2002 Lesabre electrical problems after new battery installed

[Blumeanie876]

I recently replaced the battery in my 2002 Lesabre. The car started like it was supposed to, but I noticed there were no chimes coming from the dash when I turned the ignition switch. Also, the radio would not turn on, but it had power (I could hear the cd player attempting to eject when the button was pushed). It intermittently loses communication with control modules, and some of the electronics are slow to respond, for example: you open the door and the dome lights don't automatically come on; if you move the shifter into reverse, drive, neutral, etc. it doesn't move on the screen for a few seconds; if you push the door lock, it might take 30 seconds (give or take) to actually lock the door (if at all); if you hit the trunk release on the door or the remote, the trunk doesn't pop open for a while. The grounds are all good, and the fuses are all good. Also, the security light flashes on and off randomly while driving. I did wire the stereo hot, so I know it does work (just not when wired like it is supposed to be).

I'm hoping someone else has had these symptoms and can steer me in the right direction.

Please & Thank you.

 

[BuickGirlFromMars]

I recently replaced the battery in my 2002 Lesabre. The car started like it was supposed to, but I noticed there were no chimes coming from the dash when I turned the ignition switch. Also, the radio would not turn on, but it had power (I could hear the cd player attempting to eject when the button was pushed). It intermittently loses communication with control modules, and some of the electronics are slow to respond, for example: you open the door and the dome lights don't automatically come on; if you move the shifter into reverse, drive, neutral, etc. it doesn't move on the screen for a few seconds; if you push the door lock, it might take 30 seconds (give or take) to actually lock the door (if at all); if you hit the trunk release on the door or the remote, the trunk doesn't pop open for a while. The grounds are all good, and the fuses are all good. Also, the security light flashes on and off randomly while driving. I did wire the stereo hot, so I know it does work (just not when wired like it is supposed to be).

I'm hoping someone else has had these symptoms and can steer me in the right direction.

Please & Thank you.

you said grounds are all good
prove it. show me the grounds you have verified and cleaned.

Also, show me your battery cables where they touch the side post on the battery

You need to get a scan tool
You are only going to piss in the wind to not be checking for codes. Ideally, we want to see ALL codes (U, P, C, B) codes, which requires a higher end tool than the one you get at walmart.

But even if you only have a basic tool or go to autozone, we need to know what the car is saying. It sounds like there is , from my perspective, potentially voltage issues. ground issues. and communication (class 2) issues.

Chimes come from the radio, instructed to do so by the BCM or IPM(I forget on the lesabre, i think its BCM) over class 2

if you do get a scan tool, id like to know what Ignition 0, 1, 2 ,3 (0 or 3 may not be present, thats okay, I just forget how they are numbered) voltages are

 

[02LTD2.0]

Is it the factory radio or did you install an aftermarket radio? Please elaborate on wiring the stereo "hot".

 

[Blumeanie876]

The stereo is an aftermarket unit that was installed in 2018 by Best Buy and has worked perfectly since. Other than the car's electronic delay after changing out the battery, I also noticed the radio would not turn on. So I wired the stereo from the red ignition wire (power when car is on) to the yellow wire (always on) to make sure it wasn't a stereo issue, and the stereo worked just fine. So basically, wired correctly, the radio wouldn't turn on due to the red ignition wire not having power. But, like I mentioned previously, there are no blown fuses.

The whole thing is frustrating, because I love the car. It has always been parked in the garage, and it is in mint condition (not including the current electrical issues obviously).

 

[BuickGirlFromMars]

The stereo is an aftermarket unit that was installed in 2018 by Best Buy and has worked perfectly since. Other than the car's electronic delay after changing out the battery, I also noticed the radio would not turn on. So I wired the stereo from the red ignition wire (power when car is on) to the yellow wire (always on) to make sure it wasn't a stereo issue, and the stereo worked just fine. So basically, wired correctly, the radio wouldn't turn on due to the red ignition wire not having power. But, like I mentioned previously, there are no blown fuses.

The whole thing is frustrating, because I love the car. It has always been parked in the garage, and it is in mint condition (not including the current electrical issues obviously).

Aftermarket radio requires a harness to retain chimes and they default to loud (you can select volume on stock radio)

 

[02LTD2.0]

To hard wire a radio you have to hook up the yellow wire on your radio to 12V switched which I believe is a brown wire(accessory) that you can get to under the steering column. If you still have chimes then Best Buy used an adapter harness that includes a small speaker for the warning chimes.These adapters supply the 12v switched power that is necessary for an aftermarket radio to initialize.
There is no 12v switched at the stock harness connector. The factory radio is turned on via the Can bus.

 

[02LTD2.0]

Simply putting in a new battery should not create the issues you are complaining of. You could have an ignition switch issue. One of the members of this forum has wiring diagrams for the LeSabre. I believe his screen name is BossHog39.

 

[jotzgr]

Simply putting in a new battery should not create the issues you are complaining of.

Agreed. Start with the basics. Since you didn’t have issues previously, I would go back and double-check the connections at the battery and the battery terminals. Make sure they are clean, free of corrosion, tight and making good contact. Side terminal battery terminals sometimes appear to be tight but are not.

 

[Blumeanie876]

Just posting an update in case anyone else has similar issues.

I had the battery checked, and the new battery was bad. Replacing the new battery with a newer battery took care of the delay issues and such. I still had an issue with the Traction control, ABS, and Brake light staying on. I was able to get the car scanned, and the Body Control Module was bad. After replacing the BCM, the car was back to normal.

I went back and checked the battery connections 7 more times just for fun, and shockingly they were still free of corrosion.

 

[Joe F.]

Just posting an update in case anyone else has similar issues.

I had the battery checked, and the new battery was bad. Replacing the new battery with a newer battery took care of the delay issues and such. I still had an issue with the Traction control, ABS, and Brake light staying on. I was able to get the car scanned, and the Body Control Module was bad. After replacing the BCM, the car was back to normal.

I went back and checked the battery connections 7 more times just for fun, and shockingly they were still free of corrosion.

Where is the BCM? I am having a somewhat similar problem with my 2000 buick lesabre and I cant find anything on where the BCM is.