Hi,
I have a 1998 Caravan, 3.3 engine, 114K miles, and a few days ago, went to start it, and seemed like no power at all. I heard relays clicking under the dash, first from the left side under the dash, then seemingly from the right side under the dash.
I tried starting it a couple more times, and it finally started, but many of the the little "on indicator" lights on the panel for rear wiper, washer, recirc, A/C were flashing, but seems those all still worked. The rear defrost light was not flashing, and the rear defrost wouldn't work. I went where I needed to go, about a 20 mile ride, and didn't turn it off until I got home. I then shut the car off, then re- started it, it turned over, but the same lights were flashing. (The indicator lights are supposed to be steady yellow when something is on).
I turned it off again for the night. Next morning it started right up again, the "on indicator" lights weren't flashing and everything was working normal. I took it for a ride, all OK, even rear defrost, and then parked it again. Later that afternoon, I started it, and it turned over after one stall, but along with the same indicator lights flashing, I noticed an intermittant very rapid flashing in the odometer reading.
I turned the car off, went to restart it, dead. The relays were clicking real fast again. After several tries, it started, with the flashing :on indicator" lights, but odometer OK. I drove it up to an auto repair garage about a mile away. They said it may be my alternator. They called me today and asked me to explain the symptoms again, as they could not reproduce them, and I explained to them the same as what I written above. The garage called me back a little later and said it's starting fine for them and to come and pick it up.
When I got there, the mechanic explained that the alternator seems a bit under par, but it started up every time, and as soon as you give it some gas, it starts charging. So he didn't want to install a new alternator yet at this point. The "on indicator" lights still flashing, and he said that's some problem with the heater control panel, but separate from the starting problem. As he said he can't reproduce the problem, he advised me to take notes of any problem and if there's trouble starting again, he'll take it from there. Then we can look at the heater panel. He said everything else looked OK in the system, battery was OK and wires and terminals were tight, etc.
I really think the starting problems, relays clicking, and "on indicator" lights flashing stem from the same problem, as they both started at exactly the same time, and the mechanic says coincidental.
Now today I just tried again, and it started, with the "on indicator" lights flashing.
Any ideas what me and the mechanic should be looking for? Thanks much.