this is a weird one!! starter/horn engaging when jeep is off

2000 Classic, 4.0, 4 spd automatic, 231 T/C, 75000 miles (125 000kms)

Can anyone help me with this one?

Jeep randomly honks (a constant honk, not beeps) and the starter tries to start the engine....have to disconnect the battery to stop it(and keep it disconnected so I don't piss off the neighboors in the middle of the night)
they both go off together (horn and starter) or sometimes just one does. it does when jeep is running also, and when I put it drive or reverse it stops...so I assume the NSS is doing its job and not the cause.

Did all the checks ( grounds check, cleaned all connection points, removed checked/cleaned ignition switch, swapped relays, checked voltages, checked fuses, used dielectric grease on everything

Gonna remove my starter tomorrow and see if its the solenoid that is sticking on or shorting out.

I also read a post that had the same issues as I'm having, he removed his JB and looked inside to find corrosion which was shorting things out. Gonna try that too.

Hoping its not a short in the engine harness somewhere, PITA.

any help would be great!

Luker

Oh ya,

While I was cleaning connections I notice that the solenoid had a weird plug where the ignition wire is....what is it for and can this be the cause?

Also, what I think is a vacuum switch, next to the A/C canister on the pass. side firewall is constantly clicking...

starting to think its a short somewhere:smsoap:....or PCM...

XJluker said:

2000 Classic, 4.0, 4 spd automatic, 231 T/C, 75000 miles (125 000kms)

Can anyone help me with this one?

Jeep randomly honks (a constant honk, not beeps) and the starter tries to start the engine....have to disconnect the battery to stop it(and keep it disconnected so I don't piss off the neighboors in the middle of the night)
they both go off together (horn and starter) or sometimes just one does. it does when jeep is running also, and when I put it drive or reverse it stops...so I assume the NSS is doing its job and not the cause.

Did all the checks ( grounds check, cleaned all connection points, removed checked/cleaned ignition switch, swapped relays, checked voltages, checked fuses, used dielectric grease on everything

Gonna remove my starter tomorrow and see if its the solenoid that is sticking on or shorting out.

I also read a post that had the same issues as I'm having, he removed his JB and looked inside to find corrosion which was shorting things out. Gonna try that too.

Hoping its not a short in the engine harness somewhere, PITA.

any help would be great!

Luker

Click to expand...

Good possibility that the JB is corroded. There have been many accounts of this.

Thanks for the reply SidewinderCC,

I hope that's the problem...getting to the point where I just want to figure this out and get my jeep back to normal...Only thing is my JB doesn't have any corrosion on the outside anywhere looks brand new, but I guess I wont know until I take it out and open it...

I did just do alot of work on it:

Complete front and rear susp., all bushings, links, swaybar bushings, shocks, springs.

New driveshaft u-joints and front axle u-joints

New brakes front and back (pads, rotors, drums, shoes)

New cam and crank pos. sensors.

New plugs,(champion copper plugs)


She runs and drives like a dream! Until this all started to happen....now its in my shop at work on jack stands, cant wait to figure this out...

Thanks again

Unplug the horn relay and see if that fixes it. Inspect the ignition switch and the steering column wire harness.

The evaporative emissions purge solenoid is supposed to click, that means it is working.

Does the ignition circuit run through the horn relay?

Got a new relay and opened up the JB...found a little amount of corrosion (thinking bringing it in and out of the shop when its -30 caused condensation in the JB). Cleaned it up, added a light coating of dielectric grease, sealed the edges of the cover, it hasn't done it since...