Suddenly Lost Power

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Hedgetrimmer

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I really need some help getting my car back on the road before it gets too cold. Recently, I had my battery go dead. I replaced the battery and drove the car for a couple of days, and the battery went dead again. I then replaced the alternator and had the battery charged. All went well for about a week. A few days ago, I pulled the car from the garage and washed it. After getting ready for work, I got in the car and NOTHING. There was no power, no click of the starter or anything. The lights wouldn't even come on. I thought the battery had gone bad again, but a test at the store said it was fully charged. I reconnected the battery, and the lights came back on. I then replaced the starter relay, which I saw was burned-out. When I turn the switch, the starter clicks one time, but that is it. The store tested the starter and said the bearings were going bad, but the motor was running. One thing I've noticed is that when I turn the switch, if the headlights are on, they go out. I have to push the lever back to the off position and back to on before they come back on, sometimes having to push the lever on and off several times. I checked the firewall and replaced what looked like bad wires, but I still can't get the car to turn over. Anybody have any idea what I should check next? It's just getting too cold to ride my bicycle.
 
Are you referring to the negative battery cable that grounds to my engine block? The cable itself is new. What do you mean by "bad ground?" Thanks for the feedback.
 
A bad ground is a high resistance connection to ground (frame, body or engine). You say that you've replaced the negative cable from the battery to the engine, is there a pigtail coming off the neg cable that should be connected to the body?
 
You should also have at least one body ground connecting the engine to the body somewhere. Make sure the point where the cable attaches to the engine is clean. Use sandpaper to brighten things up. Same with the positive cable, make sure it is clean. It sounds like you still have a loose/dirty connection somewhere. Check out the firewall connector, ignition switch connector etc as well. AMP gauge work? A bad AMP gauge will cause all manner of problems like non-charging and total darkness. Consider bypassing that rascal by putting both wires on the same post.

Although I don't think it's a factor in your problem, you might want to take a look at that new alternator you installed. Your 65 originally had a "roundback" alternator with the old mechanical voltage regulator. I am not sure how well the old style regulator works with the later "roundback" or "squareback" alternators. Parts houses NEVER give you the wrong part... A later high output alternator will fry your original AMP gauge ultimately resulting in total darkness.
 
Hot diggity dog! I went outside and checked the negative battery cable grounded on my engine block. It wasn't as tight as it could be. I tightened it down real good and, voila, that sucker started right up. Bless you, Ramcharger. I was going crazy trying to get back on the road.

Still, I'm concerned about other electrical problems after having read some other posts on this board. Should I go ahead and replace my voltage regulator? Also, my negative battery cable does have that little pigtail on it with a yellow clamp. Am I suppose to do something with this or get a cable that does not have it?
 
Hedgetrimmer said:
Hot diggity dog! I went outside and checked the negative battery cable grounded on my engine block. It wasn't as tight as it could be. I tightened it down real good and, voila, that sucker started right up. Bless you, Ramcharger. I was going crazy trying to get back on the road.

Still, I'm concerned about other electrical problems after having read some other posts on this board. Should I go ahead and replace my voltage regulator? Also, my negative battery cable does have that little pigtail on it with a yellow clamp. Am I suppose to do something with this or get a cable that does not have it?
Click to expand...




Why not use that little pigtail wire and make it long enough to reach a fender bolt ? Theres no such thing as too many grounds, well guess you could get carryed away but it won't hurt anything. However if your gounds are not good enough-well you found out what happens.
 
I don't understand how the little pigtail is to be used as a ground. On the end is an open clamp, which looks like a wire should be inserted into it and then clamped down. Perhaps I'll ask the good people at the auto shop how this parcticular cable should be used. Thanks for all the feedback.
 
The pigtail is there to connect to an existing body ground if so equipped (most later cars had such a thing) Easy enough to add, and a pretty good idea. Get some black 10 AWG wire and a ring terminal large enough for a fender bolt (3/8). For 10 AWG you need the yellow ferrules. Again, you want to clean the metal under the bolt and/or use an external tooth lockwasher between the terminal and fender. If you dont mind drilling a hole in your inner fender, you can just get a self tapping sheetmetal screw and the apropriate sized terminal ring. Better yet, if you're gonna drill a hole for a new screw, attach the wire to the radiator support instead. Thats where the headlights ground and they are your largest electrical load on the body.

If your car sat for a long time or was in a corrosion prone environment, you may want to consider cleaning and inspecting every electrical connection on the vehicle. Kind of a pain, but potentially worth it.
 
Hedgetrimmer said:
Hot diggity dog! I went outside and checked the negative battery cable grounded on my engine block. It wasn't as tight as it could be. I tightened it down real good and, voila, that sucker started right up. Bless you, Ramcharger. I was going crazy trying to get back on the road.

Still, I'm concerned about other electrical problems after having read some other posts on this board. Should I go ahead and replace my voltage regulator? Also, my negative battery cable does have that little pigtail on it with a yellow clamp. Am I suppose to do something with this or get a cable that does not have it?
Click to expand...

Happy to help! What these guys above said about the pigtail and alternator is 100% right on the money.
 
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