Electrical Problems?
 

I have a Saturn Vue, 2006 and for the last month I've been afraid to get in my car because I worry that it will stop functioning...

A month ago my car wouldn't start. I got a jump, went to get the battery checked, it was OK, and there wasn't an explanation for it.

Today my car wouldn't start. I cried for a minute, tried again, and it started, but the start up took slightly longer than it normally does.

I went and got the battery tested, it was bad, I changed it.

3 hours later (after I had driven the car for about 20 minutes, parked it and turned it off) I got back in my car, and it turned on normally, but none of the lights on my dash board or radio turned on, (but the radio still worked). I drove for about a minute and the lights turned on. I turned my car off and restarted it, and it turned on normally.

I am hoping this isn't an electrical problem, aren't those expensive? Can anyone shed any light?

(on a separate note, about once every 6 months i have to replace my radio fuse because it just stops working and my radio won't turn on... not sure if this has anything to do with it, but I wanted to mention it)

(on another separate note that I wanted to mention, I have one headlight that went out on the same day that my car wouldn't start a month ago, but then it came back on so I didn't replace it. Last night when I got home I realized it was out again (I check it every day to make sure), and then this morning is when I had the problems... not sure if there's a connection).

Thank you!

Huntel2

Replace the main ground cable from your battery. Ensure the contacts on both battery connections are clean and tight

Thanks a lot, but just to clear something up, do you think are these separate incidences (dead battery & my dashboard lights not coming on)? If I didn't need to change the battery then I wouldn't have had the dash light problems?

With that cable possibly failing, it would cause various portions of the electrical system to work screwey. Also, since the cable was/is bad, it doesn't allow the full amount of charge to come from the alternator to the battery, causing excessive load/stress on a three-year-old battery, possibly leading to an early failure.

By the way, while you are in there, examine the positive battery cable as well. Sometimes, battery corrosion will get under the insulation, and eat up the cable from the inside (almost like a termite does to a piece of wood).

Actually I think I found the source of the problem. At least I really hope I did. It just happened to be a lot of unfortunate coincidences. My light is just dead. My battery was dead. And the reason my lights weren't on was because someone turned that weird disc thing right above my radio that controls in LED light intensity. That's the only conclusion I can come up with that immediately fixes the problem. I have no idea what the point of that dial is for, I just know fiddling with it works.

So... I guess I'm just living on a prayer because I can't afford to have it looked at. Thank you though!

Headlight bulb filament was burned through, but still making intermittent contact -- so it worked sometimes but not others.

3 years for a Saturn supplied new vehicle battery is par for the course -- they put in cheap sh*t these days.

The dimmer control is to allow you to dim the dash lighting if someone in the vehicle is trying to catch some zzzz's or if your eyes are particularly sensitive in dark light...

Hope all continues to go well.......no need to pray....

haha, thank you, and I was just praying to Natural Selection ;)