Radio/Turn signals/Battery

[260zinsd]

Took the Z out today,Started right up,let it warm up pulled it it out heard a noise and then it was gone,Went to fill up on gas turn the blinkers on and radio stated turning on and of,Blinker and radio do not work now.Parked the car for work and now the battery is dead.any idea's what happened...Thanks

[EScanlon]

You've got an electrical short.

E

[260zinsd]

Well I went out for lunch poped the hood looked around,put the key in and it started right up,radio and blinkers worked,turned it off,now have no juice,could it be the alternator?Battery bad? will the car run with a bad alternator?It ran fine on the way to work just no radio or blinkers....Thanks

You've got an electrical short.

E

[motorman7]

Now that sounds like an open or loose connections. Much more difficult to find than a short. My guess is the ignition switch area or fuse box area.

Funny, I had something similar happen to me about a month ago in my yellow Z. I turned the key and absolutely nothing. I banged my palm on the side of the fuse box-still nothing. banged my palm on the underside of the ignition housing and the car started right up. No problems since. Kind of made me feel like 'The Fonz'. Not really saying that is the best way to fix an intermittent circuit though.

Edited September 24, 2010 by motorman7
spelling

[260zinsd]

Yep that's what I did,there are some switches under by the hood pull moved them around and bingo,but the battery seemed to die right away,and the antenna went up and down very slowly.No power from battery,were is the fuse box?

Thanks

Now that sounds like an open or loose connections. Much more difficult to find than a short. My guess is the ignition switch area or fuse box area.

Funny, I had something similar happen to me about a month ago in my yellow Z. I turned the key and absolutely nothing. I banged my palm on the side of the fuse box-still nothing. banged my palm on the underside of the ignition housing and the car started right up. No problems since. Kind of made me feel like 'The Fonz'. Not really saying that is the best way to fix an intermittent circuit though.

[motorman7]

Yep, that sounds like a short then if battery is low. Those are easy to find with a cheap meter.

The fuse box is in the forward part of the center console, just below the radio-on 240s. I am guessing 260's are in the same place

,but the battery seemed to die right away,and the antenna went up and down very slowly.No power from battery,were is the fuse box?

Thanks

[260zinsd]

I believe its the alternator,I barley made it home,it started to sputter I choked it to keep it running,made it in the garage and disconnected the + and it died...

I think thats the noise I heard in the morning...

Yep, that sounds like a short then if battery is low. Those are easy to find with a cheap meter.

The fuse box is in the forward part of the center console, just below the radio-on 240s. I am guessing 260's are in the same place

[MK1888]

What's the voltage at the battery with the engine off and with it on? The battery is only used to start the car, so if the alternator is toast you'll get as far as you can get on battery power...all of a couple minutes, and then the battery needs a jump. Voltage regulator might cause it, but you'll know by checking the voltage.

[260zinsd]

Well,I made it 30 miles home and thats when it started to sputter,My dad had told me how to find out the alternator was bad,you take the + off if the car dies it's bad.and it did just that died .I heard a noise in the morning before pulling out,it must of been the alternator.Right now the battery is dead.

Going to charge it tonight and test it in the morning,

If the Voltage regulator is bad?

What's the voltage at the battery with the engine off and with it on? The battery is only used to start the car, so if the alternator is toast you'll get as far as you can get on battery power...all of a couple minutes, and then the battery needs a jump. Voltage regulator might cause it, but you'll know by checking the voltage.

[FastWoman]

Whoa! NEVER run the engine with the battery disconnected!! That's a good way to fry your electronics. (Yes, I realize the 260 has fewer electronic components than a 280, but even so, it's really hard on the electrical system.)

Get a multimeter. You can get a cheap meter for $15 at Radio Shack or at your local auto parts store. I've even bought some for $5, just to throw in the glove boxes for emergency diagnostics.

Start your engine, and measure the voltage across the battery terminals. It should be in the neighborhood of 14 - 14.5 V. If it is, your alternator and voltage regulator are good for the moment. You might also run the engine until the alternator gets warm, and then take another reading. It should still be in that voltage range. If you don't get voltage in that range, either the alternator or the voltage regulator is bad. As one can cause the other to fail, most people replace these items together. That's probably wise.

