As it says in the title, I'm having some trouble with my Electra and I came here to see if you lovely lot could help but I don't know where to post... So if anyone can tell me where I can/should post this or move it, feel free to do so. Thanks Details: Sunday night, came home, was listening to NPR for a bit before I turned the car off. As I went to put it into park, hit the brake and noticed the lights dimmed. Didn't really think anything of it. Next day, started her up and everything seemed good. Drove about 20 miles on the freeway but when I got off the freeway, noticed that it was sputtering and had a really rough idle when not giving it some gas. Made it to where I was going, came back out 20 minutes later to head back out again and it was rougher than before and couldn't drive it for any considerable distance. It would start, idle rough and wouldn't stay on unless I gave it some gas. Towed it home and started by replacing the inline fuel filter. Started it up again after it was in and everything seemed to be okay. Turned it off again, put some tools away, went to start it again and it wouldn't start and now it requires a jump to get it started in addition to the returning symptoms of rough idling and not staying on unless given gas. Now it seems that there's something going on with the electrical system as it requires a jump after 2-3 starts of the engine. So I'm at a total loss and any help would be appreciated. Thanks.
Re: I'm so confused.... trying to fix my 1978 Buick Electra and don't know where to p Hello and welcome from Milwaukee Wisconsin. "The bench" would be a good place to post. Maybe a moderator could move this for you so you dont have to re type everything. As for your problems, Id say test your battery first and then your alternator. You be be able to get both tested for free at the auto parts store if you dont have the means to test them yourself.
Re: I'm so confused.... trying to fix my 1978 Buick Electra and don't know where to p I agree. if the Alt is not charging there is no juice to run the car. once the battery is dead the car wont run. Your basicly driving a battery operated car with a non working alt. Ask me sometime about the electric 65 chevy van I once had.p
Re: I'm so confused.... trying to fix my 1978 Buick Electra and don't know where to p It sounds as if the bat is good. It sounds like a charging system problem. Good chance of a bad alt or bad connection. Have the charging system tested. Follow the pos wire from the alt to whereever it connects and make sure the connection is clean and tight. It might go to the starter thru a fuse link. check the fuse link if one is being used. If you have the 80 amp alt they had a common problem of a connection burning inside of the alt. If this is the case the alt pos post will become hot after running for a while.
Re: I'm so confused.... trying to fix my 1978 Buick Electra and don't know where to p Just like everyone else, the 1st thing that popped into my head was alternator. I'd start there.
Re: I'm so confused.... trying to fix my 1978 Buick Electra and don't know where to p i donno about your car but my 72 chevelle has a circuit breaker with a junction kinda on the drivers side top of the firewall that when it went bad i lost all power to the fuse box and alternator quit charging. donno if this applies to yours but just maybe. good luck Lonnie
Re: I'm so confused.... trying to fix my 1978 Buick Electra and don't know where to p Thank you so much to everyone who gave a reply. Stupidly, or smartly, the alternator was also the first thing that came to mind for me but I let my dad talk me out of my suspicion and he suggested the fuel filter. "the battery gets the car going and the alternator keeps it going... right? Seems like the alternator to me." But alas... let him talk me out of it. Looked into my suspicion before that and the alternators available were 63 amps i believe and others were in the 90s or 100s. There's not a whole heck of a lot going on electricity wise inside, just an aftermarket deck and two 6x9s in the rear. Can I go for the 63 amp alternator or would I be better off buying one with more amps in case i decide to add more stereo stuff later? might have to issue a big nevermind on that last question... appears as though the difference in amperage comes with the difference in alternator diameter. Appears as though it depends on the size of the alternator.
Re: I'm so confused.... trying to fix my 1978 Buick Electra and don't know where to p Put a voltmeter across the battery while the engine is running. The reading should be above 13.8 volts, probably around 14.5. That will tell you whether the alternator is charging the battery or not. If the battery is more than 5 years old, suspect the battery. Does it hesitate?
