Jump to content

IGNORED

Ammeter readings


Chunky

Recommended Posts

Hey guys! I'm hoping you can help with a question I had regarding the ammeter in my 71.

======

The situation so far:I was driving my beloved Z last night. In fact I had been driving it pretty much all weekend without any issues. Stopped at a light the car just died. It was cold last night and I had the choke on, I noticed it was still partially engaged so I returned it to it's normal position. The RPMs dropped and the car died, I'm hoping a simple carb retune will help with that. When I tried to start it back up I got nothing, no response at all. I pushed the car to the side and then checked the wires for loose connections. I tried a second and third time. the last time I tried the starter clicked and the lights were one but the car still wouldn't start up. I've encountered this before with other cars and it seems to be a dead battery. I took the batt out and brought it home. It's now fully charged in the hopes the car will start and make it back home so I can properly diagnose the issue.

======

When I start the car, at idle, and driving around the ammeter sits at 0. I'm not sure if this is even normal. However, at night when I turn on the headlamps the readings drop into the - side but never return to 0. It's never read past 0 in all the time I've owned the car. Because of the cars reaction noted above I think the battery is simply not being charged while the headlamps were slowly draining it?

I tried doing some searching and found this post, which is what's lead me to the conclusion that my issue if somehow related to my charging system. I haven't had enough time to properly diagnose this as my car literally died on me last night on the road forcing me to push/park it at a friends house. I'll be returning to get my car tonight with a fully charged battery.

Any ideas on things to check? Using the post I linked above, I plan to use that as a guide when taking a MM to my batt, alt...

I guess I'm looking for advice. Is my understanding of the electrical system wrong? Based on what I've encountered is there something that's not adding up?

Thanks guys!

Ray

Link to comment
Share on other sites


I've had this happen after I first got my 260Z. The alternator was not charging the battery. You should see about 14.5V at the battery at around 2500rpm. I went through the FSM diagnostics, and while I was testing the alternator and VR it started working. Turned out I had a bad electrical connection at the alternator.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Guidelines. We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.