'78z clicking sound then engine dying

[CA78z]

I just bought a 1978 Z my first Z that I have owned. The engine is clean and the previous owner had kept her paperwork in order. Other than needing a new battery it seemed to be running fine until tonight. There was a faint clicking sound that got a little louder for just a few seconds and then it shut down. When trying to restart the car it made the standard starter clicking sound and would not turn over.

Does anyone have any ideas? Trying to figure out if it is within my pay scale to fix myself or if I need to take it to a shop?

[Zed Head]

The clicking sound was probably a relay turning off as the oil pressure dropped when the engine RPM got too low. The "standard starter clicking" sounds a lot like the "standard dead battery".

You should provide more information like - how far away is "just"? In other words, had you been driving it for weeks, days or hours before it died and won't restart?

By won't turn over, you mean the engine does not rotate? (People get crank, turn over, start, etc. mixed up all the time). That would be a low battery, most likely, if it was running recently. Was the Charge light in the voltmeter on before it died?

The first thing you might do is charge up the battery, make sure you have clean battery terminals, and see if it will turn over. It might start right up. Of course, make sure that you have gas in the tank also. It doesn't sound like a problem that needs a professional mechanic.