[:@] I am having a weird electrical problem. It seems to happen when it is cold outside, but it does happen sometimes when it is warm. When I get in and start the car the radio and turn signals quit working. If I adjust the steering column up they begin to work. This doesn't work all the time though. Most of the time I have to push the key in and turn it to the point just before the starter is engaged then pull on the key along with adjusting the steering column. After all of that, it will work, most of the time. Also sometimes as i am driving down the road and put on the turn signal the radio goes off and the turn signal quits working. I recently noticed that the cigarette lighter quits working as well.My question is, isthis an electrical short in the steering column or is it in the ignition switch??? Also is the steering column hard to take apart and put back together??? Any help on this gremlin is appreciated. Thanks.

By the way it is: 2001 DAK, 2WD,V6

 

Sounds like you might have either a bad ground or a short in the wiring to your turn signals as the turn signals, stereo, cig lighter, and power mirrors all run off the same fuse.. I would think if it was a 'hard' short that it would blow the fuse though... first thing though, I would pop the column cover off and inspect all wiring in the column.. just be careful you dont break any wires as this could result in the air bag going off (rare but could happen).

 

yea, i would say bad ground or something to that effect. look at all the wires in the steering column and see if they look bad, and if they do replace them or fix them. if that doesnt work then i dont know what.

 

Have you done any work to the interior lately? Since I've had new experience in the past week about the dashboard components, lol, the cigarette lighter not working tells me that there is a loose ground. I found out that the ground to the cigarette lighter is the dashboard itself. The frame of the dashboard connects to the body frame with one bracket on each side. (behind the kick panel covers).

And to prevent accidents like emtsquad51 said, just disconnect the negative terminal of the battery. If you still want power to the truck, just take out the fuses for the airbags. I believe it's the fuses with the yellow casing in the fusebox.

 

I haven't done any interior work at all. I figure that there is a short somewhere. The odd thing is that if I adjust the steering column up then it all goes away... but I have to drive with the steering wheel all the way up. After the interior is warm... most of the time.... then I can adjust the column down and it will work. The other thing was messing with the key seems to work also. That is why I didn't know if the short was in the steering column or in the key ignition switch. This is my ride to work so I can't afford to take it apart and then have to wait on the replacement part if it is the ignition. Is there a way to visual check the ignition switch? From my understanding the cylinder is one unit encased.

I will take a look at the wiring and see if I find anything. Has anyone ever heard of this problem in the DAKs before??

 

Anyone find a solution to this problem? I was having the same issue on my 01 quad. I changed the flasher relay, and it didn't fix it, so it must be somewhere else. Any references to the aftermarket radio need not apply because it does it with the factory radio as well. Any thought anyone?
Danny

 

I would bet my hat it's either the ignition switch itself, or the plugs in the steering column that all the ignition wires plug into. It seems either Accessory 1 or Accessory 2 is losing power either at the switch or in the harness. There is no 1 ground that is common to each of those, so it has to be on the (+) side of things, and the common point for each of those is the accessory circuit in the column. There is a plug in the column itself, check that. If that seems fine, I would almost guarantee the ignition switch.

 

I figured out the problem and it is an easy fix. The problem is the ignition switch. It is a black contact switch box on the left side of the steering column. I have had the steering column apart about 6 times already. I ordered the part from this website: www.rockauto.com. They had the cheapest price for the part. It was only $25.00 shipped to the house. [/align][/align]Anyway... before you go tearing the steering column apart make sure you have a T-20 torque tip to remove the torque screws and make sure it is about 2 inches long. I ended up drilling out one of the screw holes on the bottom of the steering column to remove one of the screws. Not such a good idea. I ended up tearing through the hole lining for the molding. Make sure you disconnect the airbags. Just pull the fuses in the fuse panel. They are the ones with the yellow pull tabs on them. Once you get the plastic off you can then disconnect the 2 connectors to the airbag there are well. Can't hurt to be on the safe side. Then you need to remove the steering column adjust lever. 2 screws and that is it. Then you can get to the 2 screws that hold the ignition switch in. There is a connector on the back of the switch that needs to be disconnected too. Pull the red/orange tag on the bottom then use a screwdriver and pry the white piece on the top of the connector up and it will disconnect. Oh... the lever for the steering column adjust comes off very easy. Just use a small tip and press the clip in on the bottom of the lever and pull the lever toward the seat. It does not come off to the side. [/align][/align]Hope this helps your problem as well. Good luck.[/align]