Oh boy did I have a strange electrical problem with my 76B. Here's the
problem. Open the door...door light goes on nicely and reliably. Without
turning the ignition...intermittant headlights. Sometimes they went on and
sometimes they didn't and when they went off, the door light went off.
Now, key in ignition and turn. Fuel pump croaks appropriately. Turn more,
the starting motor begins to kick in and then all electrical power is
lost. I tried to turn the engine over several times this past week and if
the e-power as indicated by the door light was off,
then the starter motor did not turn at all. If the door light was on, then
with the onset of the starter, all e-power was lost.
My thinking...strange electricals, maybe a broken wire in the ignition
that shorts the battery (can that even be rather than create an open
circuit?). Loss of ground strap?? Certainly not a blown fuse because some
of the time, the door light did go on.
Maybe it was a bad battery connection, so I wiggled the battery +
connection when the door light was off and lo, it came back on. Tried the
ignition and the starter (and door light) died. Wiggled again and same
thing.
So what the hell...I felt around the battery compartment when I realized
the + wire was a bit frayed with wires exposed AND the battery was close
to the chassis. "Hmmm," Sherlock said, "could I be shorting out the
battery by a tiny movement of the battery due to the slight jerk when
the starter moter engages?" Of course, why did turning the headlights
on also turn off the electrical power? I have no answer to that one.
So I moved the battery and it started right up. So here's my question:
I've had the car for 4 years now. Is there supposed to be a strap or a
battery hold down within the battery compartment? I never had anything
there and the battery is just sitting free.
2nd non-LBC question: any Tom Waits fans out there? respond off list.
The cold here in NJ is catching up with the season. I'll be waiting for
the 1st snow before I pack it in for the year.
Bill Saidel
'76B
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