Testing ignition switch. Video inside. Is it dead?

[kcpope]

1 hour ago, SteveJ said:

Okay, I had to dig through the 73 wiring diagram. That looks like the K18 relay. If the relay has failed or lost its ground, then the car won't start. That's part of the nag warning for the seat belts. While it's present in the 72, the circuit didn't make it into the wiring diagrams.

You can get this connector from Vintage Connections (https://www.vintageconnections.com/products/6-3mm-connectors?variant=46131501236545) and make a nice, plug-in jumper.

Thanks!

Yes, I agree. It should be the K18.

To temporarily bypass the K18, what other jumpers should I make other than the one jumper I showed in the video? Just ground connection the 3rd BY wire?

Also, could you post a link to the full size version of that 1973 electrical schematic? 

[SteveJ]

46 minutes ago, kcpope said:

Thanks!

Yes, I agree. It should be the K18.

To temporarily bypass the K18, what other jumpers should I make other than the one jumper I showed in the video? Just ground connection the 3rd BY wire?

Also, could you post a link to the full size version of that 1973 electrical schematic? 

You only need to jumper the ones you did to get continuity. Everything else can be left disconnected.

[kcpope]

Another question, doing some further testing.

Should I be getting continuity between the BY wire at the starter solenoid and body ground? Because I currently am. 🧐

[Yarb]

Preface your question with @stevej and he will get a notification. Easiest way to communicate with members. Unless he logs on he will not see it.

[SteveJ]

9 hours ago, kcpope said:

Another question, doing some further testing.

Should I be getting continuity between the BY wire at the starter solenoid and body ground? Because I currently am. 🧐

Are you saying continuity by a meter tone or by a resistance reading of 0 (or almost zero)? Was the K18 relay plugged in? If not, did you just have the 1 jumper in between BY wires? Was the connector for the ignition switch connected to the switch, or was it off with no wires attached?

The bottom line is that the BY wire is never grounded, but you have to make sure of your testing methods/conditions. If you don't control the methods/conditions properly, you can end up going down a rabbit hole. Been there. Done that. Many years ago I lost the fuse for the parking lights/gauge lights. In tracking down the short, I first guessed that it was probably around the gauges, and after unplugging the speedometer, the short went away. My method was flawed as the positive and negative wiring from the speedometer affected all of the gauges downstream. After realizing my mistake (and wasting about an hour or more), I resumed my search with a better methodology only to find that the positive wire for the light by the defroster switch (74 & later) had become detached from the socket. 

In other words, make sure you aren't shooting yourself in the foot.

[kcpope]

On 8/28/2024 at 3:37 AM, SteveJ said:

Are you saying continuity by a meter tone or by a resistance reading of 0 (or almost zero)? Was the K18 relay plugged in? If not, did you just have the 1 jumper in between BY wires? Was the connector for the ignition switch connected to the switch, or was it off with no wires attached?

The bottom line is that the BY wire is never grounded, but you have to make sure of your testing methods/conditions. If you don't control the methods/conditions properly, you can end up going down a rabbit hole. Been there. Done that. Many years ago I lost the fuse for the parking lights/gauge lights. In tracking down the short, I first guessed that it was probably around the gauges, and after unplugging the speedometer, the short went away. My method was flawed as the positive and negative wiring from the speedometer affected all of the gauges downstream. After realizing my mistake (and wasting about an hour or more), I resumed my search with a better methodology only to find that the positive wire for the light by the defroster switch (74 & later) had become detached from the socket. 

In other words, make sure you aren't shooting yourself in the foot.

I’m an idiot, and was testing continuity to ground while the BY starter wire was connected to the solenoid, so of course it showed continuity. Removed it from the solenoid spade, no continuity. Anyways, that was just an aside rabbit hole…

Received the new ignition switch yesterday. Boom, turned over just like it should.

Bottom line, the aftermarket ignition switches from cheap unknown brands (sold through zcardepot), might not be great quality. This new one I got from Amazon is “standard motor products” brand and will hopefully last longer. 

Nonetheless, I learned some new things on how the ignition switch is wired to the starter. Special thanks to @SteveJ for all the pointers.

 

 

[SteveJ]

Did you by the OEM version Z Car Depot sells, or did you buy the generic one. I'm pretty sure this is the Nissan part: https://zcardepot.com/products/ignition-switch-oem-240z-260z-280z-510?variant=19275160191089&currency=USD&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=google%2Bshopping&srsltid=AfmBOopH6VW3h4MxQaEG7pE62G-UpFxLVWe6672qDYb_WLqBrkGVJY-VnhA

[kcpope]

I bought this one initially, because I needed the housing and keys because my car didn’t come with them.

https://zcardepot.com/products/ignition-switch-with-keys-240z-260z-280z-510?_pos=1&_sid=af74c7332&_ss=r
 

then I bought this ignition switch as my replacement, but retained the ignition housing linked above. Oops, thought it was standard motor products. Its actually beck/arnley…

https://a.co/d/c9Eg5sX