I had some strange stuff happen today while driving my 94 pickup (3.slow, 4x4). This morning when I was parking to get a coffee, just as I was braking to park, the whole system reset and the truck died. The radio lost all the stations, ABS light went on...

Than when I was driving home, it happened again while I was stopping at a light to turn (but this time the engine did not die). Than about 5 blocks later everything died and I had to coast to a stop and restart the truck.

I pulled over into a parking lot. My first thought was that it was a loose battery terminal, because everything happened everytime I was braking or downshifting. But the terminals were fine. I checked all the wiring I could see in the engine bay, also checked the fuses. Everything fine. I tried driving around the parking lot and braking to reproduce the result. But the truck was fine for the rest of the ride.

What is going on? I'm worried to drive it to work tommorow now. I don't want the truck to die on me when I'm on a bridge or something.

Please help

 

You either have a bad/loose ground or a short. Check the obvious such as the engine/body grounds. I had a similar issue with my '94 once, and it turned out to be the O2 sensor wire touching the exhaust occasionally, which blew my EFI fuse. So check in the engine bay and underneath the vehicle for loose &/or burnt through wires that may be touching metal, causing a short.

 

When the idots ripped the alarm out of my truck (before i bought it) they simply twisted the two wires together that they had tapped for the ignition kill. Took a couple of years before they started making intermit contact and driveing me nuts.

finnally traced the offending wires down to behind the kickpannel.

 

I think I found the bad ground. I found where the amp grounds into the body (just behind shifter knobs). Who ever installed the sound system used a slightly undersize screw to mount the grounding wire. It would explain why I was getting alternator whine.
I cleaned up the mating surfaces and used some dielectric silicone and a larger screw. I drove it around the neighbourhood, everything seems fine. I can't even hear any alternator whine anymore. I guess I'l know for sure when I drive it to work tommorow.

Thank allot guys