Strange electrical problem..possibly

[Alberta_ZR1]

I was out for a drive in the Z this evening and as I got on it to tangle with a Porsche, I reached the top of 4th and I noticed all of the warning lights started flickering (on/off) in the information centre, the speedo reading went out and the RPM gauge froze. It only did it for a second or so, then it was back to normal.

Later this evening I went and took the car for a wash and as I started pulling into the garage it started to do the exact same thing and I could hear what sounded like a relay kicking in and out.

The alternator is brand new and the battery doesn't appear to be that old. It was replaced by the previous owner before I got the car.

I'm going to throw the trickle charger on the battery tonight and check all the cable ends, but any other suggestions?? It has never ever done this before and the car has been out for two 6.5 journey's this spring.

Thanks for the help,

Tyler

[HAWAIIZR-1]

Sorry, can't help you with the problem...........but I hope you don't mind if I ask if you beat the Porsche and what kind was it? Sorry, just had to ask.

I hope you get it resolved. I have a different kind of electrical problem of my own and those seem to be the most difficult to troubleshoot.

[tomtom72]

Oh jez...if mine did that I'd have passed out! I hate electrical issues because I stink at them.

However, could you get a general location of that relay you heard clicking? I'm asking as they are a bunch of them in our cars. There are like four or five right in the cockpit. The clicking should be the contacts pulling in & out as it lost power to keep them in. This could be a feed or a ground that was becoming intermittent....on our cars I would say a ground is a good bet unless your battery is leaving. It may not be dead, but rather have a cell or two that are becoming shorted and that would cause a voltage drop. I think I would look to see as many grounds as I could find to eye up, and then I would test the battery for both voltage and do a hydrometer test or a load test if you have a load tester.

One time my car behaved like that I had left something on & I killed my battery. I opened the door and all I had was I think the relay that does the interior lights' delay timer doing that clicking thing before everything went dark.:o

:cheers:
Tom

[QB93Z]

My first suggestion is to check all of the connections to the battery and the alternator. Take the battery cables off the battery and inspect the screws and cable ends for corrosion. Replace if they are questionable. Then reconnect everything.

Good luck.

Jim

[XfireZ51]

The relay clicking suggests interruption of electrical power. I get that clicking when I disconnect and connect battery power.

[Alberta_ZR1]

Sorry, can't help you with the problem...........but I hope you don't mind if I ask if you beat the Porsche and what kind was it? Sorry, just had to ask.

As near as I could tell it appears to have been maybe a 930 Turbo. It wasn't new enough to be the 964. I was a little disappointed that I wasn't able to beat him, but I did put up a good fight! He wasn't able to "walk" away from me, he was just pulling away every so slowly. It definitely made me consider buying up a family members 06 Z06!

My first suggestion is to check all of the connections to the battery and the alternator. Take the battery cables off the battery and inspect the screws and cable ends for corrosion. Replace if they are questionable. Then reconnect everything.

Good luck.

Jim

I appreciate everyone's feedback on this. I figured it was a power source problem due to all the electronics going snaky for no particular reason. I noticed last night when I was checking the cables that the battery kill quick disconnect knob on the negative post was slightly loose, so I'm hoping that's all it was.

I'll check the connections on the alternator tonight now that the motor is cold.

The plan was to go to Montana for the weekend, so hopefully I can find the problem and it won't leave me stranded down there.

[GOLDCYLON]

Could be an internal short in the battery under load. Get it tested under load. All C4s are battery power whores who require 12.69 volts all the time. Not enough volts and they do quirky electrical things. That were Id start beyond the cables. GC

[XfireZ51]

Could be an internal short in the battery under load. Get it tested under load. All C4s are battery power whores who require 12.69 volts all the time. Not enough volts and they do quirky electrical things. That were Id start beyond the cables. GC


Those battery quick disconnects are HORRID! Would never use them. They get loose over time and you can never tighten them enough.

[gbrtng]

I noticed last night when I was checking the cables that the battery kill quick disconnect knob on the negative post was slightly loose, so I'm hoping that's all it was.

That's your problem - dump the kill switch and get a $20 float charger at WallyWorld instead. Don't know if they are available in Canada, but take a look. Maker is Schumaker, 1.5 amp

[HAWAIIZR-1]

Tyler,

Thanks for the reply and for sharing; Porches are quick cars so no one can question that. I hope you can resolve the electrical issue soon.

Craig

[Alberta_ZR1]

That's your problem - dump the kill switch and get a $20 float charger at WallyWorld instead. Don't know if they are available in Canada, but take a look. Maker is Schumaker, 1.5 amp

Good to know. I never had one of these on a car before. The previous owner had installed it and used it over the winter months. Maybe I'll pull that off tonight and see if my problem returns.

[LGAFF]

Any updates, same thing happened to me today

[Alberta_ZR1]

Any updates, same thing happened to me today

I removed the quick disconnect from the negative battery post and everything appears to be working fine now. I came down to Montana today (750km) and not a single glitch.

So I'm thinking that was the problem in my case...at least I hope so.

[LGAFF]

I think mine is battery or Alt.....volts were going up and down fast, then once it warmed up, problem went away.

[GOLDCYLON]

I think mine is battery or Alt.....volts were going up and down fast, then once it warmed up, problem went away.

Any flickering in the dash between the orange illumination glowand black leds? Mine did that before the Alternator crapped out. GC

[LGAFF]

yes, just as you described, I think its toast.....


Got the message on the clutch....

[ittlfly]

Any flickering in the dash between the orange illumination glowand black leds? Mine did that before the Alternator crapped out. GC

Same exact symptoms just before one of the diods in the alt took a dump. After having it rebuilt, all is well.