this could be a long summer...

[Kevin]

first day i have her home and i get an sys light...if this is a sign of things to come it's going to be a long summer.

but she's home and looking good. i'm sure the light is something stupid, the battery died while i was bullshitting so I think i found a problem. now to dig out the grounding plugs

[tomtom72]

The battery being low usually gives the "SYS" light. Mine greeted me with that this yr. My VOM told me I was down to about 12v so I took the battery out & threw a charge on it and it's been fine ever since. I let it sit for 3 mos without disconning the battery. I usually never do that so it was my fault.

You think that you have DTC's?

:cheers:

[Kevin]

I'm sure it's something stupid like the battery being low but knowing my luck it could be something else. I'm going to check the dtcs probably this weekend and see if I have anything, it only takes a few seconds to check them so why not

[RedSled]

Had the same issue a week ago. Seems to have cleared. Let's hope!

[tomtom72]

Ya know these cars amaze me with the degree of sophistication that they have in the electrical system....as old as they are.

I just jumped in mine and it started, but after the LCD shook out, the SYS appeared & I thought "Okay, what broke now!" Then I remembered I let it sit for so long. I was gonna drive it to charge up the battery, but then decided to pull it & put it on the charger.

The thing that amazes me is that the car was telling me..."hey dumb bell! You let the voltage drop almost to the point of not enough, do something constructive!":sign10:

[Kevin]

Ya know these cars amaze me with the degree of sophistication that they have in the electrical system....as old as they are.

I just jumped in mine and it started, but after the LCD shook out, the SYS appeared & I thought "Okay, what broke now!" Then I remembered I let it sit for so long. I was gonna drive it to charge up the battery, but then decided to pull it & put it on the charger.

The thing that amazes me is that the car was telling me..."hey dumb bell! You let the voltage drop almost to the point of not enough, do something constructive!":sign10:

let me go you one better.

I blew the plug out of the head of my mustang, broke the coil pack and i was running on 7 cylnders. never got a light at all

[tomtom72]

That is funny Kevin. Did you get stranded or did the car get you back home? I'll bet it could have gotten you back home.

Just a fwiw, I know you're in PA somewhere...if you actually get jammed up & need assistance & there isn't anyone around, give me a shout. I have tools and a scanner with software for a 90....road trips are always nice! :mrgreen:

[ZZZZZR1]

That is funny Kevin. Did you get stranded or did the car get you back home? I'll bet it could have gotten you back home.

Just a fwiw, I know you're in PA somewhere...if you actually get jammed up & need assistance & there isn't anyone around, give me a shout. I have tools and a scanner with software for a 90....road trips are always nice! :mrgreen:

Now that is a Z brother! :worship:

[Kevin]

That is funny Kevin. Did you get stranded or did the car get you back home? I'll bet it could have gotten you back home.

Just a fwiw, I know you're in PA somewhere...if you actually get jammed up & need assistance & there isn't anyone around, give me a shout. I have tools and a scanner with software for a 90....road trips are always nice! :mrgreen:

you sir are a credit to our registry. I'm actually in the pittsburgh area so that would be a very long trip for you but I do appreciate the offer. I'm sure it's something stupid like the battery being low so I'm going to charge it tonight and maybe but a new one to toss in. Can we run optimas in our cars without having to mess with anything?


I got the car home that night but it wasn't fun at all, lots of hills in this part of the state..... fortunately i didn't strip out the 3 threads that hold the plug to the head....yeah you read that right 3 threads..

[tomtom72]

Kevin, about the optimas, yes we can but they have a dual terminal system that allows for top and side connections. It is my understanding that the top terminals are very close to the metal bracket that holds the cruise control vacuum canister/bellows. Prudence dictates that some of that support bracket be trimmed to avoid possible contact with the top terminals. That is how I understand the situation. I do not have first hand experience thought, as I chickened out and just bought an autoZone gold top battery that was a suppossed direct replacement. The gold top that I bought barely fits our tray, and it's carrying strap holder interfears with the gill panel. I had to use a sheetrock knife to shave that strap holder/anchor so there was no rubbing with the gill panel. It was a bit of a PIA, as I was not aggressive with my shaving so I wasted alot of time doing "test fittings". In the end I had to trim quite a bit and it fits okay. :neutral:

I must say that I'm impressed with the battery's performance. It will sit 3 months being connecteed and without charging and start the car, as I related in my post here. My ACDelco/GM battery would not go three months sitting and start the car. Maybe I just had a bad one? I rent garage space & have no electricity so a float charger is not useful. I'm thinking that the AutoZone battery I bought is not an exact replacement, maybe it was all the store had at the time? I never ran that down as their book said it was the one. The battery I bought has well over our minimum CCAmps. I can get the P/N if needs be as I'm sure I have the bill in my parts file.:sign10:

Oh, in our latest newsletter Robert, LocoBob, has a tech paper about battery selection which I saved as it is a keeper! Read it as I feel that he has found an answer to weight savings and starting/sitting performance. If my battery was not just three yrs old I'd be going down his route. His soloution maybe a bit extreem, but for me I think it would work....anything to get weight off of the front end in the twisties!:razz:

:redface: about the offer, being here I've "read" the threads and JMHO, we all are sincere in helping one another. Maybe I "read" into the threads what is not there? I doubt it highly, although I'm not the brightest bulb in the rack! Hey, I hear Pittsburgh is nice in the springtime! Road trip!:mrgreen:

:cheers:
Tom