Gauges, Odometer, Climate Control No Longer Working

Ok, so I go out to start fixing some of the issues with the Riviera. First thing (which I thought would be the easiest) was to reprogram the remote for the doors. Well I jumped 8 and 4 on the OBD!! like in the directions. Nothing happens. I made sure that they were the right pins. Now I notice the doors will not lock when the button is pressed, the climate control only displays C and F for Celsius or Fahrenheit, and the gauges no longer function nor does the odometer come up. The dash gets lights, just nothing is functional. Did I blow a fuse or do something else to screw things up? Not really sure what I could have did. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Lol Same thing happened to me when i tried it too!


Its a blown fuse. But i don't remember which one.


I ended up going to the dealer and got it programmed for like 40 bucks or something later.

TonySmooth89 wrote:

Lol Same thing happened to me when i tried it too!


Its a blown fuse. But i don't remember which one.


I ended up going to the dealer and got it programmed for like 40 bucks or something later.

So it wasn't a fried computer or anything? What exactly was reprogrammed if it was just a blown fuse though? I went through every fuse I could find on the drivers side fuse panel and both fuse and breaker boxes under the rear seat and didn't find one fuse or breaker that needed to be replaced. Am I missing a fuse location?

I fixed a few things and broke about ten other things or so it seems.

Any additional details on what the dealer did to fix it would be greatly appreciated.

there is small fuse panel in the engine compartment...

wonder if anyone is selling a Tech II cheap.

Albertj

Actually my neighbor specializes in auto electric , and he fixed it for me , so i have no specifics on what fuse it was exactly.

TonySmooth89 wrote:

Actually my neighbor specializes in auto electric , and he fixed it for me , so i have no specifics on what fuse it was exactly.

As long as it's just a fuse, I can find it. I just don't want to put $200 into a new computer. Thanks for easing my mind.

Lol no problem. I freaked out quite a bit myself when it happened.

TonySmooth89 wrote:

Lol no problem. I freaked out quite a bit myself when it happened.

You wouldn't happen to be able to walk over to your neighbors and ask him exactly what he did? I've gone through every fuse box I can find and nothing is blown. I did both the boxes under the seat, the fuse panel on the drivers side, and the fuse panel in the engine compartment. Nothing whatsoever wrong with the fuses. If you could find out a little more detail on exactly what he did I would truly appreciate it. Thanks.

You might be looking for a busted wire. Does your car have aftermarket alarm, remotestart or radio? Start there.

Hey folks - Is it possible there's a fusible link involved?


Albertj

Do you have a test light? You could hook that up and test the fuses. Alternatively, the manual should say which fuse is responsible for operating the gauges.

GMFreak8 wrote:

Ok, so I go out to start fixing some of the issues with the Riviera. First thing (which I thought would be the easiest) was to reprogram the remote for the doors. Well I jumped 8 and 4 on the OBD!! like in the directions. Nothing happens. I made sure that they were the right pins. Now I notice the doors will not lock when the button is pressed, the climate control only displays C and F for Celsius or Fahrenheit, and the gauges no longer function nor does the odometer come up. The dash gets lights, just nothing is functional. Did I blow a fuse or do something else to screw things up? Not really sure what I could have did. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

It sounds to me like you did something other than a fuse...

On my wifes 99 I blew the fuse that controls the climate control and it would not lite up at all. Yours is displaying some data...no idea what could be your problem.

If it were me I guess I would try removing the batt. cable for a while and see if that helped.

Bert

I gave up. I went over every thing electrical that I could think of and didn't find anything. I'm just going to bite the bullet and pay the local buick dealer $68 an hour to find my screw up. I guess you live and learn. I'll definitely never try to reprogram a keyfob again on the Riviera. I will let everyone know how things go and what it was. Unless of course Tony can convince his neighbor to post here.

GMFreak8 wrote:

TonySmooth89 wrote:

Lol no problem. I freaked out quite a bit myself when it happened.

You wouldn't happen to be able to walk over to your neighbors and ask him exactly what he did? I've gone through every fuse box I can find and nothing is blown. I did both the boxes under the seat, the fuse panel on the drivers side, and the fuse panel in the engine compartment. Nothing whatsoever wrong with the fuses. If you could find out a little more detail on exactly what he did I would truly appreciate it. Thanks.

He probably wouldn't remember but i'll try if i can find him home at a reasonable hour.

TonySmooth89 wrote:

GMFreak8 wrote:

TonySmooth89 wrote:

Lol no problem. I freaked out quite a bit myself when it happened.

You wouldn't happen to be able to walk over to your neighbors and ask him exactly what he did? I've gone through every fuse box I can find and nothing is blown. I did both the boxes under the seat, the fuse panel on the drivers side, and the fuse panel in the engine compartment. Nothing whatsoever wrong with the fuses. If you could find out a little more detail on exactly what he did I would truly appreciate it. Thanks.

He probably wouldn't remember but i'll try if i can find him home at a reasonable hour.

Alright let me know either way. I don't have an appointment with the stealership until the 24th, so if he can remember in the mean time it would definitely save me some cash.

Any update on your neighbor?

No haven't had much time between work and my brothers wife giving birth to a beautiful set of twins i haven't been able to run over there. I work tommorow all day but if i run into him i'll ask.

Alright, let me know if you do hear anything.

You did try removing the batt. cable for a while...just in case?


Bert

ibmoses wrote:

You did try removing the batt. cable for a while...just in case?


Bert

Yup, didn't do a thing. I left it removed for a good 10 minutes.

About that fuse - did you just check visually or did you use a tester (those Littelfuse or Buss LED gadgets). Reason I ask is that sometimes - not very often - a fuse blows such that it looks OK visually but actually is blown, can;t tell without actually testing.

Albertj

Well apparently it was two separate fuses under the rear seat that blew. So you were right albert, apparently it was just blown enough to make it hard to detect it visually. Now I have a problem with my rear driving lights not going off...

GMFreak8 wrote:

Well apparently it was two separate fuses under the rear seat that blew. So you were right albert, apparently it was just blown enough to make it hard to detect it visually. Now I have a problem with my rear driving lights not going off...

you are welcome.

voice of experience.

albertj

rear driving lights or rear brake lights? Probably you have a bum brake switch or a short - but we need more detail.

Albertj

Quote:
It's me again. Yesterday everything was working great in the car. Today I go out and I notice my tail lights look like they are on. I figured it was the sun so I try to start it just to make sure. Sure enough I had a dead battery. Upon closer inspection the rear lights are constantly on. It's separate from the brake lights, it's the actual driving lights that are stuck on. I thought maybe it was the brake light switch, but that rules that out. Has anyone experienced this or does anyone know where I could look to locate an issue with this? Thanks for any help in advance. Kyle.

albertj wrote:

rear driving lights or rear brake lights? Probably you have a bum brake switch or a short - but we need more detail.

Albertj

It's the rear driving lights. When stepping on the brake the third brake light lights up and the separate brake lights within the tail light assembly come on. Letting up on the brake shuts the lights off. The regular driving lights will remain on until the battery dies.