HELP!!! (sdpatt and others)

[Bigjoey71]

Well, it finally happened, i posted a while ago about my lights (and electrical power) pulsing in the SHO (93 ATX).
Yesterday while driving my ANTI-LOCK light came on. I got worried but then the radio shut off and the clock and the EEC turned off. Everything electric on the car shut off and the car died. I managed to get her to roll into a parking lot. She wouldnt start back up as if the battery were out of juice. The alternator and battery were tested 2 days ago and they were fine.
I am guessing that it is a short of some kind or a bad ground. Can anyone give any other suggestions. If it is a bad ground or short, how can i find it???
Thanks,
Joe

 

[SHO SPD]

It could be your Voltage regulator...

 

[FordLover]

Sounds like a battery that isn't getting charged somehow. I'd point a finger at the alternator first, even if it was good 2 days ago.
-Martin

 

[brianl]

Battery cables?

 

[Groo]

I'm going to be a typical panicky SHO owner and say you need to redo the entire electrical system.

 

[Milo]

Has this happened just recently? Why was the alternator just checked 2 days ago? If it wasnt for that I would say it doesnt sound like it is getting any charge to the battery. Cables,alternator, or regulator.

 

[naval-avi8or]

Check your cable and connections at the starter. Bothe the batt and alt connect at thet point. Not advised cause it can mess up the regulator but the car can and will run with out the batt even connected. The connection junction at the starter is were the power is sent through one cable to the power buss bar. There has been a couple of guys with identical symptoms a few months back. One changed cables one found the stud on the starter broke (twisting).

 

[Chrisssssssss]

I sort of have the same problem and have not been able to fugure out what is causing it to do this, but when I accelerate normally, the ABS light comes on and the ETAC and radio make a spike type noise and then they come back on and the ABS light stays on for the duration of the trip. When I restart the car, the ABS light goes off and works as normal, but as soon as you accelerate normally it does the same thing. It will blow the fuse on occasion in the engine bay (maxifuse) and then it will keep the ABS light on all the time. Since it is summertime, I have not fooled with it too much and I have the fuse out of the car right now. I am putting a 3.2 into my 92 MTX right now, so I have put the ABS thing on the backburner. I actually would like to inspect the ABS wiring while I have the motor out though.

 

[Mike Spataro]

Hey Bigjoey, I had a very similar problem with my 93 ATX. Went nuts for two years. It was intermittant, just die and have no or low power. It turned out to be the starter. I received help from Doug Lewis who figured it out. He was right. By the way I picked up a starter from a junk yard fo $45 out of a SLO 3.8 motor and is working just fine for almost two years. Good luck.

 

[Mike Spataro]

Hey Bigjoey, I had a very similar problem with my 93 ATX. Went nuts for two years. It was intermittant, just die and have no or low power. It turned out to be the starter. I received help from Doug Lewis who figured it out. He was right. By the way I picked up a starter from a junk yard fo $45 out of a SLO 3.8 motor and is working just fine for almost two years. Good luck.

 

[91 Plus]

I had like the same problem..I changed battery and alternator and was getting same problem..The main power cable that hooks to the alternator was rusty..The end of it broke and was not charging it..You might want to try that.

 

[Bigjoey71]

EVERYBODY, THANKS!!!
I talked to my neighbor who is a GM mechanic, and he said that it was the alternator. He and i will be replacing it today with my dad. The funny this is that i just bought the alternator in august (rebuilt from NAPA). Oh well, hopefully that is the problem. If not, i will try each and every one of your suggestions.
Thanks a ton guys!!
Joe

 

[91-SHOPLUS]

3 Alternators in 1 year

The battery light was on in my 91 SHO in May of 2004 and I drove it for a month before the alternator finally wouldn't charge the battery. I bought a lifetime warranty alternator from napa because that's the only one they offered. In November 2004 the battery light came on and the airbag light started flashing a 3. Not 2 min later the battery was dead and the car shut off. The pulled the lifetime warranty alternator out and got a new one from Napa. It is now May 27 2005 just 6 months after the second new lifetime warranty alternator and the battery light came on and the airbag light started flashing and the car shut off. I pulled the alternator and napa tested it and it was bad. Could there be something causing my alternator to go bad or are the napa alternators just junk. 3 alternators in a year is a little rediculus. And for a side note, i installed a napa clutch in november and about 2 weeks ago the entire friction disk on the pressure plate side ripped off. I got it warrantied also but what a pain to change that. The alternator part number is 13-8480.

 

[SHOtimer]

The battery light was on in my 91 SHO in May of 2004 and I drove it for a month before the alternator finally wouldn't charge the battery. I bought a lifetime warranty alternator from napa because that's the only one they offered. In November 2004 the battery light came on and the airbag light started flashing a 3. Not 2 min later the battery was dead and the car shut off. The pulled the lifetime warranty alternator out and got a new one from Napa. It is now May 27 2005 just 6 months after the second new lifetime warranty alternator and the battery light came on and the airbag light started flashing and the car shut off. I pulled the alternator and napa tested it and it was bad. Could there be something causing my alternator to go bad or are the napa alternators just junk. 3 alternators in a year is a little rediculus. And for a side note, i installed a napa clutch in november and about 2 weeks ago the entire friction disk on the pressure plate side ripped off. I got it warrantied also but what a pain to change that. The alternator part number is 13-8480.

First, what you need to do is start your own thread instead of adding on to one that is 3 years old.

Second, yes the Napa alternators are crap. It is pretty much luck of the draw on rebuilt alternators and starters. I have had better luck getting a Ford/Motorcraft one. www.rockauto.com has good prices on those, or www.fordpartsnetwork.com

Third, yes the SHO will eat up crappy clutches in a heartbeat. With these cars on clutches you must go quality or you will be changing it often.

Doug

 

[SHO_Diehard]

Mom and Pop Style Alternators

I thought this thread was current.

Two of our SHOs have alternators that were rebuilt at independent shops. One of them has been in the car since the Wisconsin convention. The old alternator went out in Springfield, IL (my fault, loose wire) on the way to Madison. There was not a SHO alternator anywhere in Springfield, but one of the AZ guys mentioned a shop that rebuilt alternators and starters. Threw a charge on the battery and pulled the alt at AZ, drove to the shop (Mr Auto Electric )They rebuilt the alternator in about an hour In another hour I was back on the road. Can you tell I like that place?

The independent shops and parts stores many times beat the chains on service and quality of offerings. It'll be a sad day if they ever disappear completely.