[svtguy88]

So, I was in the final stages of getting my old car ready to sell, and was just scrubbing some of the grime from the engine bay. Long story short, something apparently got wet (even though I used minimal liquid - a degreaser - and only cleaned the valve cover and some plastic pieces). The car will now not start. The relay under the dash clicks wildly and the dome light flashes with each click whenever you try to crank the engine (the relay behind the metal piece, beneath the fuses). Also, the power locks don't work and the radio doesn't work right either (garbled sound at points, but at others, it's fine).

I really don't know what may have gotten wet, or even how it would have happened. The degreaser I used was even for engine use, and I kept the spray away from anything electrical. Not to mention, I did the same procedure on my SVT, in fact, more in-depth of a cleaning, and it's fine.

Help? I'm ready to drive this car off of a cliff. Everytime I do something to get it closer to being sold, two other things go wrong....

 

[iminhell]

Check the spark plug wells. Could be a bad wire is arcing and causing interference with the radio. If they arc bad enough it may prevent the car from starting, maybe.

 

[svtguy88]

^^^^Hmmmm....I like that thought. The water could have gotten down there relatively easily. That would explain why the SVT is fine too. I'll check in the morning and update this thread.

 

[viney266]

Sounds like the battery is low to me, check your terminals, and charge your battery.

 

[ArcticMynx]

Quick question does your odometer display dash's ???

try checking this out this was the culpret on mine its a master line to SOMETHING what I have no idea but if you look at the picture provided look at my battery box to the right exactly next to the red positive wires you will see a loom with a plug check that plug mine looked like it was plugged in but I had the exact same symptoms ( after slamming my head against the airbag a dozen times I gave up for the night) next mornin I traced EVERY wire possible twice... I was about to give up but dove back in and rechecked a third time I dunno what prompted me to run my hand between the battery box and loom but when I did it exposed the fact that even tho it looked plugged in it wasn't

I plugged it in and all of a sudden the car came back to life ( granted can't start it due to a blown timing belt but it cranked over

---- heres my thread about it
http://www.focusfanatics.com/forum/showthread.php?t=175414

 

[NemesisEnforcer]

id really check the battery. could be coincidence, but also try your lights. if they dont work, its the battery. either its dead, or you loosened up a connection. make sure they are tight.

 

[whitefox]

To me it sounds like your battery cables need cleaning. You will hear a clicking sound when your battery is low and/or if your cables are dirty or corroded, causing a bad connection.

 

[zappaMan]

You should also check the condition of the main ground cable for the starter, make sure it is clean and well connected to one of the main starter/bell housing bolts. Also, check the connections at the starter (which is a bit of a PITA I know, Zetec is easier then SPI though).

If all the connections are good and the battery terminals are clean and tight then you will likely be getting a new starter. (starter and solenoid are integrated in the focus). But this seems unlikely as you are having other electrical problems.

 

[NemesisEnforcer]

also, try to disconnect the battery ground, and then reconnect it. try it then.

 

[yeyolin]

well i have the same problem with my car, im gonna check all this comments as well if this can get the problem done.

but also if you turn the key till the instruments cluster turns on, and then pull a lil' bit the relay but not too fast leave the key on and make sure is on NEUTRAL casue this makes the car moves wild, so make sure its on Neutral, then pull the relay slowly remember with the key on, and the car will star by itself,

i thought it could be just a bad relay, but i just get another from a good car, but still nothing, so is something else.

 

[svtguy88]

Well, I pulled the plug wires before I came into work, and they were damp, but nowhere near the pool of water I was almost hoping for. It's baking in the sun right now with the hood open, hopefully drying anything that is still wet.

The battery is brand new - less than a month old. I'll test it tomorrow morning, as I work the rest of the day.

I've already tried disconnecting/reconnecting the ground. The headlights don't work, which confuses me. I have an HID kit installed, and it has a direct power line to the battery, so it should have power, but the stock harness connector isn't telling the light to ignight or something.

The clicking relay is really sporadic. It will click like there is no tomorrow, and then if you fiddle with the key or try to crank it, it stops clicking.

I'm at a loss right now. I have to figure it out though. The car is parking my SVT in, and because I can't get the old one out of park, I have no way of getting my car out...and bumming rides is getting old quick. On the upside, at least the SVT is living in the garage, staying nice and clean....I'm sure my mom will have something to say about me stealing the garage if I let it sit for too long....

Gotta love cars...

 

[NemesisEnforcer]

just cuz the battery is new, doesnt mean its not the problem. when i worked in automotive, we would have batteries come back dead. a lot of the time, it was b/c they sat on the shelf too long. now i know you have a direct power connection to your hid kit. you need to check the battery. i think you have a drain in the system, and that is why ur battery is dead.

 

[svtguy88]

Oh, I know the battery could be done. I just haven't had time to get on it with a multimeter yet.

I just don't think that's the problem. It's been runninge every two days or so this week, and it started up fine. Also, it had no response at all to a jump. I'll test it, and I hope you are right, but I'm doubting it....

 

[NemesisEnforcer]

could also be that one of the posts is bad. saw that happen too. if none of this works, check your fuses in the car, and the engine fuses.

 

[NemesisEnforcer]

oh! and also, i once had an issue where one of the 3 ecu grounds got wet, and wouldnt start. id check those too...they ground to the chassis of the battery.

 

[zappaMan]

Just a thought... if you are having intermittant faults with other electrical systems it could be the main power connection to the two fuse boxes. Both the starter/light circuits go through there.

 

[svtguy88]

^^^On the main fuse block under the hood? I thought of checking those wires, but I didn't think it would have gotten wet under there. Also, one of the grounds on the batter was loose (one of the smaller ones), so I tightened it this morning. It didn't do anything.

 

[ZETEC-X3]

well i have the same problem with my car, im gonna check all this comments as well if this can get the problem done.

but also if you turn the key till the instruments cluster turns on, and then pull a lil' bit the relay but not too fast leave the key on and make sure is on NEUTRAL casue this makes the car moves wild, so make sure its on Neutral, then pull the relay slowly remember with the key on, and the car will star by itself,

i thought it could be just a bad relay, but i just get another from a good car, but still nothing, so is something else.

for real this "zhyt" works, i have the same problem and this helps me out a lot, but im still finding out what the problem is.

you deserve a standing point, cause you gave a good-temporaly solution

 

[yeyolin]

did you tried???

 

[focusmaniaczx3]

you might have a short on one of the power wires. check all the power wires. see if the rubber jacket around the cable appears melted discolored or lumpy. also bend the wires. if they are really stiff then they probably have a short. make sure they arent arcing onto anything near the connections. replace them if needed. if they have been shorted out check the fuses, all of them, because there are probably a few blown ones now. also if it was arcing it probably drained and possibly ruined the battery. if you have a warrenty thank your lucky star and swap it with a new one.