Hi guys, I'm from Australia, but hoping you can help..:) Ok this is weird so please bare with me while I explain.. The zed (1990 NA, 5 Speed) has developed a very annoying electrical problem, this is what it does: Drive the zed around and all is fine. All of a sudden I will start to hear a whine coming through the car, that rises or decreases based on the revs of the engine. This whine will come and go but will always be present for the rest of the drive. Then, when I finally come to a stop and switch the car off, I lose all power. As if someone has taken the battery out of the car. No alarm ( I cant arm or disarm the car, and no flashing LED), no interior lighting, no ignition, no head lights. The power is just completely gone, like I said, as if someone has walked away with the battery. And then I wait. All of a sudden, anywhere from 1 minute on wards all of a sudden all the power comes back (why this delay in time?? Does something need to cool down?). My alarm starts working, the LEDs flash, the interior light comes on and I can start the car. When the power comes back, the clock has reset itself and the climate control has gone back to 25 degree's celcius, the default position as what happens when you disconnect and then reconnect the battery. This weird electrical issue only happens on long drives (say 20min +). A short trip down the road and back, and everything is fine.

 

Ok so, anyone have any ideas on where I can start trouble shooting??

 

This is what I have done so far:

 

1) Checked all stereo wiring. Because the first sign of something being wrong is the alternator whine coming through the stereo, I have checked and double checked all the stereo wiring. Everything is fine. Also, the stereo wiring has not been touched for ages so it is odd that something would be wrong now. And the stereo would not be responsible for the total power black out.

 

2) While driving, the electrical system is fine. The volts are between 13.5 - 14 (I have a volt meter installed) and the battery holds charge, and the car starts at the turn of the key (when the funny power blackout thing isn't happening).

 

3) Fuses. Don't know where to start here. In my mind a fuse would either be blown or be ok. Whereas this seems to be intermittent, as if something needs to cool down and then all power comes back. Any fuses I should check?

 

4) Alternator. The alternator is new, bought from Coz (ConceptZ, U.S) earlier on in the year. I have no reason to think that it is at fault. However, since installing it, I do remember my car having some odd electrical problems in the past on 2 separate occasions. I was able to start the car on those two occasions, but did notice that the clock and climate control had reset itself. At the time I thought what the hell?, but I brushed it off and thought nothing of it. Now, since its been warm here in Aus, it does it every time I drive the car (long drive).

 

Any help would be much appreciated so I can find this electrical gremlin hiding in my car.

 

Many thanks

Hi, i`d` check the alternator loom it`s probably pretty brittle by now, and these looms don`t seem to like being disturbed. 9 times out of ten it`s a dodgy earth that causes the things to go. The online manual has the wiring diagrams.I`ve` always found the best thing is to retrace your steps, what did you disturb etc. process of elimination and a pain in the butt! Good luck.

An unusual one, but check the obvious first

 

Did your car whine before you installed the new alternator, as it all seems to point at that at the minute. Almost like it has a short or getting hot and like a trip cuts out, but a trip doesnt reset itself. With heat the metal cores of a wire will get hot and expand, when cool contract.

1 try another alternator from a fellow member

2 as santa suggestion, check all the wires and connections from the alternator

Check your battery connections and where they attach to the body, etc

You might have an intermittent short circuit going on here. It can even be in the battery plates in one cell intermittently shorting! The whine you are hearing is the alternater working flat out delivering charge to where it is being lost. Have the battery checked out on a discharge test.

and its summer where you are and maybe you don't have the insulated box around the battery any more? I would guess that heat soak is hitting your battery here after a long drive and shorting some plates in one cell?

I wouldn´t have thought it was the alternator to be honest with you because that wouldn´t explain the sudden loss of all power and then it magically reappearing again. I once had a similar problem and it turned out to be a faulty earth cable i.e I was losing the negative connection from the battery although the clamp was on tight.

 

I´d agree with willie and nzniggles check the battery if all the cells are okay and then the main connections to the battery plus and negative.