car won't shut off

[zx2er]

Kid bought a 99 zx2 with 13.000 miles on it that was crashed , but ran fine. After he replaced the drivers side fender , the car will not shut off. The ignition was replaced and the control module checked , neither helped . Besides not shuting off it also effected the wipers , and the radio now has a loud hum to it . Any ideas to help the kid out are appreciated. Thanks

[jeffcoslacker]

The radio noise sounds like a bad ground in a high amperage circuit could be the cause. When you say won't shut off, you mean the engine keeps running, or the ignition stays on, or what? My first thought when I read that was an ignition relay sticking. What do the wipers do? (or not do?)

I'll look at my wife's here a little later, and what's on the driver's side there and see if anything comes to mind.

Also, is the radio noise only while the engine is running, or anytime the ignition is on? That might be very important.

[zx2er]

Yes, i meant the engine keeps running , with the key in off position. Can only be shut off by either disconnecting the battery or popping the clutch. Wipers go a couple times by themselves and then make a noise like they are trying to work. Radio only makes the humming noise when the car is running , is fine when the key is in the on position

[jeffcoslacker]

Well, I took a quick look, and I see the neg to body ground is right there, the main fuse box is right in front of the strut tower, and there is another item right next to it that I can't identify without removing it, as it has a little black cover over it, but I'm guessing it's possible that is the ignition relay.

A bad ground or shorted battery can make a car (particularlly Fords, for some reason) do all kinds of bizzare things, that would seem to defy logic. I have seen bad grounds and shorted betteries produce both radio noise and unwanted wiper operation on Fords. The ignition glitch is a new one on me, but I do know that it is relay operated on almost all cars now, where it used to be run solely through the ignition switch. If the relay is damaged or stuck, it can fail to drop the contacts to the loaded side of the relay when the signal side powers down. Just like when the fan relay sticks and makes the engine cooling fan stay on until the battery is dead after ignition shut-down.

If you have an owner's manual, or shop manual, look and see if it says what that item there next to the fuse center under the hood is.

Make sure the battery connections are tight and the ground is good at the body. Make sure any wiring moved or disconnected during fender replacement were restored. Double check that no wiring was pinched, or had a screw or bolt run through it, etc.

Once you kill the motor, does the ignition stay on (radio, heater, etc) even with the key off, or does that all go off when the key is turned off? The more specific you can be, the quicker we'll figure this out.

Let me know!

[Regneva]

I'm having a very similar trouble with my 1997 Ford Ranger; I was pulling into a parking spot, and as I turned the key off, it didn't feel right-- not quite sure how-- either it had too much or too little resistance. But neither the engine nor the radio shut off. I killed the engine by letting out on the clutch while holding the brake, but then noticed that it wouldn't start up again-- It won't crank. The ignition lock cylinder is turning and seems to be working properly (although something could be broken and I may not know it). The radio remained on the entire time, until I disconnected a battery terminal. Which things should I check?
Thanks