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zerotofifty
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Joined: December 27, 2003
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PostPosted: Sat Jun 05, 2021 9:47 am    Post subject: Dash Electric Noise Reply with quote

Hello

I have a 1986 Van that is acting up. Out of the blue, yesterday upon turning the van on, there was a bunch of clicking noise, like relays, from the dash. click, click, pause, click, pause click click click, pause, pause, pause, click click, pause....etc also the water temperature warming lamp erratically flashed, not in sequence with the clicking, then the lamp would go out for a minute, then do it again.
However when I turned on my headlights the clicking nearly ceased, to maybe one or two clicks every minute or two, and the warning lamp stopped its erratic flashing.

This continued during my 15 minute drive, I switched on and off the headlamps, and the clicking either returned or stopped if the headlamps were off or on respectively. With headlamps off, application of the foot brakes (brake light) also stopped or nearly stopped the clicking noise and warning light's erratic flashing.

What are possible causes of such a weird symptom? I imagine a bad ground might do this, but where should I look? Is my van haunted?
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djkeev
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PostPosted: Sat Jun 05, 2021 10:33 am    Post subject: Re: Dash Electric Noise Reply with quote

#1 suspect is bad grounds

#2 suspect is a poor +12v connection

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VicVan
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PostPosted: Sat Jun 05, 2021 1:13 pm    Post subject: Re: Dash Electric Noise Reply with quote

#3 bad ignition switch (could be the cause of #2)
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DuncanS
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PostPosted: Sun Jun 06, 2021 6:27 pm    Post subject: Re: Dash Electric Noise Reply with quote

Load reduction relay? Clicking sounds like more than just an intermittent wiring issue which many times can be silent.
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zerotofifty
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PostPosted: Mon Jun 07, 2021 8:01 am    Post subject: Re: Dash Electric Noise Reply with quote

Yes it sounds like a relay gone wild. drove yesterday and it gave no problems. solved itself? Anyway someone mentioned ground issues, where is the ground location in the dash area that is of concern. my battery ground strap is tight and clean. I want to dig into the root cuase, I dont want a total electric failure on a dark stormy night on the wrong end of town.
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dobryan
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PostPosted: Mon Jun 07, 2021 8:08 am    Post subject: Re: Dash Electric Noise Reply with quote

This topic should help with the grounds.

https://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=662834&highlight=ground
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