A friends '82 and electrical gremlins YIKES
01-30-2015, 08:27 AM
#1
Burning Brakes
Thread Starter
A friends '82 and electrical gremlins YIKES
Good morning, boys and girls. Last night I was diagnosing some electrical issues on my friend's '82 (beautiful car). I THINK I figured out his problem.
Here's the skinny: His car would intermittently not start, like not crank or anything, just click. He said it only really happened when the car was cold. Also, when it actually started, the battery gauge would read really low until he revved the engine, and then it would show charging. Brand new battery, brand new alternator, battery cables are tight. I went through the car and found most, if not all of the grounds, cleaned them, stuck some dialectric grease on them and retighten them. The big ground below the battery compartment was nasty and not as tight as it should have been. He had sprayed undercoating on the underside of the car and I think some may have interrupted the connection there. The ground strap from the passenger side cylinder head (to the distributor shroud) wasn't connected at all. After all that, I found myself at the starter. One of the posts was loose in the starter. The nut holding the wires was tight, but the nut holding the post itself wasn't even finger tight. So I took it off, cleaned it, yadda yadda yadda. So... The car has run fine since but as we all know about electrical issues, you never know they're gonna get you, they just happen. So do you guys think I got it right? I'm pretty confident but I wanted to ask the experts. Sorry for the novel, but I'm slightly concerned.
Here's the skinny: His car would intermittently not start, like not crank or anything, just click. He said it only really happened when the car was cold. Also, when it actually started, the battery gauge would read really low until he revved the engine, and then it would show charging. Brand new battery, brand new alternator, battery cables are tight. I went through the car and found most, if not all of the grounds, cleaned them, stuck some dialectric grease on them and retighten them. The big ground below the battery compartment was nasty and not as tight as it should have been. He had sprayed undercoating on the underside of the car and I think some may have interrupted the connection there. The ground strap from the passenger side cylinder head (to the distributor shroud) wasn't connected at all. After all that, I found myself at the starter. One of the posts was loose in the starter. The nut holding the wires was tight, but the nut holding the post itself wasn't even finger tight. So I took it off, cleaned it, yadda yadda yadda. So... The car has run fine since but as we all know about electrical issues, you never know they're gonna get you, they just happen. So do you guys think I got it right? I'm pretty confident but I wanted to ask the experts. Sorry for the novel, but I'm slightly concerned.
01-30-2015, 12:37 PM
#2
sounds to me like you covered all the possibilites, battery, grounds, and starter
01-30-2015, 06:35 PM
#3
Race Director
I believe you GOT IT...because I have written this out before because I can go to the starter solenoid...and when I have loosened all of the nuts....the studs are loose...so I tighten up the jamb nut and re-install the wiring and all is well.
DUB
DUB