yugoman wrote:
> OK folks, major problem. I went to pull my wife's 75 out of the garage this
> afternoon, battery was discharged so I put the charger on. After a while it
> cranked but not long enough to fire, so I charged it a few more minutes.
> Again it turned over a couple times, but before the motor fired it just
> died, completely! No lights, no click from the ignition or door switches,
> nothing. Tried to connect the charger again, but each time I plugged it in
> it kicked off. Got another battery and jumper cables, hooked one to the
> positive and the ground to the bolt on the hatchback hinge. Major sparks
> here! I thought maybe the battery itself was shorted, so I unhooked the
> positive and connected the jumper cable directly to it, then tried to ground
> the other end again, still a shower of sparks. So it seems to be in the car
> itself. What do I need to look for? I don't know if anyone else has had this
> problem, but we hope it's not something major. Thanks a lot!
Its likely the starter relay stuck in the on position. I don't have a real
Bricklin, but it should be on the front inner fender well somewhere. It is the
black thing the positive battery cable is connected to, and the other side is
connected to the starter cable. As your car turned over the starter is likely
OK unless it got overheated. All the current available would be going to the
starter, hence no lights, and the draw would be huge, hence the charger
kick-out and the major sparks. A rap with a blunt instrument (vise grips) might
unstick the relay if that is the problem. Do not leave anything (battery etc.)
hooked up until the problem is fixed. I would suggest a new relay, they are not
expensive.
Ken
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