Winter Mode light on?!? Problem?

[PHO2GR4]

Hi all,

I searched the forum but didn't see any posts on this.

While driving today, under normal driving conditions, the green 'Winter Mode' warning light suddenly came on. I wasn't IN Winter Mode. At the next light, I clicked the Winter Mode switch on and off a few times, but the light stayed on.

I clicked the switch to turn on the Winter Mode. It clearly works...you can feel the change when driving. You can also feel a slight 'clunk' as it shifts into the Winter Mode.

I clicked the switch again and got OUT of Winter Mode. Again, the slight 'clunk' happened and the car drove normally...but the green Winter Mode warning light remained.

When I got up to speed on a major arterial, the light would flicker on and off when driving over bumps. Just the light, though...no actual shift into or out of Winter Mode.

Kind of a wimpy problem, I know...but what could cause this warning light to come on andflicker around like this?!?

[PHO2GR4]

More info:

When I turn off my VX and then start her up again, the Winter Mode light stays on, even though it drives normally. In other words, the VX doesn't START in Winter Mode, but the LIGHT comes on and stays on.

Weird.

[ZEUS]

:confused: Weird... I'm thinking exposed wire making contact with metal somewhere. :confused: Got me man, good luck!

[kpaske]

Moisture or freezing causing a short somewhere, maybe? If all else fails, wait for a warmer, dry day and see if it goes away. I know, in Seattle that might not be until April. :D

[PHO2GR4]

Strange. It's still doing it.

With the bouncing causing the light to flicker, I hope it's something as dumb as a loose wire. I wish I knew HOW the Winter Mode worked, so I could maybe guess where the loose wire might most likely be!

I also hope it is that simple. I'd hate to be having some major transmission problems...

Any other ideas, folks? Has anyone else seen this or heard of this before?

[IndianaVX]

I got nothin.........
maybe the vx is just reminding you that it IS winter..........and in march it will say spring, july it will say summer, and in sept, it will say fall.......who knows :)

[VehiX]

Have you been doing any work in or outside of your vehicle lately? Anything that may have caused a connection problem some where? What's going on under your passenger seat? If I'm not mistaken, this is where the TOD CPU is located. Also, how about crumbs and such down by the button itself? Anything wedged in between the buttons that perhaps is blocking the button from popping back out? What happens after you reach 25 mph? This is when winter mode should shut itself off.

[etlsport]

id start by pulling the switches out and running the VX while they are unplugged..if the light stays on you can be sure its a short not related to your switch...very easy.. 8 screws... two on the sides of the center console just infront of the little cupholder thing.. two on the sides of the center console on the very back towards the floor.. lift that piece up from the back, reach under and detach wire harness (theres a small tab you can depress, depress that and then a little pulling and it will come apart) and pull it over the ebrake handle (easier if ebrake is on) two screws behind the winter and power mode buttons you can see now that the rear piece of the console is off and two on the sides of the shifter console towards the front of the shifters... unscrew your 4wd knob (counterclockwise) then pull the back of the shifter console up and back and disconnect the wire harness for the P/W mode switches

to take the buttons out theres just two tabs on the underside of the console attached to the buttons, press them in and the buttons pop through the top of the console

to put it all back together do that stuff but backwards...

make sure you remember..
1. reconnect both wiring harnesses! (p/w modes in shifter console and mirrors/defroster in center console)

2. rear screws on shifter console! once you put the back part on you cant put them in without takin everything apart again

3. might help to have a friend help putting the rear piece back on because the seat belt buckles get in the way and end up under your console

[PHO2GR4]

Hi VehiX and etlsport,

Thanks for those replies! Now the light is on at ALL times, regardless of speed, or bumps, or whether I'm actually IN Winter Mode or not.

No changes have happened recently. The light just came on while driving, flickered for a few hours, and now it's on 24/7.

Winter mode works properly. I can engage it, and then it turns off when I go fast enough, and then I can re-engage it again after stopping. But the light stays on always.

There's no "gunk" around the switches. I will try etlsport's idea of disconnecting the switches to see what happens. If it's a TOD CPU problem, I'll be pissed...

