97 SSE air compressor comes on and off by itself.

I have a 97 SSE and recently took it to the body shop to weld the trunk lach the a thief thor up wit a crow bar trying to get into the trunk. The body shop welded the metal around the latch on the inside of the trunk and eversince, the air compressor turns on by itself after I turn the ignition on. The compressor comes on for a couple of minutes, shuts off for a few seconds, turns on and the on/off cycle continues. While the compressor is running, pressing the off button will not turn it off. However, if I push the compressor ON switch, I can hear the realy engage and then by presssing the off button the compressor temporarily turns off and it's back to the on/off cycle. I have unplugged the compressor relay that is mounted on the passenger side of the trunk to keep the air compressor from coming on. Did the body shop blow the relay by using an arc welder on the latch or could the problem be with something else?

Thanks for help on this.

The compressor also inflates the rear struts as the trunk or back seat is loaded with weight. If this is happening without the addition of weight then I'd suspect your rear strut(s) to be leaking. You can check by spraying a soap and water solution on the struts where the bladders are and look for bubbles.

The compressor also inflates the rear struts as the trunk or back seat is loaded with weight. If this is happening without the addition of weight then I'd suspect your rear strut(s) to be leaking. You can check by spraying a soap and water solution on the struts where the bladders are and look for bubbles.

Thanks for the reply randman. The air comes out of the valve located in the trunk. I connected the air hose to the valve and plugged the end of it with my thumb and the gauge started to show pressure build up. The air is not routed to the struts. It is going to the valve located in the trunk and I can turn it off by the on/off switch as I menitioned in my earlier post.

This forum continues to give me problems while posting replies. I typed up a few paragraphs last night describing this in more detail but when I clicked Post, it said I wasn't logged in and the info was lost. I paraphrased the above reply. Since this has happened again, I'll have to give you another abbreviated description.

As I mentioned, the compressor also inflates the rear struts. The air is most definately directed to the rear struts along with the valve in the trunk. This feature is called Electronic Level Control (ELC) and is a standard feature in the SSE and SSEi models. Here's a page from your owner's manual that very briefly describes the feature:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v155/randman1/Parts/4-32.jpg

Here's a pic of failing/leaking rear struts on a 93 SSEi while doing the bubble test:

http://www.williamwren.com/struts/bubbles.jpg

Unless you have already had your rear struts replaced with an aftermarket parts, you will have air lines connected to the struts. If they have been replaced, have the air lines been blocked/sealed?

This forum continues to give me problems while posting replies. I typed up a few paragraphs last night describing this in more detail but when I clicked Post, it said I wasn't logged in and the info was lost. I paraphrased the above reply. Since this has happened again, I'll have to give you another abbreviated description.

As I mentioned, the compressor also inflates the rear struts. The air is most definately directed to the rear struts along with the valve in the trunk. This feature is called Electronic Level Control (ELC) and is a standard feature in the SSE and SSEi models. Here's a page from your owner's manual that very briefly describes the feature:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v155/randman1/Parts/4-32.jpg

Here's a pic of failing/leaking rear struts on a 93 SSEi while doing the bubble test:

http://www.williamwren.com/struts/bubbles.jpg

Unless you have already had your rear struts replaced with an aftermarket parts, you will have air lines connected to the struts. If they have been replaced, have the air lines been blocked/sealed?

Thanks Randman I will look for the leak. I have noticed problems with postin on this site too. I always copy the text after I type it in case the site decides to throw it away.