Lights flicker on and off

When asking questions like this it is a good idea to post the vehicle make, model, and year or any other details.

without knowing all that info requires even more "guess work" on our part. But off the top of my head It seems your parking lights are somehow crossed with the domelight circuit..which is quite possible on some vehicles..also seems like you might have not done the ignition bypass correctly..but once again this is all guessing.

But as a starting point please meter your main 12v and ground connections at the brain and make sure they stay @ 12v or greater under all the conditions you listed. If not..you found a possible lead.

post back with the year, make, model and where you tapped the parking lights, door trigger and/or domelight supervision.

Ok..compare all your wiring to the following diagram..and double check all you connections (aka verify with a meter). Post back any results..thanks.

12volts  wht/red (30A), wht/blue (7.5A)  +   ignition harness 
Starter  BLACK / YELLOW   +   ignition harness       
Ignition  black   +   ignition harness 
Second Ignition  BLACK / YELLOW   +   ignition harness       
Accessory  pink   +   ignition harness      
Keysense  blue/black   -   ignition harness 
Notes: Using the status output to trigger this wire during remote start will disarm the
 factory alarm without unlocking the doors.
Power Lock  lt. green   -   driver kick, 18 pin plug 
Notes: Meter these wires while turning the key in the driver door key cylinder.
Power Unlock  blue (double pulse)   -   driver kick, 18 pin plug 
Notes: Meter these wires while turning the key in the driver door key cylinder.Can also use the passenger door key cylinder wire for unlock, which only requires a single pulse.
 It is blue / YELLOW (-) in the passenger kick in a 12 pin plug.
Lock Motor  blue/red   5wi  driver kick, 12 pin plug 
Unlock Motor  WHITE/ red to red   5wi  driver kick, 18 pin plug 
Parking Lights+  do not use, relay rests at gnd      
Parking Lights-  GREEN/ black   -   headlight switch 
Hazards  BLACK/ orange   -   hazard switch 
Turn Signal(L)  GREEN/ black   +   R side of fuse box, 30 pin plug 
Turn Signal(R)  GREEN/ YELLOW   +   R side of fuse box, 30 pin plug 
Reverse Light  RED / black   +   driver kick, harness to rear 
Door Trigger  blue   -   interior light switch on dash 
Notes: Can also use individual door trigger wires. The driver door is RED / yellow in the 16 pin plug,
pin 14 at the BECU. The passenger door is RED / yellow in the 28 pin plug, pin 23 at the BECU.
The left sliding door is gray, pin 19, in a 25 pin plug on the right side of the fuse box.
The right sliding door is RED / white in the 16 pin plug, pin 16 at the BECU. The hatch door is
 GREEN / WHITE in the 28 pin plug, pin 25 at the BECU. Use all wires and diode isolate each.

The BECU (Body ECU) is attached to the back of the fuse box under the driver side dash.
Dome Supervision  RED / green   -   interior light switch on dash 
Trunk/Hatch Pin  common with door trigger wire       
Hood Pin  RED / white   -   BECU, 10 pin plug, pin 10 
Notes: The BECU (Body ECU) is attached to the back of the fuse box under the driver side dash.
Trunk/Hatch Release  yellow/red (power back door)   -   bottom L of fuse box, 22 pin plug 
Notes: On vehicles without the power back door, the hatch release is GREEN/ black (-) at the BECU,
28 pin plug, pin 3. Meter this wire while open the hatch from the handle on the rear hatch.

The hatch release motor wire is blue/black (+) at the BECU, 26 pin plug, pin 1.

The BECU (Body ECU) is attached to the back of the fuse box under the driver side dash.
Power Sliding Door  YELLOW /GREEN (L), purple (R)   -   bottom L of fuse box, 22 pin plug 
Factory Alarm Arm  arms with lock       
Factory Alarm Disarm  disarms with unlock       
Disarm No Unlock  use key sense wire       
Tachometer  BLACK/ orange   ac   ECM, top plug, pin 5 
Notes: The ECM (Engine Control Module) is behind the glove box.
Wait to start  N/A       
Brake Wire  GREEN / WHITE   +   brake pedal switch 
Parking Brake  RED / white   -   R side of fuse box, 36 pin plug 
Horn Trigger  GREEN/ black   -   horn switch  
     
 Interface Module: Category:
Immobilizer Bypass  Required:
Yes Type:
Transponder
Part #: 1100X
Alternate Part1 #: DesignTech 29402
Alternate Part2 #: 556UW
Alternate Part3 #: DesignTech 20402
Notes: Standard on LE, XLE, and XLE Limited models.
 Smart Starter Kill Relays: Relay Type:
EFI Relay Location:
Engine compartment fusebox, Driver side
Part #: 6413A

This wiring information is being provided free of charge on an "as is" basis, without any representation or warranty.
It is your responsibility to verify any circuit before interfacing with it using a digital multimeter.

Ok I went to the car. it started ok and when I put my key in everything was good. So I then tried to start the car with my key and everything started to blink.  The wires I connected to are:

12volts  wht/red (30A), wht/blue (7.5A)  +   ignition harness               

Starter  BLACK / YELLOW   +   ignition harness               
Ignition  black   +   ignition harness 
Second Ignition  BLACK / YELLOW   +   ignition harness       
Accessory  pink   +   ignition harness      
Keysense  blue/black   -   ignition harness 

Power Lock  lt. green   -   driver kick, 18 pin plug 

Tachometer  BLACK/ orange   ac   ECM, top plug, pin 5 
Brake Wire  GREEN / WHITE   +   brake pedal switch 

Power Unlock  blue (double pulse)   -   driver kick, 18 pin plug 

Parking Lights-  GREEN/ black   -   headlight switch 

Dome Supervision  RED / green   -   interior light switch on dash 

I set the Programming to constant lights on for the parking light and the door to bouble pulse.

