OK, so these problems may not have anything to do with one another but i get the sense they are related...

Jeep GC 2001
- wipers stopped working about a month ago. then a few days later started working again
- tailgate power lock stopped working a week or two ago. works sometimes but mostly not
- today, blinkers would not work. Lever on steering column goes up and down, but no "clicking" or arrows showing on dash.

Anyone have any thoughts?

and somewhat related, How do you check or change the fuses in the box under the hood?

thanks- E Kamer

 

first off, welcome! make sure your connections are good. use a wire tester on you fuses to check to see if they are good. if they don't light up, replace them.

 

Sounds like you have an intermittent grounding issue if you are not blowing fuses.

Start by trying to get your hands on a good wiring diagram for your year. Meanwhile...

Spend as much time as you can going through and physically checking your grounds. While you are searching around, it doesn’t hurt to take everyone you find off and clean the termination and the surface it mates to. (I do this any time I'm working on the rig and come across a ground) Look at the wire going into the terminations, making sure they are securely crimped onto the entire wire (and not all rusty).

Pay close attention in the area up under the driver side dash and kick panel! That’s where the majority of your wiring for the rig passes through. Look closely for wires that someone may have run a screw through and now that the screw is removed, the wire may be broken even though the insulation looks like it just has a pin hole...

 

so can a fuse be bad but not broken?

how do you actually remove the ones in the box under the hood?

 

where would i find a ground?

 

yes a fuse can be bad and not look broken. and a ground will be pretty much any wire that bolts to something metal.

 

OK - so new development - can anyone tell me if this helps figure it out?

Yesterday after driving in a highway for about 10 minutes, the blinkers started to work.

Does that mean a weak battery? alternator?

 

Check the bulkhead connector and see if it is loose, then check the blinker fluid. Sometimes when you drive, the blinker fluid will kind of slosh around and fill the system with air. The highway driving will give the fluid time to settle and the air will bleed out, then the blinkers will start to work again. You should only use Jeep brand blinker fluid, part number BF19834-a5z-1601. Just call the local Jeep dealer and ask for it. The fluid should be a bright yellow and taste kind of sour, you can find the reservoir behind the spare tire and plastic trim panel. Kind of stupid to make it so hard to check the blinker fluid, but I guess Jeep thought you should never have to add fluid.

 

 

I called my dealer and they said they don't have the yellow, but they have purple. Will that work the same?

 

Shame on you guys.

 

Only on vehicles built before 12/32/81.

 

why do you say shame?