71 Buick won't start. :(

Discussion in 'Sparky's corner' started by Crowsville, Aug 20, 2012.

  1. tom_gonzalez@ve

    tom_gonzalez@ve Well-Known Member

    That is why I said "normally", engineers do make dumb decisions from time to time and this would have been one of those times. Imagine driving on a dark country road and the link going like these did.
     
  2. 69GS400s

    69GS400s ...my own amusement ride!

    I believe the engineering decision to use a wire as opposed to a standard or even slow-blow fuse is that, the load (amp draw) of the copletely activated circuit is considerably less than the rating for the link to actually melt the wire. The only instance it should melt is under a continuous dead short condition. A minor temporary short would not melt the wire where it would instantly pop a standard type fuse.
     
  3. LARRY70GS

    LARRY70GS a.k.a. "THE WIZARD" Staff Member

    I understand Tom, and I agree, but what does that do to help the OP with his problem?
     
  4. tom_gonzalez@ve

    tom_gonzalez@ve Well-Known Member

    Not much, other than that the link could be replaced by the circuit breaker and eliminate that portion of his problem.
     
  5. LARRY70GS

    LARRY70GS a.k.a. "THE WIZARD" Staff Member


    Sure, but if he has a major short somewhere in the headlight circuit, it would reset and trip again, and get really hot. The OP needs to further inspect and diagnose what is going on.
     
  6. Crowsville

    Crowsville Active Member

    Well, as soon as the car wouldn't crank which took place outside of the 7 eleven, the headlights wouldn't turn on. I tried to jump the car and it made absolutely no difference. I had to push it home and the day after I immediately went to NAPA to purchase a battery. To my disappointment the battery did nothing but turn on the interior lights.

    I called my co worker and he told me about the possibility of it being a fusible link and as I followed the positive battery cable I played with the wires and that was the first time my car turned on. I drove it home after that and came to the conclusion that I needed to splice in a new fusible link. I went to NAPA again and bought two 14 ga fusible link wires very similar to the one you showed me from jc whitney.

    I then took the two wires western union them onto the 10 and 12 ga red wires, electrical taped then, and put them on the bolt on the starter where the original fusible link came from. Unfortunately, this did not work and that's when I knew I needed a more experienced mechanics intake on this. I am starting to feel down in the dumps on this one because now that I think about it the above poster could have been right. All I may have had to do was check the connections and possible electrical tape it and call it a day, I mean playing with the wires allowed for the car to turn over.

    What gets me is the fact that I hacked up the OEM fusible link and I am scared because I feel that there's no going back. I really don't know what to do and schools right around the corner. Did I go about installing the new fusible links all wrong? I mean couldn't what I have done at least cause the car to start again? Am I totally off in terms of what could be wrong?
     
  7. LARRY70GS

    LARRY70GS a.k.a. "THE WIZARD" Staff Member

    What you need to do is go back down to the starter. Unbolt the wires and make sure that those fusible links are still good. A simple continuity check with a meter is all it takes. If the fusible links are both good, then your problem is upstream of that. It sounds to me like you have a bad connection if fiddling with the wires gets you results.
     
  8. jay3000

    jay3000 RIP 1-16-21

    Sounds to me like the positive battery cable to the starter is a possibe culprit.. Should be easy to track down with a test light and a multimeter.. A wiring diagram would be helpful as well..

    I'm not a big fan of stabbing wires with a test light, but you can sharpen the tip, connect it to a good ground and stab the wires and see where your 12V stops..

    Is the ground strap from the engine still connected to the fire wall and making a good connection??? It really could be that simple..
     
  9. 69GS400s

    69GS400s ...my own amusement ride!

    Where are you located ?

    If all else fails you can just buy a new engine harness for about $150 ...

    driving an old car as your means of transportation can leave you desperate and stranded at times - I went through the same thing 30 years ago with my first 69 skylark while in college

    What it did teach me though is that with a good manual and the thought that if Joe the Mechanic down the street can fix it, then so can I.

    Today with the internet, its about 1,000 times as easy with info at your fingertips and youtube videos showing you just about everything you need.

    So, decide now - are you going to learn how to fix your car ... or are you going to either let it sit and walk to class or pay someone else to do it for you ?

    We are here to help, and we will, but you have to follow direction and when we ask for information you must provide answers to our questions.
     
  10. Crowsville

    Crowsville Active Member

    I'm located in the Bronx, NY. I do want to learn, and I do do the basics. I change my brakes, alternator, do tune ups to it, change the oil and can get by doing more or less everything that is needed to keep her running well. My achilles heel however is the electrical part of it. I really am not the brightest tool in the shed when it comes to that. I'm dedicating tomorrow to jacking her up and seeing whats up again and giving it a third attempt.

    I want to learn, I got the Skylark for that reason I knew it was a car that I could take the time and learn how to fix. This aspect of it is simply something that I've never been taught or experienced which is why it's so confusing to me. I am going to try to find a loose wire in the area that I was messing around with. If I find any I'll cut the shrink tie western union it and electrical tape it. First, I'm going to try to just electrical tape over it so I don't hack it up first try.
     
  11. Crowsville

    Crowsville Active Member

    Well, I spent 2 sweaty hours under my car installing the correct fusible links. The car still didn't turn on. I played with the wires some more still nothing. I was in disbelief and I was pretty down in the dumps about it. When I went to tighten the positive battery cable again guess what I saw? Corrosion and gunk on the copper. I said to myself,"hell, why the not?"

    I cleaned it and tightened it up and my wrench accidentally grounded itself out on it and a huge spark came out and I knew this was it. I sat down and it turned over. I gased it and it roared like never before, I couldn't help but romp on the engine again, and again. Black Betty is back baby and she's ready to hit the college parking lot. :)
     
  12. LARRY70GS

    LARRY70GS a.k.a. "THE WIZARD" Staff Member

    The simple things are the things you should always check first. Loose corroded connections down at the starter, or battery are a big cause of "NO CRANK" Glad you got it going.
     
  13. Crowsville

    Crowsville Active Member

    Thanks for your patience and lessons taught via buick forums Larry. I couldn't have fixed the original issue of cutting the OEM fusible link if it weren't for you. I learned a lot about gauges and how to properly install them, I actually took the time and actually did it the right way instead of the electrical tape sad excuse of a fix I originally did. Now to other sections of the forums to get her working even better than before!
     
  14. 69GS400s

    69GS400s ...my own amusement ride!

    sss
     
    Last edited: Sep 6, 2012

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