Electrical problems '97 blazer

[snowman_106]

I'm having strange things go on with my electrical.

1.) It has a hard time starting. I can turn the key to barely get it to turn over (turn it on and off real quick once) and then turn the key all they way to start it. That seems to be the only way to get it to start in cold weather.

2.) My flasher just went out not to long ago. I replaced it and now my blinkers don't flash in a rythmatic manner. I turn the blinkers on and they will flash fast and then go to a normal speed. (When they flash fast, they don't click. When they are at a normal speed, they will click like they are supposed to.)

3.) Sometime when it is cold, my dash board lights will be off when I turn on my headlights. I will adjust them with the roller switch to make them brighter. They will flicker as I adjust it brighter and dimmer.

4.) Sometimes when I start my car my fuels gage will move itself all they way to full when it should read a 1/4 tank. It will slowly move back down to 1/4 tank. Not sure if it is just cold weather or not. It was a cold day they first time I noticed it, but it hasn't happened too often.

Seems like these are alot of electrical problems for the not to be related. Are all of these tied together somehow, like the wireing harness in the collum? Please help me out here.

P.S. Also the MPG has dropped a bit along with all these problems.

P.P.S Also all of these started after I replaced my tranny just in case that is the cause. Also right before the tranny went out, my butterfly valve stuck in acceleration. There was an aluminum part on the under side of the valve that was wedged. The Chevy dealer workshop didn't know what it was for and said I couldn't order the part without the whole manifold. So I tried driving it to see how it would run. I talked to a Mech from a local dealer and he said that aluminum part was designed for cold weather starting. Could be but I'm not totally convinced. I think he is trying to sell me a manifold (Used for $100, better price than a new one).

Any thoughts?

[snowman_106]

Boost

[amac209]

get your alternator checked a bad alternator can cause all kinds of weird stuff to happen. if it checks out fine go to the next steps.
1)bad ingition switch or possibly starter
2)if a signal bulb is burnt out or wiring damaged it will blink super fast.
3)bad connetion to the instrument cluster, remove cluster unplug and bend the connectors slightly in the wiring harness plug
4) same cause as 3.
note this is where i would start there may be other problems but it's best to start with the simple things. good luck. oh yeah there is a big problem with the multifunction switch(signal, hazards) on your vehicle try smacking the top of the steering column a few times and see if anything changes. check your brakelights as well the wiring goes through the multifunction switch usually the 3rd brakelight(upper) stops working first. good luck getting all this stuff working. keep me posted