Hi All,

I have a 1993 Camry V6, I have a rapid clicking noise (sounds like wire shorting/touching metal) behind the driver side airbags whenever I turn the steering wheel. It happens whether I'm driving or parked. If the steering wheel is not in the straight ahead position, the car will not start unless I turn the steering wheel to the left or right. I've spoke to numerous mechanics and they couldn't diagnosis the problem. Some say it's the Ignition Safety Switch, others don't know.

Anyone else having this problem??

Second question:

There is no windshield washer fluid coming out of the noozle when I press the spray button on the wiper control arm. The wipers works but no washer fluid.
The washer pump is not making any noise so I'm assuming the pump is faulty.
Could dirt or small debri clog the inlet hole and render the pump inoperative or do I have to replace the unit? Anyway to test the unit?

Thanks in Advance,

I do not know about your starting issues.

With washer fluid I would pull the tube off the nozle at the hood and see if any fluid comes out of it.

Good luck,

Sam

Is your airbag light "ON"?

Is there a chance that the rapid sound you are hearing is a relay that is rapidly engaging and disengaging? Replacing this relay should fix that problem.

I don't quite understand when you're hearing the clicking. Is it only as the wheel is turning, or constantly whenever the wheel isn't dead straight?

As far as the car not starting unless the wheel is turned to the left or right, what doesn't work? Does the starter just not crank? Do the lights come up on the dash when you put the key to "On"?

Being that your pump doesn't work. You could try pulling the wiper fuse. It should be behind the change holder on the lower left of the steering wheel. It should be the only 20 amp fuse. This will cut off power to the wipers and washer pump and the combination switch that controls the wipers. See if the clicking goes away when that fuse is pulled. It's a long shot, but there is a chance the problems are related.

Douglas - No, the airbag light is not on.

ICE745 - You can only hear the noise when the steering wheel is turning. Is there a relay behind the airbag?

I don't think there is a relay directly behind the airbag. I was not sure how precise you were being with the location of the sound. If you think it is possible that it's the airbag itself, you may want to have the pad taken out to see if the noise goes away. That's something you should have a professional do. I'm not even sure if you can safely test run a car with the pad taken out, I don't know if it can cause the other airbags to blow.

Do the turn signals work, and do they auto-center after turn?
Without the key in, does the steering wheel lock after you turn it to a certain point (about 45 degrees from center I believe)? If you do lock the wheel, you should still be able to turn it slightly (like 5mm) then put the key in to On to unlock it. If either of these features malfunction, it could be mechanical parts from them that are interfering with the wheel turning to make clicks.

Any more info on your starting problem?

I think Ice745 may be heading int he right direction. The turn signal switch has a canceling system that is spring loaded. If the signals don't work or cancel properly, the problem will be in that switch. Sometimes the canceling mechanism sticks out and keeps touching the cancel cam even though the signals are already off. The bad news though is that this is a 'multifunction switch' and they are quite costly. A used one may be fine in this case, but to replace it you need to remove the airbag and the steering wheel. If you do that, make sure to mark the position of the wheel on the shaft with a marker so you put it back straight. It can be mounted many different ways.
The airbag module itself is mounted securely and has nothing that turns so there is no reason to take that off just to go 'looking'.
For information sake, you can remove an airbag and run a vehicle safely however you will set a code for an open circuit that may need to be cleared by a dealer. The scanners at Auto zone do not access the airbag systems.

for washer fluid:

As others have already said, check the fuses for the washer pump. If that checks out, it is fairly easily to remove the 3 bolts that hold in the washer fluid reservoir and lift it out to gain access to the pump underneath. You can have someone try the fluid from within the car while you listen for the pump from the reservoir. If the pump does not seem to come on, remove its connector and use a DC voltmeter to measure if the wiring harness connector for it is getting 12V when the button is pushed in the car. If it isn't, then it may be related to your steering wheel issue in that something has happened/broken to the electrical assembly on the steering wheel.

For you clicking noise and starting issue:

I have never seen this problem. I don't see how the position of the wheel would have anything to do with the starter circuit except if somehow it is affecting the ignition switch indirectly. The clicking noise may or may not have anything to do with the starting issue, but may be a separate problem. Does the clicking noise occur if the car is not started but you turn the wheel manually either way (ie no pwr steering). Do the turn signals work ok and turn off after a turn?

dave mc

Just want to say, thanks for the info guys.

Everything works normally (turn signal switch, steering wheel lock, etc) I'm just shy of removing the airbag to see what's making that noise.

BTW, the washer fluid pump was faulty. Went to the junk yard to get a washer pump from another import and re-wire it, since they did not have any Camry in stock. Works fine now.