Now stop your engine, and take the same measurement. The voltage of a fully charged battery should be in the neighborhood of 12.7 V. If you can't charge your battery to that voltage, something is probably wrong with it. A voltage of 12.0 V would mean the battery is half discharged, and you should try never to run your battery below this point. Note that a bad alternator is a great way to kill a perfectly good battery. If you ran your voltage down to maybe 10 V, it would have been almost fully discharged, and your battery will have lost much of its plate area.

Let's say you get a good voltage reading (12V or higher) on your battery. Now try starting your car. Does your engine crank energetically? If so, the battery is good -- or at least good "enough."

What sort of noise are you hearing?

As for your weird electrical symptoms. Check all of your grounds to see that they are really grounded. Visually inspect your wiring harnesses to whatever extent you can. Are there any places that have been unwrapped and/or rewrapped? If so, unwrap them to see what is underneath. Do you see any strange bulges where creative wiring might have been performed by the previous owner? If so, open it up to see what it is. Are there any burnt/charred areas? If so, open them up. Whatever looks fine can be rewrapped with electrical tape.

Pay special attention around the wiring to the stereo (which I'm presuming is aftermarket and therefore has suspect wiring -- because hardly anybody does good installation work). This wiring is in the vicinity of the hazard switch (at least on the 280Z), which is part of the turn signal wiring. Look carefully in this area for shorts and disconnected grounds.

[260zinsd]

Thanks

Whoa! NEVER run the engine with the battery disconnected!! That's a good way to fry your electronics. (Yes, I realize the 260 has fewer electronic components than a 280, but even so, it's really hard on the electrical system.)

Get a multimeter. You can get a cheap meter for $15 at Radio Shack or at your local auto parts store. I've even bought some for $5, just to throw in the glove boxes for emergency diagnostics.

Start your engine, and measure the voltage across the battery terminals. It should be in the neighborhood of 14 - 14.5 V. If it is, your alternator and voltage regulator are good for the moment. You might also run the engine until the alternator gets warm, and then take another reading. It should still be in that voltage range. If you don't get voltage in that range, either the alternator or the voltage regulator is bad. As one can cause the other to fail, most people replace these items together. That's probably wise.

Now stop your engine, and take the same measurement. The voltage of a fully charged battery should be in the neighborhood of 12.7 V. If you can't charge your battery to that voltage, something is probably wrong with it. A voltage of 12.0 V would mean the battery is half discharged, and you should try never to run your battery below this point. Note that a bad alternator is a great way to kill a perfectly good battery. If you ran your voltage down to maybe 10 V, it would have been almost fully discharged, and your battery will have lost much of its plate area.

Let's say you get a good voltage reading (12V or higher) on your battery. Now try starting your car. Does your engine crank energetically? If so, the battery is good -- or at least good "enough."

What sort of noise are you hearing?

As for your weird electrical symptoms. Check all of your grounds to see that they are really grounded. Visually inspect your wiring harnesses to whatever extent you can. Are there any places that have been unwrapped and/or rewrapped? If so, unwrap them to see what is underneath. Do you see any strange bulges where creative wiring might have been performed by the previous owner? If so, open it up to see what it is. Are there any burnt/charred areas? If so, open them up. Whatever looks fine can be rewrapped with electrical tape.

Pay special attention around the wiring to the stereo (which I'm presuming is aftermarket and therefore has suspect wiring -- because hardly anybody does good installation work). This wiring is in the vicinity of the hazard switch (at least on the 280Z), which is part of the turn signal wiring. Look carefully in this area for shorts and disconnected grounds.

[MK1888]

Also, don't touch the battery positive terminal unless the negative cable is disconnected! The electrical system is negative grounded. You can get a severe shock (and die, if that bothers you) by touching the positive terminal if you unknowingly provide a path to ground like, say, your leg resting against the metal body.

If your battery measures 12V, it's dead. Half charged is around 12.4V. No reason not to have one of those cheap multimeters...I got a bunch of them some months ago for $2 each from Harbor Freight and gave them to people.