Help! No start then No Power
09-25-2015, 04:09 PM
#1
Registered User
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2012
Posts: 3
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Help! No start then No Power
Hi everyone,
Great forum! I have a situation and would appreciate any help you could give me.
I have an 83 toyota pickup that has worked good, up until today. I went to start it and everything seemed normal. But instead of turning over, I heard one loud click and then all power to dash lights went out and the power wouldn't come back on.
When I turn on my headlights at this point, there is a vibrating noise from the headlight relay on the fuse panel and when I measure the voltage at the headlight relay, it is only 12.0 (battery is 12.8).
I checked the battery which is pretty new and redid the battery connections, checked the fuses and couldn't find any issues.
The fact that the headlight relay hums leads me to believe there is a short somewhere, but I am a novice, so that conclusion probably isn't valid.
I have done some searching, but couldn't find anyone that lost ALL power when trying to start and after getting the "click".
Any ideas on where to start?
Great forum! I have a situation and would appreciate any help you could give me.
I have an 83 toyota pickup that has worked good, up until today. I went to start it and everything seemed normal. But instead of turning over, I heard one loud click and then all power to dash lights went out and the power wouldn't come back on.
When I turn on my headlights at this point, there is a vibrating noise from the headlight relay on the fuse panel and when I measure the voltage at the headlight relay, it is only 12.0 (battery is 12.8).
I checked the battery which is pretty new and redid the battery connections, checked the fuses and couldn't find any issues.
The fact that the headlight relay hums leads me to believe there is a short somewhere, but I am a novice, so that conclusion probably isn't valid.
I have done some searching, but couldn't find anyone that lost ALL power when trying to start and after getting the "click".
Any ideas on where to start?
09-28-2015, 03:15 PM
#3
Registered User
It sounds to me like there is a bad connection somewhere, probably near the battery, causing high resistance. You are getting enough power to turn on the headlight relay, but then the amperage drawn from the headlights is enough to drop the voltage down low enough where the relay does not have enough power to stay on.
Make sure the battery terminals are clean. Get a battery cleaner brush or just use some sandpaper to rough up both the terminals on the battery and the connectors. Check that the wires coming off the battery terminals are in good shape and clean. Do not forget to check the grounds at the body and engine. Also check the main wire going to the fuse box from the battery. Keep in mind there should be a fusible link in that wire that could be having problems, and put a new one in there if you replace the wire.
Lons81 is right about batteries. Most auto parts stores will check them for free with a load tester.
Make sure the battery terminals are clean. Get a battery cleaner brush or just use some sandpaper to rough up both the terminals on the battery and the connectors. Check that the wires coming off the battery terminals are in good shape and clean. Do not forget to check the grounds at the body and engine. Also check the main wire going to the fuse box from the battery. Keep in mind there should be a fusible link in that wire that could be having problems, and put a new one in there if you replace the wire.
Lons81 is right about batteries. Most auto parts stores will check them for free with a load tester.
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
RedRunner_87
95.5-2004 Tacomas & 96-2002 4Runners (Build-Up Section)
84
06-01-2021 01:51 PM
skoti89
Offroad Tech
3
07-08-2015 12:05 AM
