Electrical problems on a B4

S

silverbullitt

Petrolheads
ok heres a weird one
went out this morning to go to work , and i noticed the dash clock had reset itself , fired up the engine , and started as always ..
went to turn my spot lights on and heard the radio make a crackle like it does when i turn it on ....

went to work , and was driving around town today , and when i pressed the brake pedal ,it made the same crackle ....

went to start her again a few minutes ago , just to see what was going on .... so i started the engine everything was grand ... went to turn on my HIDS and they came on , fine .... went to try the spots and the same crackle again , next thing the car stuttered and all the dash lights came on and went off again , and then the HIDS started to flicker ....
so i turned her off
anyone able to shed any light( pardon the pun) on this ,

im thinking maybe the cold weather has shagged the battery ,
the alternator is fooked ,
or have i a dodgy relay in the rear lights
or a bad earth ....

or could this have anything to do with a starter motor thats on the way out ... as a couple of times this week , its made a noise when it disengages ..


any help on this would be greatly appreciated ..
cheers
ed
 
These problem can be very annoying to figure out, from experience.

But rest assured its nothing to do with the starter motor whatsoever. It could be a bad earth or a bad positive to one or more than 1 circuit in the car. If the clock reset itself then the power to the clock had been cut (or less than 9/10 volts) at some stage. It could also be a low power out from the battery (but I doubt it). If the alternator is fooked then the battery light on the dash should come on, and if you keep driving on it, the battery would be too dead to start the car again the next time round.

What makes you say a dodgey relay in the rear lights? when the front lights where the one flickering?

HID's use more power than a standard 55/60 watt bulb only when initially firing, after that they use less power, so once they had enough power to fire i'd rule them out as a cause of the fault. The flicker could be a problem with power supply or earth.

With so many problems all occuring at the same time, its more than likely a single cause.
 
i say a dodgy relay in the rear lights , cos i had one go before in a honda civic i had years ago ... in that instance when i stepped on the brake pedal the front dips would come on .... every time ...

it was a weird one as well ,

but in this instance the problem seems to be linked to the rear lights somehow ...

i.e i put on the spots , the rear lights would be activated too , and the car goes epileptic

i press the brakes , th rear lights would be activated also ....and the car goes epileptic

its the only commonality i can find
 
But different circuits, The brake and tail light circuits are totally seperate, other than they run through the same fuse.

I think you need to keep an eye out for other things in common :thumbsup:
 
Better look at a new alternator so i guess .....

funny thing is , it started fine this morning , and when i turned on the lights nothing out of the ordinary happened ....
im baffled !!

And scoobymaniac ,
i know the brake and rear lights are different circuits , but from what i saw before where the front lights would come on when i pressed the brake ,it was a dodgy relay then , i was thinking the same might be true here
 
I think i have an altenator at the garage for a b4 ,iv a b4 engine 90% sure the altinator is on it. let me know if you interested
 
AFAIK the B4 alternator is the same as the V5/V6 impreza and possibly newage but i'm not sure on that.
 
if ye want to get it reconditioned let me know, ive a lad beside me here that does them. he did mine after the bearing went and ive had no probs since
 
Maybe buy a multimeter can be got for around €20 form most motorfactors.
Can check your alternator with it, plus its handy to have to check any future faults
that you'll come across. :thumbsup:
 
silverbullitt i had the exact same problem mate and i only had to change the battery to a higher ampage as the b4's pull a heavy load..can check the spec on mine and tell ye 2moro what it is if it helps mate? i tried everything and people are to quick to say alternator.....id nearly bet alternator is perfect :thumbsup:
 
doesnt matter about connections very unlikely mate and multimeters will say 12 volts but voltage is nothing without ampage....still tink new battery :thumbsup:
 
[quote author=garrethk link=topic=21989.msg266424#msg266424 date=1268608517]
doesnt matter about connections very unlikely mate and multimeters will say 12 volts but voltage is nothing without ampage....still tink new battery :thumbsup:
[/quote]

If it was the battery the problem would have always been there, The alternator could seem fine now for another 2-3 weeks and suddenly it starts to go down hill rapidly, the warning lights can come on too late, which is what happen to me very nearly got stuck in the middle of the road. Worth testing it.
 
[quote author=Scoobymaniac link=topic=21989.msg266200#msg266200 date=1268510671]
AFAIK the B4 alternator is the same as the V5/V6 impreza and possibly newage but i'm not sure on that.
[/quote]

No different.... :thumbsup:
 
Cheers for the replies guys , i was away in london all last week so didnt get a chance to reply ,
but im getting sorted today with a new alternator , now just gotta find someone to fix it in situ outside my apartment ....
 
[quote author=silverbullitt link=topic=21989.msg268610#msg268610 date=1269368423]
Cheers for the replies guys , i was away in london all last week so didnt get a chance to reply ,
but im getting sorted today with a new alternator , now just gotta find someone to fix it in situ outside my apartment ....

[/quote]

easy job honestly just be careful with the tensioners
 
[quote author=garrethk link=topic=21989.msg266424#msg266424 date=1268608517]
doesnt matter about connections very unlikely mate and multimeters will say 12 volts but voltage is nothing without ampage....still tink new battery :thumbsup:
[/quote]
:ponder2: :ponder2:
:dontknow:
 
Got this sorted in the end ,
karma to dagnut for diagnosing correctly first time ....
swapped out alternator and new fan belt and shes purring like a kitten now.

oh and cheers to dave in StiTuning for the parts , and me mate Bubba who drove all the way up to daves to collect the parts for me
 
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