[TundraCat]

Electrical power just went out.Battery good, ground up to firewall tested good. No interior lights. It's been doing this for a year but always restarting right away except this time.I'm thinking solenoid,it seems all the electrical passes through the solenoid. Replaced ignition switch last year. It just got it's 1st $100 flat bed ride home, not bad for 7 years and 35000 miles of fun.Need some help. Thanks Mark

 

[Bad69cat]

Does you car have a factory tach? First guess. That gound to firewall connection is a POS from the factory. Do yourself a favor and make a real good connection from block to frame with 6 guage or so wire.....

 

[TundraCat]

No factory tach. Not sure what a factory POS ground is? Negative side of battery is grounded to the block and block to fire wall.

 

[Al Bundy]

POS is a colorful description of how poorly the ground functions. It does not stand for Point Of Sale.

 

[BarneyFife]

piece of ****tt




POS

 

[Bad69cat]

;>0 sorry Mark - just quicker to slang it I guess! It may not be electrical - but it's nice to get the ground gremlins rectified before troubleshooting any further. Gotta start with the basics from here on out check that you have spark at the plugs and fuel squirting from carb. That will lead you which direction to start digging...

 

[TundraCat]

Thanks for the definition of POS. LOL Mark

 

[xr7g428]

If all power is dead, then you need to check out the battery clamps and cables. Best bet it to replace them. If you have those repair clamps that have the two bolts that clamp the cable, then you really need to disassemble everything, wire brush it all, and pray a little bit.

 

[TundraCat]

I got the shop manuals out the part in question is the starter relay,not solenoid. how do I test this? And I had power twice yesterday to the interior lights only to close the door and reopen to have none.Then I wonder if my ignition switch made in China from NAPA could be at fault.

 

[Bad69cat]

AAHAA - you didn't say anything about that before! LOL That ignition switch does sound suspicious.....for one the starter relay would not cause the car to die while running, but the regulator could also be of concern if it crapped out (ie not passing any current/voltage). Do you get any consistent lights/clicking noise? If not I'd start with that switch.

 

[Seafoam jcode]

I got the shop manuals out the part in question is the starter relay,not solenoid. how do I test this? And I had power twice yesterday to the interior lights only to close the door and reopen to have none.Then I wonder if my ignition switch made in China from NAPA could be at fault.

The starter relay (a.k.a solenoid) are one in the same. Try tapping on the solenoid with a hammer to get it unstuck. Mine will hang up and cut off power to EVERYTHING if the battery charge is low.

 

[PBCOUG]

AAA will help with the next tow. Rates are pretty cheap.

 

[TundraCat]

If I don't get the cat running I won't have to worry about towing.But point well taken.

 

[TundraCat]

The cat is running, found ground wire broke off alternator only after battery going dead a few times. Now I'm not sure the battery is charging and car doesn't stay running when I disconnect ground from the battery, the alternator and voltage regulator checks out ok.Any ideas out there.Thanks Mark

 

[Bad69cat]

It's almost gotta be the alt or regulator? there must be a bad connection then....take a real close look at the regulator connector and see if any corrosion or a pin pushed back inside..? Likewise on the alt connections - for corroded/poor connection. Your seeing about 13-14 volts out of the alt then I take it?

 

[Jan Ove]

car doesn't stay running when I disconnect ground from the battery

This is a bad idea, checking the system by disconnecting the negative cable from the battery while the car is running is not recommended, as you might ruin electrical components in the system

 

[TundraCat]

Still haven't found the problem with charging system. Had alternator checked twice and wiring harness also, put in new voltage regulator.After doing some looking on a mustang forum it seems that if the alternator warning light is burnt out or not working the charging system won't work on a 67 can this be true and also apply to 69 cougar.My alternator light doesn't work. And yes I installed a new speed odometer cable and had the dash apart before the I had the charging problem.

 

[velvetguru]

Now I'm not sure the battery is charging and car doesn't stay running when I disconnect ground from the battery, the alternator and voltage regulator checks out ok.Any ideas out there.Thanks Mark

The car shouldn't stay running when you disconnect the ground from the battery, if the alternator/VR are working correctly it should stay running if you disconnect the POSITIVE cable from the battery. A test that can be a little dangerous if you ground out that positive cable. You could start by checking your voltage at the battery while the car is running. You should be in the 13.8 to 15.0 volt range (14.0 to 14.6 would be ideal). Check with a load (headlights/heater on etc) and without a load.

Joe

Joe

 

[TundraCat]

Joe the voltage is 12 volts on the battery when fully charged, running or not. There is just no juice going to the battery to charge it. And I was surprised at how far you can go on just the battery.

 

[Bad69cat]

Yeah on these old cars you can go quite awhile on a fully charged battery! (As long as you don't have some goofy high amp radio system running) If you know the alt is puttting out good Voltage, and the connections at the regulator all look OK, I guess you might as well swap it out then. Keep in mind the China made ones are known to be bad right out of the box and that's what most parts house stock. (Warranty varies quite a bit too) Good luck