vanster

I wrote an earlier post but only one response. My alt is charging
What could be the cause for the flashing lights?
Is it related to the miss fire, just runs like crap


van

davek9

please be a bit more descriptive ",,,What could be the cause for the flashing lights?".

What flashing lights? There are many lights on a 928 that can flash.

vanster

On my car there is only the center light (center red light in the cluster) and the information light above the radio. Which if normal you can push and the light in the cluster will go out if the system detects a malfunction.
I have checked everything I can think of. Oil, water. the alt appears to be charging
not over heating, lights all work, AC works, all systems seem normal
Also along with this I have a misfire under load

Wisconsin Joe

When the CWL comes on, there is supposed to be an 'Information" warning light that tells what system is causing the CWL to come on.
It sounds like you don't see anything else coming on.
Do all your warning lights on the instrument cluster come on when you first turn the key on?
It's not too uncommon for one (or more) to not work, and that's the system the CWL is alerting you to.

davek9

I now see that you started new thread for same issue, NEXT time please, just "bump" the original post as it contained the information.

What lights show when you turn on the key to ignition without starting the car? As Wisconsin Joe states the CWL should be associated with an individual warning light inside the Spedo or Tach.

Thank you,

Dave K

vanster

Thanks for the "bump" I was not aware of this feature.
When I turn the key on everything seems normal. The "parking brake and stop light" etc all go on and go off respectively as well as the CWL light and the light on the information light. Release the ebrake and step on the brakes and all their respective lights go out. Then the CWT and the info light starts flashing and won't go out even when I press the info light button.
Also I have a mis fire

dr bob

** What did you work on last on the car? Was it recent? Rain, car-wash, etc that might have gotten things wet? Thses clues should drive your troubleshooting effort.

---

Lots of things can cause a misfire, several of those common to the central warning system. A few of those are serious enough that you shouldn't run the car until you rule them out as possible causes. Top of that list is probably a timing belt jumped timing. Engine oil pressure, coolant level, oil level, overheat, are the rest of the criticals list.

-- Verify that there's oil in the sump. Simple dipstick check. Look for coolant in the oil, shows up as chocolate-milkshake look on the end of the dipstick after the engine has run. If the engine has been sitting a bit, the oil level may appear to be high but otherwise look OK, with a layer of coolant supporting the oil level in the sump.

-- Verify that there's coolant in the reservoir. Eyeball check is usually good enough.

-- Go next to checking the cam timing. The belt covers come off pretty easily on the 16V cars (at least compared with the 32V cars). Rotate the engine clockwise by hand, until the pointer at the balancer is at the 0|T mark. Look for the cam timing marks lining up at the gears. If they look to be 180º off at the gears, roll the crank around another full turn. Verify that the cams are timed correctly.

You have a "non-interference" engine, which means valves won't get bent if the cam timing is off.

If everything looks OK so far with those inspections, next step is to look at the spark plugs for signs of poor or no combustion. All should be a light tan color on the insulators, no missing electrodes, etc. Plugs are cheap enough that you might consider putting new ones in just because.

Look at the distributor cap for dirt inside, for cracks and for possible 'carbon tracking' inside. Inspect the rotor the same way, for errosion, but a bad rotor usually affects all cylinders.

Inspect the ignition cables carefully.

Inspect the 'green wire' that runs from the distributor body, carries the signal from the Hall sensor inside to the ignition box. The wire itself deteriorates with heat and age, while the connctors often get crispy and fall apart. No good wat to test that green wire except to replace it and see if the problem goes away.

After that you will start looking at the fuel system, starting with the fuel pressure at the engine and working your way back to the pump.

vanster

bump

vanster

Thanks Dr Bob
Recently I replaced many of the bulbs in the cluster with LED's along
For some reason I think it could have jumped a tooth. I have a Porken tensioner.
Maybe I will replace the green wire just so I can eliminate it form the possibilities.
The car has been running great until this last big ( only ) rain
van

dr bob

Two things to go after then. Water gets into the 14-pin connector by the jump post, often into the wiring there too if the insulation is tired/original. Pull that connector apart. and spend a little quality time on it with a small brass-bristled 'toothbrush'. Get the pins and the socket wells shiny and dry, put it back together.

I don't know where the ignition coil lives on your car. Mine is (are...) on the fenderwall where water can get it wet. There's a decent rubber boot over the high-tension connection on mine, and the wire connectors are slightly different from yours. Nonetheless, if water gets to the end of the coil, it risk arc flashover and therefore intermittent spark. Dry the coil, clean the end with the connections with high-tension wire removed. Clean the connections wire and coil with that same brass brush until you find shiny metal, and reassemble. FWIW, the high-tension connections are the only place y6ou want to use dielectric grease. Keeps water out to a certain extent, sometimes makes future diasassembly easier.

Leaky ignition wires are sometimes easier to find in the dark, when crackling and arcing are audible and visible. Old plug wires end up with crud on them with time, and also get tiny micro-cracks in the insulation. When moisture and crud fill the cracks, it offers a shorter path to nearby ground than the plug itself. If the wires are seriously tired (not replaced in the last ten years), they should be replaced along with the matching cap and rotor.

The green wire is an expensive little piece to buy just to throw at a symptom. Inspect the one you have for obvious damage, replace if still suspect. FWIW, since I have unlimited time and funding as I'm sure everyone else here does (right....), I'd have a spare green wire in my travelling toolkit, or replace the exiting good one with new as PM and carry the old as spare.


Flashing dash after recent LED conversion? Just one backwards warning light LED can cause that symptom. Did you test-function every sensor that contributes to a warning light?

vanster

One thing to note is that I did not drive the car in the rain. It just sat in the driveway under a cover. I am going to take the green wire off of the grey car that is also sitting in my driveway

vanster

I think my mis fire is a jumped tooth. However when running cold it does not stumble, when warm it barks at me, and the lights flash. It's really pissed off about something. I need to learn German

dr bob

Post the messages you see. Or.... Google Translate.

Five-8

Vanster...any resolution to this?Currently have the same condition after TB/WP and Top End Refresh.

Cheers,

Alan

As the Star Trek computer might say '... Insufficient Data....' You need to be more thorough.

Get the owners manual for your year & verify each warning bulb illuminates as it should during bulb test. The ones that don't are probably burned out and may be trying to alert you to some condition you can't see. Fix those.

If you don't have an oners manual check Andrew Olson's signature in his posts (username: 'AO' on RL - via search) - he has all owners manuals linked online. His are USA versions but if you have a ROW/Euro car the text will be different but the lights/functions the same...

Alan