Help me diagnose: car wont start sometimes

[THE_EVIL_TW1N]

Ok, just started this past week. I go to start the car and I get a click and everything electrical does not work. The engine doesnt turn over or anything. After about 30 seconds, electrical components (lights, dash, radio, etc.) start working again and the car starts up. Everyhing on my radio has to be reset (the least of my worries).

Anyways, it has now done this 3 or 4 times. This morning it took like 2 minutes for it to come back on and be able to start. The closest similar problem I have ever had like this was in my old '93 GT where it blew a fuseable link and wouldnt turn over at all. Is there a breaker or relay of some sort? I doubt its a fuse since the power has come back on eventually. I have a feeling I wont be so lucky tho on it continuing to start up.

BTW, I havent changed anything on the car in the last 4 years.

 

[cobracide]

Check your grounds, battery volts and alternator. Could also be the relay.

 

[THE_EVIL_TW1N]

Check your grounds, battery volts and alternator. Could also be the relay.

My grounds look fine, still same ol' same ol' from the factory (near the battery, right?). My voltage is good, ~12.4v with the engine off, ~14.4v with it on. Which relay could it be?

 

[cobracide]

CCRM in the right fender. also check the clutch and reverse lockout switch.

 

[03redfirevert.]

Clean your batt terminals,if the terminals have corroded before or had a batt leak acid,then you may have a problem with the factory crimped ends,they will corrode under the terminal.

 

[MTBSully]

Same thing happened to me the other day. Usually mine fixes itself within a few seconds though. Would really like to figure it out though, getting tired of resetting my radio settings.

 

[THE_EVIL_TW1N]

Clean your batt terminals,if the terminals have corroded before or had a batt leak acid,then you may have a problem with the factory crimped ends,they will corrode under the terminal.

My trrminals are clean, the battery is ~1 yr old. No leaks.

The car doesnt have a hard start type problem. The whole electrical system seems to shut down where not even the lights (head lights, interior lights) will turn on. After about 30 seconds, they do begin working again. Not dimmed or anything like that, but at full power. Its like a relay or breaker gets tripped.

 

[THE_EVIL_TW1N]

ttt

 

[THE_EVIL_TW1N]

Ttt still havent figured it out...

 

[333arod333]

Clean your batt terminals,if the terminals have corroded before or had a batt leak acid,then you may have a problem with the factory crimped ends,they will corrode under the terminal.

+1

Clean your terminals even if you think they are clean. Use a wire brush and scrub well.

I had a P71 police interceptor, had the same problems you are describing. It would click a bit or just be dead period sometimes when I tried to start it. I ignored the people that told me to clean the terminals because it sounded too easy/dumb and I thought there was nothing that could have caused a dirty terminal. Went to a mechanic friend to hang out at the shop and he said just clean the terminals man. Cleaned them, never had the problem again.

 

[Joyrider564]

I had the same thing happen to me, and I spent the 10 bucks on new terminals from autozone and completely replaced them. Cleaned the battery terminal and the new connections, and never had a problem since.

 

[beau t]

have you ohmed out the power cable and ground cable, for it to loose all power your either loosing the ground to battery or power to the fuse block, cable can look good and have corrosion under the protective covering just a thought

 

[CompO_Eric]

Nevermind. Taptalking at the bar = fail