Wait light problem

[kfrosty]

This is a new unit to me I've just started going through. Odometer reads 1100 miles and it seems like it just came out of service. Fluids are clear, wipers are new, runs good etc.

I just noticed that the wait light has never came on. It starts fine, runs fine. So today I installed new glow plugs, Glow plug controller (TSU Yellow Label, a brand new one), I put in a S3 box.

Connected the battery back up, still no Wait light. (Engine hadn't been started and was cold)

I don't even thing the glow plugs are energizing as the alt gauge doesn't change.

So I put a second S3 box in, same thing.

I let the truck run and I started noticing a faint blink after the engine starts. Then I see the light will randomly start flashing while the truck is running. Not bright or quick so you have to pay attention.

What's odd as well is looks like the high beam light is dimly on. Meaning you can see some light in there. But it's dim and could be light bleeding from somewhere else but the dash lots are off.

Has anybody seen anything like this.

 

[dilvoy]

Check and clean all of your ground connections on the vehicle. Things might work perfectly after that.

 

[Action]

is the top lever of the light switch straight up when your headlights are on? If so, maybe that switch is bad...

 

[TedG]

After checking what others have mentioned, check headlight connections and instrument panel connections.

 

[Thecaptain]

Agree with dilvoy. Specifically, I have found that the ground behind the instrument panel can cause weird behavior with the wait light and controller. Try cleaning that one really well, make sure the nuts are tight and mess with the cable a little bit as a starting point.

 

[kfrosty]

is the top lever of the light switch straight up when your headlights are on? If so, maybe that switch is bad...

No. The Top is straight up and all lights are off. Turn it 1 to the right, signal lights and brake lights work. 2 and lights come on. High beam only shows when you have them on high. (Note the high beam light is a lot brighter when lights are on high beam.)

PUt it back to upright position, start the vehicle then you can see it faint as well as Wait light sporadically.

My next step is to ground which I do to all my Hmmwv's. (This is my 5th one. Just haven't had one act like this.)

 

[Swamp Donkey]

If you find the problem to be the light itself, I have a new one that could go out with your package Tuesday morning. Most likely a ground issue, since other things seem to be affected, but I have one if you need it.

 

[kfrosty]

Got the instrument panel unbolted and poking around and found wire 57A was broke in two.

I'm not sure there is enough the wire outside the wiring harness mess to get a butt connector. I'm trying to find in a TM where the other end of the wire ends but not having any luck in the TM's.

Looking at the wiring harness going into the control box, I see a 57 A there. I'm thinking that's where the wire runs from the ground spot in the dash through the wiring grommet to the control box plug.

Can anybody confirm that's how the wire is ran?

Hopefully that's my gremlin. I'm going to run the other grounds regardless but I'd like to find where the other end 57A goes and just replace the entire wire.

 

[kfrosty]

Actually, there isn't a 57A on the control box plug, it turned out to be 67A.

Actually there is another home made wire going to the ground screw in the panel. Somebody has cut it. I have 79A which looks to be intact, 59A which melted and I can't tap into it. The wire is brittle just breaks if you move it.

Looking in TM 9-2320-280-34It appears just the 57A & 79A are harness ground leads.

So I'm still stuck on where 57A actually goes in the wiring harness.

Should I track it down or just run a ground wire to one of the control box mounting bolts? (Regardless I'd like to know where 57A starts/ends)

P.S. I'm going through this now trying to figure it out.
http://www.flashoffroad.com/hmmwv/electrical/hmmwvGroundHarness/hmmwvGndHarness.htm

 

[Action]

67a is the brake light warning switch.
57 is a ground....
A ties into J (ties into B (control box), C (steering column ground) , E (fan motor) , F (wiper motor), and L (high beam indicator lamp)) , D (wiper motor) , G (gauge panel ground), and K (turn signal flasher box).

So, 57A only connects the body ground to the 4 other wires. D G J K.

 

[kfrosty]

67a is the brake light warning switch.
57 is a ground....
A ties into J (ties into B (control box), C (steering column ground) , E (fan motor) , F (wiper motor), and L (high beam indicator lamp)) , D (wiper motor) , G (gauge panel ground), and K (turn signal flasher box).

So, 57A only connects the body ground to the 4 other wires. D G J K.

Do you know where the junction that ties them together?

And I'm looking for 57J, one of the wires going into the control box under the dash. (Would just running the ground to one of the mounting bolts suffice?)

