alternator or battery is on its way out. Do you have an after market sound system installed? Try disconnecting it and see if you're able to recreate any of the issues.

Thank you! I drove home with no issues. Will test those tomorrow.

 

[RigsLS]

May want to check/cleanup/retighten the battery terminal connections. Also with the amount of rain as of late, open your spare wheel cover and check at the very bottom for standing water. (shorting grounds)

 

[LS4me]

Also with the amount of rain as of late,

Really???? Hasn't really rained here since (I think.....) January!!!!! We had 3 days of winter this year and have about half (5") our annual rainfall!!!!!!!

Oh, premium is ~$4.30......

 

[RigsLS]

You and your LA weather, like living in a bubble from the rest of the world.
Trust us, it snows and rains in other parts of the country now and then.


should see our gas prices climbing as of lately ... the excuse: WAIT FOR IT ... "The current UNREST in the middle east. Yeah! I'll buy that for a dollar considering we here in Canada actually do more export then import ... I can see how that needs to cost me more per litre.

Hell raise it another penny cuz of FIFA 2014 why don't we.

 

[LS4me]

You and your LA weather, like living in a bubble from the rest of the world.
Trust us, it snows and rains in other parts of the country now and then.


should see our gas prices climbing as of lately ... the excuse: WAIT FOR IT ... "The current UNREST in the middle east. Yeah! I'll buy that for a dollar considering we here in Canada actually do more export then import ... I can see how that needs to cost me more per litre.

Hell raise it another penny cuz of FIFA 2014 why don't we.

LA gets more rain then we do!!!

Yea, I heard about a gas station having a mechanical issue so they had to raise the price. Between that and the switch back and forth between winter and summer blends I can't keep up!!

 

[Penelope Garcia]

I had the battery and alternator tested. Everything was good. The only thing odd was that when the car was turned off, (no lights on at all), it was still drawing 11.64a.

 

[Penelope Garcia]

May want to check/cleanup/retighten the battery terminal connections. Also with the amount of rain as of late, open your spare wheel cover and check at the very bottom for standing water. (shorting grounds)

I didn't see any water down there when we were testing the battery. Didn't see any moisture at all.

 

[joegr]

I didn't see any water down there when we were testing the battery. Didn't see any moisture at all.

I'd bet that you have a soon to fail alternator. The brushes are probably worn out.

You can get something like this:
http://www.amazon.com/INNOVA-3721-B...522&sr=8-2&keywords=car+battery+plug+in+gauge
Then drive around with it plugged in. If the voltage isn't pretty steady and inside the range of 13.8 to 14.8 volts (should ideally be 14.2), then you have an alternator problem.

When you go to replace it, be sure to use a Motorcraft alternator. A rebuilt Motorcraft will be better for you than a new of any other brand. The gen I LS uses a strange alternator control, and apparently the other brands aren't aware of this.

 

[Penelope Garcia]

I'd bet that you have a soon to fail alternator. The brushes are probably worn out.

You can get something like this:
http://www.amazon.com/INNOVA-3721-B...522&sr=8-2&keywords=car+battery+plug+in+gauge
Then drive around with it plugged in. If the voltage isn't pretty steady and inside the range of 13.8 to 14.8 volts (should ideally be 14.2), then you have an alternator problem.

When you go to replace it, be sure to use a Motorcraft alternator. A rebuilt Motorcraft will be better for you than a new of any other brand. The gen I LS uses a strange alternator control, and apparently the other brands aren't aware of this.

I will check it out. The test confirmed that the alternator was working as it should though?

 

[Penelope Garcia]

Just did some digging. I heard some weird sounds from this area. Still reading it.

http://www.lincolnvscadillac.com/forum/showthread.php?88245-Under-Hood-Jump-Start

 

[joegr]

I will check it out. The test confirmed that the alternator was working as it should though?

The thing is that when the alternator is just starting to fail, it can run perfectly fine for several minutes, stop working for a few minutes, and then go back to working for a while. To be certain, you'd have to monitor the charging voltage while driving for several days.

Of course, it could be a loose wire or other issue instead. I throw out alternator because it is the more common problem.

 

[Penelope Garcia]

The thing is that when the alternator is just starting to fail, it can run perfectly fine for several minutes, stop working for a few minutes, and then go back to working for a while. To be certain, you'd have to monitor the charging voltage while driving for several days.

Of course, it could be a loose wire or other issue instead. I throw out alternator because it is the more common problem.

I will keep an eye on it. Scared me because everything went off and it made a noise by the front passenger wheel. Then is was fine the next start up!

 

[joegr]

I will keep an eye on it. Scared me because everything went off and it made a noise by the front passenger wheel. Then is was fine the next start up!

Well, I'd certainly check the tightness of the power junction bolt there (both on the inside behind the carpet and under the hood behind the wheel well cover). Be sure to disconnect the ground cable on the battery first.
What year is your LS? Years 2003 to 2006 will also have a large fuse in that area for the engine cooling fan.

 

[Penelope Garcia]

Well, I'd certainly check the tightness of the power junction bolt there (both on the inside behind the carpet and under the hood behind the wheel well cover). Be sure to disconnect the ground cable on the battery first.
What year is your LS? Years 2003 to 2006 will also have a large fuse in that area for the engine cooling fan.

It is a 2002. Is the power junction that black fuse box there?

 

[joegr]

It is a 2002. Is the power junction that black fuse box there?

No.
It's a power pass through that gets power from the battery (via a cable that runs through the interior) and passes it through the firewall to another cable to runs to the starter and the alternator. Peel back the carpet, and you can't miss it. Be aware that it might be loose on the other side instead (or as well).

 

[Penelope Garcia]

The ground was loose. Thank you. Mechanic did say that the alt may be ready to go. Guess I will order one and have on standby. Thanks!