On Wed, 1 Apr 1998 jbonina@nectech.com wrote:
{Stuff deleted]
> > To test the voltage going to the coil do I put a meter on the + side
> and - side then turn the key to accessory,the to "on"?
No. If you measured as you describe, you are measuring the circuit
voltage drop across the coil... You should be measuring from the "+" coil
to ground - the battery itself or the engine block is a good ground -
everything else is "iffy" until you are sure that they are really
grounded or not.
Note: you could also measure from the "-" side of the coil to ground.
This number may be different than the number that you get on the "+"
depending on what type of coil that you have....
> A hydrometer? I will get one. Regarding the ground, I did remove the
> ground from the battery, the block and the sheet metal just under the
> battery. I spray the braided coil with some battery terminal cleaner
> and wash it off with water, shook it dry, and "painted" it with
> terminal protector (looks like a transparent red paint). I also
> cleaned the battery terminal and the other 2 points where it is bolted
> with sandpaper until the areas were bare, clean metal.(PS, that when I
> found the 'lifting eye' I asked about previously). I re-installed the
> ground cable and sprayed the contact points with the terminal
> protector mention earlier.
Okay, this should provide a good path to ground.
>
> Did you test your system for short circuits, as suggested in the past?
> You should. This will eliminate that as a source of your slow cranking.
> Also, if your starter is old, perhaps it is degrading from the excess
> strain that you are putting on it by cranking it over and over.
>
> > I really have no idea where/how to begin testing for shorts.
As I stated earlier... you disconnect your battery and then measure from
the fuse panel to ground (the engine block) and see what it reads. If you
see zero ohms, you have a short someplace. You can then remove each of
the fuses and measure to ground to see if yanking a fuse changes the
reading. If the circuit goes from 0 to "open" when you yank a fuse,
you've found which circuit is shorting out... you then chase down
components on that circuit by pulling wires and measuring resistance...
> > Bob, thanks for your help. I'll be sure to get back to you with and
> update when the cap and rotor gets installed. I'm still steaming that
> I missed 3 days of record highs and didn't get out on the road.
Hey, sh*# happens. Thank the heavens that you haven't dropped the car on
yourself or get hit by a bus on your way to work today. Sweat the
important things - everything else just happens.
Despite how "in control" some of us think we are...
;-)
rml
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