Olds Intrigue Heater control goes blank

[warmfeather]

My Oldsmobile Alero has a clicking/clunking noise under the hood. I was in a drive thru one day and the car just sputtered out. the people at the drive thru said it had white smoke coming off of it. A few weeks before it just overheated for no reason. I went and got oil and put in because the low oil light was on even though the dipstick showed it only needed one quart. it would not start at all, but i had electrical function, then after about 30 mins it started and I had to floor it to get it to drive. I got home and later that night tried to start it, there was NO power what so ever, even the dash lights would not turn on. later all of a sudden while the car was off the head lights came on, and no keys were in the ignition, the lights are set to automatic so they turn off when the car is off so when I went out there it started right up. it still does this periodically when you least expect it and after sitting for a while it will start. now I have to fill the car every day with water, it over heats and has a weird kind of click sound, it sounds like the fan is hitting something but it isnt, and it keeps doing it when the Alero is shut off. it also overheats after about 10 mins of driving even when the water is full. we tried to change the thermostat but when we opened it up it didnt have a thermostat. I dont put antifreeze in it right now because I cant afford to fill it up to twice a day at $13/gallon for antifreeze and still overheats. Another problem that isnt major, but annoying and that started a couple of years ago is that when the automatic head lights come on all of the dash lights go out so I can not see any of my gauges. we've checked all the fuses and they are all fine. what is wrong with my car??? Thanks for your help!

have also asked a mechanic, but just incase someone else has this problem and might get an answer. a google search didnt bring up anything similar.

[Brickol]

Sounds like you're about have an engine failure! The knocking/clicking noise is most likely a rod knock, or lifter tick associated from being overheated. If you are putting that much coolant in every single day, you have a major problem. You can be sure it's burning coolant in one or more of the cylinders due to a blown head gasket, leaking intake gasket, warped cylinder head, cracked block, or all of those combined. If you continue driving it that way, it will only get worse and the engine will end up blowing and locking up due to internal failures. As far as your electrical problems, it sounds like a body control module that is shorting out intermittently that is causing your issues. There could also be corrosion on either of the inside fuse boxes due to water intrusion over the years. That is common on your style vehicle. Your main problems are the knocking and losing coolant, and should be addressed first.

[Morgan3]

I have a 1999 Alero and these issues are also happening to my car, on top of the fact that when I am sitting a red light or stopped for a period of over about a minute, the car starts to "skip" , like it is about to cut off. I have heard Vacuum leaks, or air line leaks, we don't know what to think and how to fix it! any Idea's?

[Zippie83]

thanks, that helped me a lot!
regards,
chantal

[Terry]

1998 Olds Aurora giving code P0603 Internal Control Module Keep Alive Memory (KAM) Error. I replaced the PCM still getting the code. Car will crank but not turn over. I was told it could be the body control mudule. I checked the crank sensors and changed the battery. I also tried using starter fluid. Nothing worked. If you have any other suggestions please help.

[carriedi]

first, don't worry about the P0603. It just means that you have disconnected the pcm from the battery. you get that code if you just disconnect your battery.

Do you have a security light on?

[pandk]

My wife has a 2000 oldsmobile intrigue. She will be driving with the heater on and all of the sudden it goes off and the control goes black. Stop turn off car pull key and then restart and it comes back on. Sometimes have to shut off and pull key a few times. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

[carriedi]

there are three powers and one ground to power up the control panel for the hvac. one power also does the radio so if you don't have a problem with the radio that fuse should be ok. one fuse is for the high speed for the blower so that shouldn't affect the display. the other one is a 10 amp HVAC fuse in the fuse block behind the right side of the dash. It has a brown wire that powers up pin C5 on the display module. you will need to tie into that wire with an LED or test bulb and drive it around to see if the light goes out or stays on when the display shuts down.

the ground wire from pin C1 is a black wire that connects to the body on the right side of the dash (G201) you can check for a good connection.

but, most likely it will probably be internal to the control unit.

now, does the display go out but everything still works or does the display go out and the fans shuts down too. If everything shuts off you will need to check like I said above. If the display turns off but the fan stays on then the display part of the control unit may be going out.

[pandk]

Thank you for your response. Everything goes off when it goes black. I will check what you told me.

[KAR]

I have a 2001 Aurora. The outside temperature is reading about 30 degrees to warm. Engine is running at normal temp. I have heat and cooling. Fans seem to be working fine. I do however have to set the ambient temp. a little higher than normal to get sufficient heat. Any ideas as to which sensor it might be.

Kelley

[jen7john]

1990 Oldsmobile Regency Brougham 98
The fan on my A/c & heater will stop blowing or start blowing when I hit a bump or turn a corner. Any suggestions on how to fix this?

[carriedi]

I'd start looking for a bad connection in the circuit somewhere or you may have a bad blower motor.