Hello again! So I suspect either my ignition switch or TDR is bad. I can hear the TDR click when I turn the key with clutch depressed. With the key turned to crank, I can hear the TDR click when I pump the clutch, so I've ruled out the clutch switch. Could still be the ignition I suppose, but I want to check the relay before tearing into the ignition.

For the life of me I can't figure out how to get this relay out! It's probably really obvious, but I've never had to pull any of these relays before. There is a green tab that looks like I should press/pull on. Any thoughts on how to get this out? THANKS!

P.S. I've ruled out the starter/solenoid by jumping the solenoid with a screwdriver. Starter spun with no problem.

 

It's one of those things that's hard until you do it once. To remove the connector, pull the green clip toward you. It slides out. Then push the connector tab in to release it from the relay, and pull the connector out.

This is the column lock relay, but the clip is the same. The clip is partially out.



To remove the relay, there's a slide clip on the other side of the relay. If you insert a thin screwdriver, you can release the tab and slide the relay off the mount. You may have to rotate the relay around.

 

The screwdriver trick only tells you the starter motor works, but it does so by bypassing the solenoid relay, so you have not ruled that out.

If it's not cranking, check the purple wire at the TDR for voltage during an attempted crank. If you find +12v on that purple wire, everything is good up to that point, and if it's not cranking, it's absolutely the solenoid not responding.

 

Thanks for the help guys! I just went out to the garage and successfully pulled the TDR. I think it's pretty safe to say I've found the culprit. Check out these photos!!




Not cool I just last week finished taking care of my A-Pillar / Door Hinge leaks. Either I missed a spot, or maybe my udders are clogged. Either way, it looks like water must have gotten into the relay and fried things real good! The plastic is just completely melted away. I jumped the purple wire to the red and she fired right up!

SO... the good news is that my starter and ignition are fine. The bad news is that I've gotta splice in a new plug and find a relay. I've heard most parts stores will have the relay. Any suggestions on the plug?

 

Check with a local GM dealer. It should be a Delphi 6 way metri-pack 280 female connector, p/n 12110541.

The connector comes without the female terminals. For the cleanest fix: Remove the terminals from the connector - there's usually a terminal retention clip kind of like the green clip you removed. Probably like a comb, and pulls out of the side of the connector. The terminals will come out the back. You'll have to press on a little plastic tab from the front of the connector for each terminal. They may be melted, I can't tell from the pics. Clean the connector and see what's accessible and/or salvageable.

If you have a crimping tool, you can get new female terminals, crimp them on the wires, insert them into the connector and it'll be nearly as good as new.

You can get the connector and terminals from online distributors, probably only a few bucks + shipping, but it takes time.

 

Thanks! That's exactly what I was looking for. Looks like all the local dealers are closed for the day. I'll have to wait until Monday to buy one. In the meanwhile, I'm going to disassemble whats left of the connector and see what can be salvaged. The purple wire has completely pulled out of the connector (no wonder it wouldn't start!), but I can see where the others are held in by a wide rectangular grey "key". I'm assuming this is the comb-like piece you mentioned. I'll let you know how I make out.

On a side note, does anyone know if a melted TDR could explain why I was experiencing weird alarm behavior? About a week ago I starting noticing the alarm going off at weird times. For example, I'd pop the trunk using my fob, open the trunk, alarm would go off! Or, unlock the doors with my fob, open door, put key in ignition, turn key, alarm goes off! It wouldn't be every time, just real random. I thought it was my fob, but changing batteries didn't help. Now I'm thinking maybe the melted TDR was the problem!

 

With that melted mess, anything is possible with the alarm system having issues. The signals to energize that relay come from either the bcm or pcm, probably bcm but I don't have a schematic available. Anyway, when signals from either device get messed with, who knows what could happen. Once you replace it, you'll then know if you have other issues or not. Excellent pics BTW and Thank You for showing us.

 

This isn't funny anymore Since replacing the melted relay, I've had no further problems - UNTIL TODAY. I came out of work, turned my key - click. I knew right away what it was....

At first I thought maybe one of the wires had come loose. I had temporarily connected them without the Metri-Pak connector while waiting for the connecter to arrive from GMPartsHouse. It wasn't a loose connection . Again, the relay is completely melted. This time, it was to the point that when I tried to disconnect it, the relay actually pulled out of it's housing. Attached are some interested photos of the meltdown:







It looks like the majority of the melting is concentrated around the purple wire. That terminal is completely gone. Also, the purple wire had a plasticy froth surrounding it (visible in photo). What could possibly be causing this while I'm parked at work??? I did notice that the AC canister looks pretty rusty. I thought maybe condensation is leaking onto it due to a clogged tube. But the relay is tucked up there pretty good and I haven't had the AC on in awhile. Defrosters yes, but no AC yet. At this point, I'm parking it in the garage with the battery disconnected - not risking a fire in the meanwhile!

Speaking of disconnecting the battery - when I opened the hood to do so, I noticed that it looks like the battery has been "bubbling". I can see what appears to be battery acid spattered on the top of the battery, and it is awfully "wet" looking around the cover caps. This is a new battery - replaced right BEFORE I started having trouble. Coincidence?

 

Any thoughts guys? Some of the electrical guys at work thought maybe the starter solenoid is pulling too much current for some reason. My starter seems to be working fine. I'd hate to go through the trouble of changing the starter only to continue having this problem. But honestly, I don't know what else could be causing it. Only the Purple wire is melted. As far as I know, the only thing downstream from that is the solenoid right?

 

I'm stuck. If I can't find anything else wrong soon, I may just replace the starter/solenoid and see what happens. The other thing that started happening shortly before the meltdown was I started getting a P0410 and P1416. I didn't think the two were related, but thought I should post it anyway.

 

You need to do a current draw test to SEE how much current your drawing. Something pulling too much. Wonder how your not popping a fusible link or fuse somewhere.

I was thinking more about this and your mention of the battery. Maybe the battery is the problem, forcing the alternator to kick in more juice to try to charge it. You'll need a AMP meter to see and another battery.

Also, check your wires for corrosion.

 

It may have come loose when I was removing the old one.
how tricky is bypassing it? I read grounding one of the wires will do that.