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odd electrical issue

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Old 01-02-2014, 05:41 PM
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odd electrical issue

So about 2 months back I bought another 2009 cobalt ss to replace my totaled one. Everything is working great except for one issue I cant seem to find. So any help would be appreciated.

Symptoms are RPD sometimes quits working, Gauges and odometer frequently work and then stop working, AC will no longer blow cold when gauges are not working, Power steering will not work when other symptoms are present.

What was done when I got the car:
1.Looks like the gauges were replaced and I am not sure where they came from. The background is white on them as opposed to black. I pulled them out to make sure everything was connected.
2. Somewhere along the line the stock boost gauge was broken and a couple of staples were jammed in the wire so the car would start. I have replaced the stock boost gauge with my working RPD from the wrecked cobalt

What I have done:
1. Checked ground the wire underneath the steering console. None of it looks like it was touched and the connection seems to be secure and rust free.
2. checked the connection to the gauges. It is secure and the wires look good.
3. took out stereo and hvac and ensured connections were good.
4. Checked for bad fuses

My opinion: Seems to be a ground wire that would cause all those things but I cant seem to find where it could be.

Once more thanks for taking the time to look it over and drop in your 2 cents.
Old 01-06-2014, 12:04 PM
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bump.
Old 01-06-2014, 01:00 PM
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Did u check ur battery ground? Maybe someone didn't connect that properly.
Old 01-06-2014, 01:46 PM
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yeap checked that and its fine it seems
Old 01-09-2014, 01:47 PM
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replaced gauge cluster and still same thing. maybe something in the dash?
Old 01-09-2014, 02:19 PM
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from what I can tell the BCM controls all those functions one way or another. check BCM power and ground. I feel it might be a bad BCM.
Old 01-10-2014, 10:54 AM
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I didn't even know those went bad. luckily I have a totaled balt in the garage to sue for spare parts. Ill check power and ground then may swap that.
Old 01-13-2014, 07:32 PM
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I've replaced several for several different problems in all sorts of cars. It will probably have to be programmed at a dealer. Try unplugging every plug on the bcm and plug all back in after putting a little dielectric grease on plugs. That fixes 60% of them
Old 01-13-2014, 07:47 PM
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my car did this too. it hasn't done it in MONTHS, but seemed to only happen when it was hot outside. I figured it was my BCM as well. Just randomly stopped happening so w/e. Guess i'll find out when it starts getting hot out.
Old 01-13-2014, 08:10 PM
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I saw a local cobalt with a loose/improperly installed BCM that would shut down or lock/unlock the doors when you went over a bump. It's kind of a pain to troubleshoot when it only happens when you smash over a bump at 40mph
Old 01-13-2014, 09:49 PM
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in an effort to not replace the BCM just yet I tore apart the whole dash looking for some grounds. Alas there were not any so I took the impact to all the grounds I could find. So far the isswue hasn't come back yet but its still abit early to rule it out. Thanks for advice ill report back
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