01 Grand Am problem

[jcmb]

A little while ago I went to my car to get in and when I pressed the unlock button on the key fob nothing happened. I pressed it a few more times and thought the battery in it was dead so I opened the door manually and started the car. A few seconds after leaving the ABS, trac off, and brake light came on. I continued driving and the lights would flicker on and off, the radio would also flicker. When I got home I turned the car off and took the key out but the chime was dinging, like when the key is left in the ignition or the lights are left on. I restarted the car and then turned it off and the dinging stopped.
Does anyone have any ideas what could be causing these problems? The battery cables have a good connection and I don't know what else to check for.
Any help is appreciated.

[xeroinfinity]

On the key fob if it was really cold sometime the relays are slow to react But the unlock relay could be bad.
Also check the contacts in the fob button area.

With the ABS, trac off, and brake light you could have a wheel sensor going bad.
Best thing here is to Get it scanned with an ABS capable scanning Tool.

With the dinging, might have just shut the car off and removed the key to fast, the ignition switch could be dirty, or its going bad.

[jcmb]

Thanks for the quick reply!
I have something more to add now...just a while ago after I got to where I was going I turned the car off, then just to check, I turned it back on, but it did not do anything. No lights came on, no sounds, automatic door locks wouldn't work, nothing. I tried a few more times and then everything came on normally. The security light stays on now, and the trac off and brake lights come on after a few minutes of driving and flicker, along with the radio. Also, each time I turn the car off, the radio is supposed to stay on until I open the door, but it goes off immediately and everytime I get everything to start the clock has reset and the preset radio stations are gone.
It would seem that this is a bad connection or a short of some kind, or maybe the ignition switch. These things all started today at the same time. I would like to know the best possiblity before I take it in. It seems all of the things are related, since they all started this morning.
Thank you for any help you may have to offer as to what the main problem is, and also any way to check for it or fix it.

[xeroinfinity]

Well the first part does sound like you ignition switch is bad.

With the radio reseting, if its stock, then you have a loose battery connection or possibly bad battery.

Like I said before this is hypothetical you need the car scanned by a dealer or other shop that capable of reading ABS trouble codes.
Otherwise you could spend 100's of dollars on parts and not fix the trouble.

Good Luck!

[jcmb]

I have more to add now...I have not yet taken the car in, I was having to wait until Saturday because I couldn't get the time away from work this week. Hopefully someone here will have a good idea what the problem is for sure now, before I take it in tomorrow.

This morning on my way to work I was driving and the car just shut off, as if I would have turned it off with the key, I wasn't stopped, just driving down the road. It immediately came back on, without me having to restart it, and when the power came back all of the lights were on, on the dash, just as when you first start the car. Also the lights on the dash and the radio flicker whenever I press the brakes or use the blinker. What could have caused me to loose power? Is it still possible that it is the ignition switch or a loose connection somewhere, or could it be the alternator?
And which ever it most likely is, is easy to change or fix myself, because I need to save some money on this, being that it is right after Christmas.

Thank you so much for your help

[xeroinfinity]

Almost sounds like the passlock was acting up but maybe not since it started right back up.

Get a voltmeter and test your battery.
Should be around 12-13 volts with the car off.
When the car is running it should be 14+volts.

And yes its pretty easy to replace the alternator with a few hand tools.
If you have to replace it here are some directions.

- First disconnect the batery.
- A 3/8 ratchet will be needed to loosen the belt tensioner.
- Unscrew the power wire(red) and unplug the harness.
- I think thiers 3 bolts holding it on. 1 in front 1 on the side and 1 in back.

[jcmb]

Thanks for your help, my husband finally found the time to go out and mess with it a little and it seems that there was some corrosion on the batter cables (that would have been really embarassing if we'd of taken it to the garage and thats all it was).
So my radio presets came back and everything is working normally again...and it was all free (except for the embarassment).
Thanks again for your help , I'm sure there will be more things we need help with in the future.