Community Forums

jlmaher · 04-18-2015, 04:57 PM

2001 newmar mountian aire with a spartan chassis,when i turn the headlights on the turn signals blink very fast.Also when i turn them off, the speedometer switches from showing mileage to trip #1.Every time the headlight switch is turned on then off the odometer will change from mileage-trip 1-trip 2-mileage and so on.After discovering this the turn signals and emergency flashers have quit working. I have checked fuses and did not find any blown.

Deny · 04-18-2015, 05:32 PM

Ground- check your ground.

Ray,IN · 04-18-2015, 05:35 PM

IMO, sounds like a poor ground in the headlamp switch. When you turn it on the poor ground causes it to backfeed the rest of the dash. Mine acted weird when we bought it because it had been parked for 7 years. I added a few drops of switch cleaner to the pull-rod every day for a week and it finally improved.
OTOH, that may have had nothing to do with it, and simply frequent use cleaned the contacts.

rvjimmy · 04-18-2015, 06:04 PM

I agree sounds like a bad chassis ground.

Jim

jlmaher · 04-19-2015, 07:19 PM

thanks for all the info.I changed the flasher and the turn signals work as they should, even with the lights on,(witch was a problem before).I still have a problem with the odometer changing from mileage to trip when the lights are turned on then off.Checked all the grounds I could find,no rust or corrosion.Even took a test light to the ground wires a couple inches from the grounding screw,every thing worked fine.I will continue my search for more ground wires.

TeJay · 04-19-2015, 07:59 PM

There are several electrical issues that can drive one crazy. A poor or bad ground is one. Another one is a cross feed. Current from a wire is shorted across to another wire feeding it current when it isn't asking for it. These are difficult to find because they are not common.

I don't believe it's a power issue (fuses) because things do work but not as designed. Fuses when overloaded just blow and are then an open. Seldom do circuits have shorts for very long. Most everybody says that they, "Have a short" but in reality they HAD a short which then became an open.

Some things to try/do while troubleshooting these weird issues. Wiggle wires and connections. Turn your LS off wiggle some wires and turn it on. See if anything is different. Do the same with wiring harnesses and other connectors. Disconnect then reconnect switches. Your unit is going on 14 years old and moisture can and will set up corrosion issues which then become intermittent opens and cross shorts.

Many, Many moons (1972) ago we had a 1968 or so Buick Opel. We bought it used. When you turned the wipers off they would stop mid window or when ever you turned the switch off. It was a used car (and foreign) so that's how we thought they were supposed to work. Next thing was after you released the key from cranking the engine the starter kept on running. That kept getting worse. I decided to try and find out what was wrong before the starter gears were ruined.

This was my first year as an auto shop teacher so I had a lot to learn. Here's what happened. The previous owner had installed a radio antenna by drilling a hole in the fender. The gasket didn't seal all the water out and some was running down inside and behind the fuse box. I took the box off the fender well and there was all kids of corrosion behind and around all the fuse holders. In about 3 hours I basically rebuilt the fuse box. Put everything back and everything started working correctly. No starter run-on and in fact the wipers instead of stopping mid window they parked at the bottom as do all cars.

I guess there was all kinds of weird paths for current flow in, around and through all that green corrosion.

TeJay

jlmaher · 04-19-2015, 09:18 PM

I will start taking plugs apart next.should I use electrical grease on them? Or just unplug and replug?

TeJay · 04-20-2015, 07:48 AM

Using a dielectric grease is always a good idea. It's a water barrier, repellant, promotes a good electrical path for current and it will lubricate the connections to make it easier.

Twenty years ago when I first saw the dielectric lube it was expensive. I need to get a new tube for the shop/garage so I guess I'll find out if it's come down in price.

TeJay

Ron_H · 04-21-2015, 09:53 AM

Electrical issues can be very frustrating and difficult to correctly diagnose. I had an intermittent electrical problem a while ago. I sent a detailed email to the techs at Newmar and a couple of days later I received their ideas on three possible causes, all centered around a specific circuit board.

One suggestion was a bad connection. I tested for that and it did not resolve or confirm the problem. The other two potential issues both required a new circuit board. I ordered and installed the new board and all is good now.

I suggest you take the same approach - send a detailed description of the symptoms (not your analysis of the problem) and see what the experts have to say.

TeJay · 04-22-2015, 05:30 AM

Ron H's idea is a good one that we often don't think about. Guys who work on this stuff all the time have experienced the fixes over and over so they do have the experience to guide novices like us down different paths with usually better results.
Good idea!!!

TeJay