Hey all,
I have a 88 RS that loses all electrical power while driving. WHne the hood is lifted, all power is restored and the car will start and run fine. The battery is not shorting out on the hood or anything like that. I suspect a loose wire somewhere and the jarring of the car when opening the hood shakes it back to make contact. The battery terminals are tight,. Any suggestions where to start? I figureI would look at the obvious starter wire and ground from the battery but dont have a clue where to look after that.

 

i would say check the starter lead, but all my cars are v8's

 

There are several possible causes for this:
- The battery terminals might be "tight" but still not make good contact. I'd make sure they are smooth on the inside and clean.
- The battery terminals attach not only to the battery but also to the cables, so check that connection too, it's ignored WAY TOO OFTEN.
- As suggested above, check the wires on the starter. Maybe even take them off and clean them and put some dielectric grease on them.
- Also check out the fusible links (black cylindrical objects on the orange wires) by the starter. If they are broken inside, they'll cause an intermittent contact.

Lou

 

Well, I checked the battery lead and wiring on the starter. They were loose. I noticed that one of the solenoid studs was a bit loose and the internalpart of the solenoid was a bit loose also. I decided to go ahead nand change the solenoid while I had it out. Replaced the solenoid, tightened the wires and also changed out the positive battery terminal stud because whoever had this car before had stripped it. Also covered all the bare connections with dielectric grease. Car started right up. I'll just have to drive it for a while and see if the problem comes back. I think it's a pretty good fix though. Thanks to all who helped me out!

 

good to hear.

 

i JUST (less than 5 minutes ago) got this fixed it was the lead from the positive on the battery to the starter