<VV> Total loss of all electrical power

[Dave Thompson]

This is nubie advice to other nubies.

 

Tonight, my sons and I went for a cruise down Pacific Coast Highway in my 63
Spyder convertible. Yes, we had the top down. We had a great time! The trip
was about 50 miles in all. A block from the house we stopped at the local
7-11 store for some sodas. When we went to start the car again, there was no
power, nothing. We scratched our heads and said a few expletives before we
started to look things over.  What ended up being the problem was the small
positive wire from the battery to the voltage regulator. The previous owner
used a crimp splice to lengthen the wire and then wrapped it neatly with
black tape. I have a note to check the connection some day on my "things to
do" list. However I never got to it. 

 

I disconnected the positive wire from the battery post and unwrapped the
tape. To my surprise, I found that the wire had pulled out of the crimp and
was arching across to make contact. The yellow crimp was all burnt and
melted. It looks like it had been doing this for a while. It also looked as
if he used a pair of vice grips to do the crimping. I cut off the crimp,
stripped and twisted the wires together. Everything came back to life.

 

When we got home, we replaced the entire positive cable and soldered & heat
shrinked the small voltage regulator wire.

 

I had noticed that now and then the lights went a little dim when at idle.
The generator light would also glow dimly sometimes.  I just thought it was
the generator. Now that I fixed the wire, everything stays bright and no
generator light, even at idle. It also explains why the battery gets low
sometimes but not always. I hope that this has not shortened the life of my
battery. Time will tell.

 

Moral to the story:

 

Be sure to ALLWAYS carry a basic set of tools and flashlight in the trunk.
Check the voltage regulator to battery wire crimp to be sure that it is
secure. That is your only connection for battery power when the starter is
not engaged.

 

Dave Thompson

63 Spyder Vert

Westminster, California

 

P.S. Does anybody know where I can get a positive battery cable with a long
small wire? All the cables that I have found have a short stub with a crimp
terminal.