Re: I'm so confused.... trying to fix my 1978 Buick Electra and don't know where to p Alright, so I tried posting an update yesterday from my phone but it was being temperamental. While I was busy working, my dad took the alternator off and had it tested and apparently it's fine. He and the "old guy" at the parts store seem to think that it's the fuel pump so he ordered one for me. That doesn't seem to make any sense to me. If it was the fuel pump, that doesn't really explain why it currently requires a jump to get started.... right? So I'm heading down there shortly to start swinging a wrench at it again. I'll take a look at the connections to and from the battery and alternator, but what else should I be looking for? I don't really want to replace the fuel pump if I don't have to because the bolt securing the fuel line is on there pretty well and I'm afraid I'll end up stripping it and making things worse. Thanks again for all of the replies.
Re: I'm so confused.... trying to fix my 1978 Buick Electra and don't know where to p he probably thinks that your having to crank it for a long time for it to start. like its losing its prime but thats not the case here. like larry and everyone else said see how many volts its putting out running have the battery tested change your terminals and clean all connections if you try to crank it with the battery dead does any of your connections get really hot? that is an indication of a bad connection or sparks flying . 12.4 volts is the minimum for an elec system. also take your positive cable off the battery hook the positive off the multimeter to the battery and your ground to the terminal and tell us how many volts there are . should be around 0 if everything is ok. that is your key off drain test also when you put multimeter on battery with it running check the back of the alternator subtract the battery reading by the alternator reading that is your voltage drop between there anything over .5v is to be concerned also do the voltage drop from battery to starter with key off. hope this helps. Lonnie
Re: I'm so confused.... trying to fix my 1978 Buick Electra and don't know where to p where are you from maybe someone close could come help you
Re: I'm so confused.... trying to fix my 1978 Buick Electra and don't know where to p From rainy Sacramento. Or the suburb of Citrus Heights to be more specific. Currently waiting at the local Autozone to charge and test the battery. Guy here says to start the car up, give it a significant amount of gas and cover the exposed carb with my hand apparently in an effort to clean gunk out of the system. Like i said before it won't even stay running long at all. Not long enough to get out and do that or test any electric stuff for that matter. I'll see what he says about the battery and buy a multimeter and report back when I can. Thanks again for all of the help.
Re: I'm so confused.... trying to fix my 1978 Buick Electra and don't know where to p sorry it took so long, had to find a decent way to keep the pedal pressed while getting some readings in addition to having to jump start her up a few times. guy at autozone said the battery is perfect. when i got the battery back home, put it in and started the car up so i could move it towards the garage as it's raining. on that first start and only on that first start, everything seemed to be running perfectly.... but not anymore. back to the same rough idling / stalling without gas symptoms. took the positive cable off the battery and put the ground to the terminal, read 0.005v the starter isn't very accessible... how do i go about checking the alternator in the way you said? I'm pretty much without knowledge in regards to things electrical.... I connected the + on the multimeter to the + wire on the plug going into the alternator and put the - on the multimeter to the - battery terminal and it read 13.34v noticed that when I pressed on the alternator belt after noticing significant squealing after starting her up that it's quite loose (like a good inch or so pressing midway between the pulleys), so I'm going to head out and tighten that guy up after i eat some lunch.
Re: I'm so confused.... trying to fix my 1978 Buick Electra and don't know where to p 13.8 volts minimum to charge the battery. You can simply go across the battery with the voltmeter. You may need to rev it over 1500 RPM's initially to get the internal regulator to kick the voltage up, but then it should stay up. It should read over 14 volts if everything is working as it should. Your fuel pump could certainly be at fault also. A low fuel level in the carburetor will cause rough idling, stalling, and hesitation. A non charging alternator will simply run down the battery.
Re: I'm so confused.... trying to fix my 1978 Buick Electra and don't know where to p Alright... so I replaced the fuel pump and tightened that belt. After jumping it (again) to get it started, it ran well at idle for about a minute or so. By the time I disconnected the cables, shut off the other car, and moved some stuff into the garage, it went back to doing the same rough idling and stalling, So now it's back to where it won't stay on without giving it gas. But before it dies completely the "GEN" light stays on and gets brighter the more the engine is struggling/dying, when it dies completely the light is a bright red. So that tells me it has to be electrical... right? When I find someone who can help me keep the car going while I manhandle the multimeter, I'll report back some findings.