Well what you need to do first is determine if it is something you did wrong...or if it is a defect in the product either caused by something you did wrong..or it is just defective.

Now to track down what is happening we need to take a logical approach. Ok, this happens when you try to start. Well when you start the car what happens is the ignition circuits get powered up...then when you go to the "crank" or start position...starter wire gets power....ignitions hold power...but  the accessory wires lose power.

Now if all else is wired correctly..the only thing the RS brain will detect is something on the ignition wire(s) during key on and crank.....and accessory wire losing power during start.

So common sense and basic troubleshooting logic tells us to check those first. It seems to me you might have the constant wire of the RS on an ignition or accessory wire by mistake..but do what I say and you will know for sure.

Take your meter and make sure all those wires are doing what they are supposed to..and connected properly. Make sure all the harnesses...especially the ribbon cable to relay module are all plugged in solidly..I have seen those come lose before and cause strange problems.

What I would do first is take the meter and check if the wire you hooked to constant stays constant at all times..measure it with the key off...ignition/run and start.  If thats good go to measure any ignition wires you hooked up...make sure they show 12v with key on AND start..but no voltage with key off.  If nothing yet go the any accy you connect...make sure it has 12v when key in acc and ignition position...but 0 volts when key off AND in start position.

And this is IMPORTANT.  You must take the measurments at the RS harnesses...not at the vehicles ignition harness in case you are actually on the correct wires..but simply have a poor connection.

If you can't find anything wrong disconnect them one at a time until the problem stops. Once it stops you know whats causing it.

Trust me on this..I have excellent troubleshooting skills, my cell phone is busier then any "tech line" from manufacturers for these kind of problems..If you do what I say carefully..you will have it figured out in no time flat.

In the worst case something happened to mess up something in the car so we need to determine if it is your wiring or a defect with the RS unit before any other steps can be taken.

Also remember to check the brains main constant..that is the smaller red wire on the long main harness that plugs into the RS brain. If that wire is losing 12v when you turn the key to run or start..it will cause problems.

And it can't hurt to double and triple check the ground...check it at the same main harness (the thin black wire) and make sure it holds at least 12v with key off...key on..and start.  You MUST use a meter to do this or you will be head scratching forever. Do as I say and you will be back in business soon.

kaezoo, I would have suggested that as well but if you read the rest of the posts you will see that the dome light inside the car is flashing as well....what in programming is going to "simply" stop that from happening?

Hopefully he just described the problem wrong and it is that simple.

In hindsight that does seem logical. What threw me was the domelight flashing with the parking lights..that lead me to assume something with voltage dropout was causing an intermittent output to the door trigger or domelight supervision, or it was crossed with the parking light output. I have done a thousand DEI installs and have never seen a unit that flashes the domelight under any circumstance..just cause it to come on for a period of time during supervision, if connected,then turn off when the key is on or ,after a length of time.

However, I also agree that the programming be checked because it is absolutly a possibility.

If it turns out this is simply a programming issue I can execpt that I read too much into the problem.

The security feature triggers with ignition, but it doesn't trigger for remote start.  When he steps on the brake, he's turning off the remote start, so the security feature is no longer bypassed and it triggers.  It's not the stepping on the brake that triggers the security system; it's the fact that the key is on when he does it.  (Very similar to ignition controlled door locks; if you remote start then take over with the key, the doors will lock 3 seconds after you step on the brake).

There's no door trigger input on the 160XV; it's just a remote start/keyless entry that for some reason includes an alarm/security feature.

I know, the thing is that if the security system is in a armed state...shouldn't it trigger as soon as you open the door regardless if the RS is on or not? In other words...if DEI gives this programmable feature to honk the horn and flash the light (basic security) I would think it would trigger as soon as a door was opened (assuming it is connected) unless of course you press unlock first..which makes sense because you need to open the door before you get in, turn on the key, and step on the brake to shut it down.

Now assuming he is just testing the system wrong, and this feature is activated....why would it wait until the brake is pressed before triggering the system? It would make no sense from a security standpoint..basically someone could break in, take what they want, and leave with no notification. DEI is usually on top of there game in this respect so I am still at a loss. The doors locking after shutdown makes sense if the ignition control locks are programed..but not triggering the security, I would think like all other systems that if armed it would trigger at door opening as well as ignition. But i still don't get why the domelights are flickering..do you have any ideas on that?

Perhaps I don't fully understand the way the 160 works..I have never installed that particular stand alone RS unit...only the 771 and 790 as far as dei remote starts. But I assumed all the basic RS and security features would operate the same.

master5 wrote:

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I know, the thing is that if the security system is in a armed state...shouldn't it trigger as soon as you open the door regardless if the RS is on or not? In other words...if DEI gives this programmable feature to honk the horn and flash the light (basic security) I would think it would trigger as soon as a door was opened (assuming it is connected) unless of course you press unlock first..which makes sense because you need to open the door before you get in, turn on the key, and step on the brake to shut it down.

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Ok cool..glad that's all it was..I learned something myself about the 160xv. Thanks kaezoo.

I also love this site. I learn as much as I teach..you can't beat that.

I like the bitwriter and use it almost daily but unless you do alot of installations with DEI RS and security systems it probably is not nessecary IMO. Once you get the hang of programming with the overide switch and remote it is pretty simple.

But if you install DEI often or plan to in the future it is a good investment. There are times when you actually need the bitwriter as well if anyone previously "locked out" the learn routine you need the bitwriter enter it.

Occasionaly you will need to order software updates to get it to work with newer units.

For more info just do a web search for "DEI bitwriter".