Please forgive my ignorance, for I know next to nothing about cars, but I was hoping to obtain a little guidance from some experts. If this is the wrong forum in which to ask such questions, just let me know ... ... My father recently passed away unexpectedly; he owned a 1992 Corvette. The car is in very good condition. My dad was not the original owner, but he really babied that thing. But since his passing just a month ago, we’ve had problems with it. We are uncertain as to whether it would be worth the money to fix the vehicle, and if so, if it would be wise to keep it. My mother would be keeping it basically for sentimental reasons; financially, she doesn’t really need to be paying insurance and maintenance on the car.

At any rate, my mom tried to start the car recently and the battery was dead. Our local repair shop determined that the inside lights, radio and AC were not turning off when the doors were closed, and so the battery was draining. We mentioned that my dad had just had the carpet replaced, and they thought perhaps something had “happened” during that process. The shop couldn’t fix the problem, and neither could the shop that they recommended. We ended up at a dealership. I believe they replaced fuses, thinking that would solve the problem, but it didn’t. Their next suggestion was a possible problem with the body control module, which we understand could be an expensive situation.

So, do we move forward and have the dealership investigate the likelihood of a body control module problem, possibly forking over a hefty sum? Or should we just try to sell the car as is? Would we be able to sell it with an unknown problem? Would it be worth it to fix the car and keep it? Might it appreciate at all?

If we did try to sell the car, what would be the best way to do it? Something like Auto Trader?

Thanks so much for your help.

 

Do you really want to keep the car? If so, I don't think that it would take to much to fix. If you really don't give a crap about the car, then sell it.

 

Well sure, it would be great to be able to keep it. My dad put a lot of time and energy into it, and right now anything that was his has a special meaning for us. But that's only if it's not going to be a big financial drain for my mom. She's 69 and is suddenly left with three cars. It's not that we don't "give a crap "about it ... we just don't want to make any uneducated decisions based on sentimental value. We were led to believe this work would be pricey, involving the removal of the dashboard, etc.

 

First of all, condolences to you and yours.

Regarding the problem with the lights, aside of determining to sell or not, the problem is likely a small and easy to fix issue.

First of all, consider replacing the battery (assuming it is older than 1 year old), as once it dies it will most likely die again soon. It does require removal of the small fender side panel, but not difficult

The C4's have a small 'parasitic' drain on a battery even when nothing is turned on, so most folks keep a battery tender connected to the battery to compensate. BTW, do not leave the ignition key in the ignition switch, it causes a substantial drain on the battery.

to diagnose the light problem, suggest doing the following:
1. get in car and close all doors.
2. turn on key to ON position (all dash lights illuminate).
3. turn on radio.
4. turn off key and remove.
5. open drivers door

The radio should turn off, 'security' light on dash should start to flash, and interior lights should come on.

If all three do not occur, then the problem may only be the door switch(es).

They are only about $15 each at your local Napa or GM dealer and if you have some mechanical ability easy to do, and can be done right through their holes in the door, so do not require taking the door apart.

If the radio and lights do go off, then repeat the test, but do not perform step 5 (i.e. stay in car and do not open door). Wait 15-20 minutes, and the radio should go off by itself. If not, then it points to the DAB (delay accessory bus) timer, which is under the dash and a bit hard to change, but you should be able to direct a dealer or a corvette speciality shop to change and control the costs.

One other somewhat common battery drain item is the electric radio antenna.

Does it operate normally? To test, have someone sit inside the car and someone else stand out next to the antenna. With key in accessories position, turn on the radio. Does the antenna go up immediately and not make any additional noises? Then turn off radio. Does the antenna go down immediately and not make any additional noises after it is all the way down? If not, then listen (15-30 minutes) for a clicking noise in/around the hatch latch for the antenna relay. If you hear it click on/off occasionally, it could mean the antenna motor turn-off circuit has failed and tripped its internal circuit breaker, which is resetting after a small period of time and continuing to try and retract the antenna, causing a 10 amp draw, which could easily drain a battery in short order.

If it turns out to be the antenna, then again, you could direct someone to replace it, to minimize the repair costs.

Let us know and we'll continue to try and help...

 

the car will appreciate in value, how ever that won't be for several years. I would say that if you really want to keep the car, drive it, enjoy it, etc., then fix it, but I would suggest finding a Corvette specialtist and staying away from the dealer. If you don't really care to keep it, then yes, sell it, an optional place to list it where it would most likely get respect unlike auto-trader is the for sale thread here on the forums.

Yet another thought is if you do want to keep it you, you may live close to a forum member willing to help you trouble shoot the problem.

Sorry to hear about your father, and good luck with the car

 

Wow, you guys are great. Thank you so much for your responses. I am going to print out your instructions, Admiral, and see if I can go through the steps you suggested. I would be incredibly excited if we were able to determine it was a rather small, easily fixed problem.

Purty, I agree that the dealer isn't the best place to be. They see these two women come in with a Corvette (who know nothing about cars, mind you) and the rest is history. We are located in Roswell, Georgia ... I don't know if there's another forum member in this general vicinity? Is there an area on this site where I might be able to find that out?

I am going to try Admiral's suggestions and let you all know how it goes. Thank you again for putting up with my uneducated questions! My dad would get a real kick out of seeing his daughter's attempts to troubleshoot this problem!

 

Sorry for your loss. Report your findings. There is lots of help here.

You Dad would be proud of your attitude and willingness to search for a solution.

 

You might post up on Forums/Regional/Southeast to see if there is someone nearby that can recommend a good local shop to help out.

 

I'm in Savannah, GA, not sure how far that is from Roswell

 

OK, I did print out your instructions, Admiral, and went through all of the steps this morning at my mom's place. None of the scenarios resulted in a problem outcome ... in the first instance, the radio did turn off, the "security" light on the dash did flash, and the interior lights did turn on. With the second test, the radio did go off after about 18 minutes. And with the third test, the antenna appeared to be in good working order ... no clicking noises, etc.

So, I'm not sure what that means? If you have any other thoughts and don't mind taking the time to share them, I'd be willing to try anything. We did get a new battery put in the other day ... that was recommended to us and we did it. And if we can get this problem solved, we will definitely have to look into the battery tender. I'm actually kind of surprised my dad didn't have that set-up. Right now we are removing a fuse when we park the car so as not to drain the battery, then putting it back in so my mom can use the air conditioning when she drives.

Purty, I do believe Roswell is about four hours away from Savannah! That would be quite a haul, I think. I do have a sister in Macon, which would be a bit closer ... well, I think perhaps 2-1/2 hours from Savannah? Are you ever in that area?
I did post in the regional section to see if anyone could recommend a local shop, though.

Thank you again, everyone.

 

You never stated if the interior lights went off. if they did how long did it take?
Also, how long has the car been sitting?
I know when I travel I have to dsconnect the battery if I am travelling over a week.

 

Oh, I'm sorry I didn't mention that ... yes, oddly enough, the interior lights did turn off during my test, but I must say I didn't notice how long it took for them to do so. The car has been in three shops in the past week and a half or so, and the lights, radio and AC have stayed on consistently, unless the fuse is removed. ???

The car had not been sitting long. My dad drove it regularly ... he last drove it around April 12. It had been driven around April 20 with no problem, and then my mom attempted to drive it around a week to 10 days later and couldn't start it.