Re: I'm so confused.... trying to fix my 1978 Buick Electra and don't know where to p Well now I'm just confused... Got some help, got the multimeter. Measured across the battery with the car running and it read what I assume is infinite. It would just keep going up and up, changing from mV to V and back, occasionally showing OL. I feel as though I might be doing something wrong. From + on the battery to + on the alt showed 0.43v once and 0.63v once. From the alternator housing/body to the - on the battery showed 17.3v That's all I could get until my help opted to go to bed. Two questions: 1) Where the frogs is my starter? My repair manual is of no use on this matter and I can't seem to locate it anywhere. I feel like a stooge. and 2) repair manual says it's quite likely that my v8 beast has 3 fusible links and they're likely to all be coming from the starter. Will they be easy to spot when I find the starter? Is there anything special I should be looking for in regards to those fusible links? I test them by penetrating the insulation? That was a bunch of questions. Thanks to everyone again for all of the help, really.
Re: I'm so confused.... trying to fix my 1978 Buick Electra and don't know where to p Gen lite coming on when engine RPM drops (stalling) is normal. If I remember right that year used 2 different starters. 1 being on the passenger side and the other on the driver side. In any case follow the batttery positive cable to the starter. Where it connects to the starter is where you most probably will find the fuse links. They look like a regular wire except about 6 inches from where they connect to the starter you will see a plastic tube about an inch long on the wire. These are your fuse links. Not the plastic tube, but the wire between them and the starter. Probing them may give you a false good reading as these usually break inside the insulation and cant be seen and sometimes will be touching enough to indicate voltage, but not enough to carry current. The best way to test them is to wrap your finger around one and pull. If it stretches like a rubber band (gum band here) it is bad.
Re: I'm so confused.... trying to fix my 1978 Buick Electra and don't know where to p followed the + wire from the battery to the starter, but there doesn't appear to be any fusible links there... these pictures are from an area in the engine compartment near the firewall. They are the only things similar to the description of fusible links that I could find, and they all appear to be tight when pulled. Replaced the alternator with a GM 1 wire alt. Same ole stuff. Started and ran fine for a minute or so and eventually died. Gonna go take a look at my EECS canister and see if there's anything of note in there. Let me know if you all have any ideas
Re: I'm so confused.... trying to fix my 1978 Buick Electra and don't know where to p Well I doubt if the wiring to your windshield wipers is going to make much of a difference. Only slightly less than the fuel pump. The fusible links are down by the starter and usually only a few inches away on the red 10-12 gauge wires. There won't be one on the big wire from the bat to starter. The 17v drop from alt. housing to bat minus sounds like a bad ground connection between the two but that reading sounds like a mis-read by itself. Maybe it was actually reading .17V which would be ok. Set the range on the meter to read the general area of what you want to read. Something like the 20V scale. If you want to measure voltage drop use the most sensitive scale but for normal readings use a less sensitive scale. Don't use auto range if possible unless you're not confused by the meter always changing to get the best reading which is what all those changing numbers sound like from your description which doesn't have anything to do with your problem. If you have the model of the meter you can always check on the internet for an owners manual on how to set it up instead of flying blind. It is tough to try to fix a problem when you are not familiar with the test equipment you are using. You can always run a jumper wire from a good connection on the alt case to the bat - terminal wire and see if there is a voltage difference at the bat. You could also use the high current terminals off the meter and see if there is any current flow from the housing to the bat -. If there is more than a few milli-amps then there is a bad connection. As was said read the voltage at the battery terminals. It should read 13.8-14.2 volts when the engine is reved a bit if all is well. That loose belt was not helping because it will start slipping badly as the rpm or load on the alternator goes up and then won't charge well. The alt light flickering on at very slow idle is not unusual but generally won't do that when everything is right on a stock car. You could try the alt case/bat - jumper when doing this also to see if the voltage changes. Get your Dad to hold the gas for you but if he suggests the muffler bearings are bad keep an eye on him.
Re: I'm so confused.... trying to fix my 1978 Buick Electra and don't know where to p Get your Dad to hold the gas for you but if he suggests the muffler bearings are bad keep an eye on him. i think its the flux capacitor :blast:
