This is something new. I plugged in a new GPS to charge it with the ignition in ACC. It took several hours and it drained the battery such that the Forester ('98) wouldn't start. The battery (3 years old) was still weak after a couple of days. I cleaned the battery terminals & just before I had a neighbour give me a boost, I noticed that the 4 way flashers were on. I checked that the Hazard switch hadn't been turned on by accident and it was off.

I drove it to get a battery charger which is hooked up at the moment. The 4 way flashers come on for several seconds then go off. Now that it's dark I noticed that the rear license plate lamp is coming on with them as well.

 

Did disconnecting the battery to clean the terminals/low battery have something to do with this? I'll have to disconnect the battery to get them to shut off if this continues and try the dealership tomorrow.

 

Appreciate any advice. Thanks.

After seeing previous posts related to mine I found the solution. I pressed the unlock button on the keyless remote and they went off. When I used the remote earlier today the battery was too weak to operate the locks and I didn't use the remote after boosting the battery.

It sounds like there may be a problem with the license plate lights. They shouldn't have come on unless the light switch is on, so check the switch also.