Got to run and get some ring terminals, will start digging when I get back.

 

[Action]

The wire unions can be anywhere inside the harness under the sheath.
You can connect any of these wires to each other. Or just run extra wires to each of these components if yours are breaking apart. It may be time for a new harness.

It looks like 57J is just another connecting wire, like 57A.
57B goes to the control box in the diagram I was looking at.

 

[kfrosty]

Is the wiring diagram you're looking at public. I cant make out the one in the ground blog. Havent found it in the tms yet.

Sent from my SM-N920V using Tapatalk

 

[Action]

they are in the back of the -2 maintenance book. at the very end, after the index.
In the paper TM, the diagrams fold out like a centerfold. I had one blown up at a print center. It is like 6 feet long.

 

[kfrosty]

they are in the back of the -2 maintenance book. at the very end, after the index.
In the paper TM, the diagrams fold out like a centerfold. I had one blown up at a print center. It is like 6 feet long.

I still don't see it. I found some TM's from another website, and I see something like what you describe in
TM9-2320-280-20-3.pdf

Trying to scroll through it. The small numbers are hard to make out.

Thanks for your help.

 

[Action]

It would be in the back of -3 then. I use a different set of books for mine than you need for yours. I only have 2.
Do a websearch for TM 9-2320-280-20-3 and look for a result that is a PDF.

 

[gem1410]

I found the same ground wire 57a burnt and separated----would dead short cause this and did you find where 57a meets up with the other grounding wires--the wait light does operate correctly--the alternator terminals are also burnt under the cover--- -thanks

 

[kfrosty]

I have not found out a junction. I've used what Action has posted and I've started looking for other 57 wires.

The only two he pointed out I could find in the truck and also in the TM's searching on them were 57B on the Control box plug and where 57G connects on the dash panel. In the TM, 57G shows as connecting to the top stud of the speedometer.

However, there is a wire on the panel that you would think was a ground but the tag on the wire is 58E. Looking at the TM, 58's look to be grounds for the gauges. I didn't see a 57G, so I ran a new wire to the dash ground screw.

I did run a ground from 57B on controller plug.

I also, ran the other grounds, one to the alternator, one to the mounting stud of the control box. All of these were ran to the engine ground. Then I ran a ground from the engine ground to the battery box ground.

Hooked up my control box and connected the battery wires. Turned switch to run and got a single blink of the Wait light and immediately went off. WHat I noticed now is it appears my alternator gauge is working.

I thought it was bad and/or my alternator was bad. Started the vehicle, the wait light isn't blinking periodically anymore. However, the high beam light came one and was a lot brighter. (Still not as bright as when lights are on bright.)

Also, now my alternator appeared to be charging up into the far Red. Volt meter showed 28.3 volts.

Disconnected my battery, and removed the ground wire going to 57B on the controller plug. Hooked everything back up. The wait light still just blinks once but now the High Beam light isn't on any more.

The alternator crept into the red. Then it was weird, it sounded like something kicked in as you could tell the engine tone change and the alternator went back into the proper charging area.

Turned the vehicle off a couple of times and the wait light wouldn't come on but the alternator showed correctly.

My wipers work and signal lights work.


I'm going to try a different control box and see if I see the wait light but I may have to let the vehicle cool off for a while.

 

[Action]

If the motor is warm, the wait light should not come on. If you have a green label KDS box, it acts different than others. I think it has a timer. It doesn't rely on engine temp.
You will need to figure out what burned the wires.
You could also disconnect all the gauge wires and then use the manual to put them back in the correct spots.

 

[kfrosty]

I stayed up until 2 last night and swapped out 5 different control boxes. It was weird, because some of the EESS boxes would show a blinking wait light. One actually had the wait light come on like normal but then once started, more times than not the alt would go up to 33.5+ volts. Some times you would hear something like an you hear when an AC kicks in and the voltage would go back to normal for a bit.

So today, I had a spare 60 amp alternator, I swapped them out and now I see no wait light no matter what. I've tried different glow plug controllers and even with the wiring harness unhooked from it.

The gauges all look good, engine starts up, charging is set to 28 ish volts. I don't see any more of the flakiness with the high beam light.

I've used the original PCB with it's matched glow plug controller. I've tried a couple different EESS boxes and 3 KDS S3 boxes.

Temp gauge shows under 120 degrees so the light show show. (When I start, I turn back on trying to keep the temp from building up. 2 of my other Hmmwv's that run I see the lights with the temp outside.)