Originally Posted By: Spartuss
The battery was old and completely drained. I did not measure the voltage as it was already night. Can a bad alternator even after having a new battery replaced, cause the engine to run, but leave the tachometer, speedometer, all dash lights, except check engine light and all of the electronics not working that includes the power windows, locks, sunroof, radio, automatic climate control.
It is highly unlikely that it would cause all of those problems but if the voltage is way off from what it should be, I guess it is possible... but in general it is a good idea to check the alternator when you have any electrical problems, even if those problems aren't what you would expect to see with a bad alternator. What is the voltage across the battery terminals with the car running?
You mentioned that the check engine light is on. What are the codes? It will be very hard to diagnose this issue without codes, especially the force idle condition.
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What is the AM1 fuse? It says starter but I don't know what it does.
It blows every time I start the car. When I install a new 5amp fuse, the dash lights all come on for a brief second at which point I was able to raise the power window. After this, the fuse is blown.
Not sure... some research indicates that it might goto the starter solenoid. It may also involve the ignition switch which is already known to be bad. This is a complete guess on my part - this is one of those situations where you need the shop manual + ETM (wiring diagram) to find out exactly what is on that circuit. Sometimes these can be found online. There are tools out there to help you find shorts and other electrical issues, but you need to know where to start looking.
Does the fuse blow after turning the key to Start, or does it blow when the key is just on the RUN position. With a new fuse and the key on RUN (don't try to start it), do the dash lights come on and stay on, or come on for a few seconds and blow the fuse again.