Interesting problem. I never USED the Winter Mode on either of my VXs before, and now I can't get rid of it...

[Chopper]

Winter mode is only a start up thing, it makes the car start in second gear to reduce wheelspin on startup. It switches off at like 15mph or something close. You gotta press it each time you start up from a stop. Being in Fla. I've never used it , but I worked for Isuzu when this car came out.Rodeo and Tropper also have this feature.

[PHO2GR4]

Hi Chopper,

Thanks for your post! I've had the chance to study how the Winter Mode is supposed to work, and I have determined that it is working properly on my VX. It isn't the Winter Mode that is my problem, exactly...it seems to be just a problem with the warning light on my dash.

The Winter Mode light is ALWAYS on now, even when it isn't engaged. I can get the VX into Winter Mode, and it works fine. I can also take the VX OUT of Winter Mode, and it also seems to work fine.

But the light stays on at all times, all speeds, stopping, going, etc.

Something's up with the warning light!

[EdFG]

Hi,

I don't think your problem is unique. Mine ('99) does too. My new problem is that the TOD keeps turning on randomly. I started experiencing this after a blowout but that's another story.

Ed

[PHO2GR4]

That's weird. I wonder if it's a 1999 thing, or just coincidence? I still haven't torn my VX apart to find the gremlin, since it's sort of a lame problem. It DRIVES fine, thankfully. Maybe when I do my stereo tweaking...

Does your light flicker on and off, or is it on all the time, solid?

[etlsport]

pho2gr4, did you ever get this issue solved/did you gather any other info for it? im going to try to relocate my power/winter mode switches and change the switches they are on, was hoping you might have found a wiring diagram for them

[PHO2GR4]

No wiring diagram; sorry. I used a more scientific method: I waited for awhile, until the light just went out on its own.

That was a perfect solution! ...until the light started blinking on and off again sporadically. I knew a tougher solution was needed...so I waited HARDER.

That seems to have done the trick, because the Winter Mode light has been contentedly dark for over a month now. Waiting seems to work. I also found that I didn't notice the light as much in the daytime, or when I was looking out the windows.

Regardless, it's out for now. Seems to be fine. Weird problem, huh? :rolleyes:

[Ldub]

I don't think waiting had anything to do with it...it's spring now, so naturally the winter light would go off.

[nfpgasmask]

Eric, I have the electrical wiring manual. I will try to make some time to look in there and see if there is a schematic.

Bart

[PHO2GR4]

That would be great, Bart. If I could find the most likely places for either a short or a loose wire, I can do some exploring under the carpet. It might be under the emergency brake area, beneath the console. Maybe the previous owner spilled a drink there or something, causing corrosion.

[nfpgasmask]

That is definitely possible. If you put a tall cup in the SQUARE cup holder it can easily tip forward and spill all over this area.

I kind of have a quasi NO DRINKS ALLOWED in the VX, unless it is a bottle with a tight cap.

I am kinda anal about keeping my VX clean.

Bart


That would be great, Bart. If I could find the most likely places for either a short or a loose wire, I can do some exploring under the carpet. It might be under the emergency brake area, beneath the console. Maybe the previous owner spilled a drink there or something, causing corrosion.

[etlsport]

I am kinda anal about keeping my VX clean.



amen to that.. i never put open drinks in my vx not even because im worried about it tipping.. but because the rides so freakin bumpy it sloshes all over.. especially now i dont want anything on my center console.. my winter/power mode moving is to free up room to attempt mounting the scangauge in the console :eek:

[nfpgasmask]

Yeah, that's what I figured you were going to attempt. I was thinking the same, but now that I have mine embedded in my wiring cluster cover, I love it there. I fits perfectly and was really easy. I just need to find some sort of thin plastic or rubber trim and it will look totally stock.

http://www.nofuture.com/myvx/mods/scang.jpg

Bart


amen to that.. i never put open drinks in my vx not even because im worried about it tipping.. but because the rides so freakin bumpy it sloshes all over.. especially now i dont want anything on my center console.. my winter/power mode moving is to free up room to attempt mounting the scangauge in the console :eek: