hello thirdgen peeps :P! i have a 1986 iroc-z28 with a 305 4bl engine. i have been having a few problems with this car ok i lie. i have had ALOT of problems with this car. when i found it it was sitting in a guys yard / had been since 03' and i bought it early 2011. brought it home changed radiators on it "old one was run down and holy " and had to put a new battery on it then it started right up. that was amazing seeing how i only paid 200$ for it. so after running through and making sure everything worked i ran into some problems. so heres a list. and ill explain each and every one of them so maybe someone can help me.

Problems :
battery dies after maybe 5-6 starts?- this car doesnt drive on the road. not just yet. i have bout 3 batterys just bought one yesterday an today its dead!! >.<
Brake lights are out. *just bought a new brake switch and installed it. and put new bulbs in it Nor does the 3rd brake light work but i havent checked it out yet."

Things that have been fixed :
New brake calibers and brake pads.
New radiator
New headlight -still missing a frame for 1 headlight-
new brake lines e.g ect.
all new radiator hoses.
Removed Radio was trashed and we thought it was drawing power off the battery.
New bulbs in Turn signals e.g ect.
Removed old brake switch an put a new one in still no result in brake lights.
some how got E flash to work.
Turn signal Tick Fixed.
Cant remember what else sadly.


ok so main problems here is the battery. i bought 3 batterys so far. first was a 300 crank -Wayy to small.- 430 Crank Wayy to small again.
the newest one i have bought was the one yesterday i believe its 750 crank or maybe 650? cant remember. it was 105$ tax n all at napa.
i started it up a few times today once this morning since it had sat for about 4 months cause i havent had the money to work on it. and it turned over fine. so later on in the day my uncle was out here helping me work on it an he fixed my distributor timing and told me to start it up and i noticed that the amazing sound of a weak battery was coming up but blew it off... went back inside started thinking about it went back out tried to start it about 3 hours later and my battery was dead WTF? i just bought it YESTERDAY >.<!!!!! i haven't tried to jump it. but i know my alternator is fine. i checked that with the simple removing 1 cable while its running and it stayed running. Any ideas? it has sat for along time 03-11 based on the plates.

Brake lights. i put new bulbs in them cleaned the socket and made sure i put them in right. they work when the headlights are on but not when i push the brake. my uncle said something about needing 2 aluminum / metal things to screw on each side of the brake switch "THEY DIDNT COME WITH IT" so could that be the issue? i tried to test it with a light tester and it wouldnt light up so i bought a new brake switch from napa looks like the old one i pulled out. and i just bought a new one while writting this thread from autozone here is the one i bought http://www.autozone.com/autozone/acc...uestid=1847383
doesnt look like the old one i pulled out but it has those metal clips i was talking about.. so whats the deal!?! im gettting 1 part from napa and a completly different one from autozone. this is driving me insane but neither are working *NOT SURE ABOUT THE NEW ONE I JUST BOUGHT ILL GET ON THAT TOMORROW*

so somone please help me or atleast give me a Idea of what is going on this is making me

 

You should use a DMM (voltmeter) to probe around first to get an idea of what's happening, but it's sounding like you have at least one battery cable.

Check both ends of the cables closely for being corroded or loose.

If that's ok then you want to start checking for shorts or constant draw with the key turned off. Some common culprits are bad ignition modules and electric choke on the carburetor. Sometimes the draw was created by someone who either installed or uninstalled a stereo system and made a mistake in wiring.
It could be a lot of things though. You need a DMM and/or at least a test light to start troubleshooting the problem.

 

thank you. yes the stereo thing is highly possible and slipped my mind. when i got the car it was a peice of trash. i had to rip out the prev guys way of "making a amp work from using a fan" that resulted in him frying the fan + the stereo and the blower motor" so i ripped it out an took it to his house and threw it in his yard with a nice note. haha. but i got all that cleared up and i have test lighted all of the wiring where the stereo was and it doesnt "Parasite" any power while the key is off. i havent tried the volt test on the battery but i was suggested by a friend to take off the alternator and have it tested. so ill do it tomorrow while im cleaning the cables an taking the battery in for a recharge while getting the alternator checked out. ill let you know the results tomorrow any other suggestions?

 

***********UPDATE*****************
**********************************
Ok so i went out this morning and i was getting it done and done right haha. fixed the brake lights was a burned wire on the fuse box so i replaced that for a measly 15$ wasnt bad. brake lights are working now after 2 failed wrong switches from napa and the orginal burnt one autozone hooked me up. the battery is still a iffy situation i went out this morning an checked the cables and yes the cables needed to be wire brushed and where a tad bit loose so i tightened them up and brushed em clean... may think about replacing them both in the future thier kinda worn out the radio is compeltly disconnected no longer works so it isnt drawing power altennator checked out fine so thats in the clear.


only thing now is that when i turn my headlights on on my instrument panel it shows my turn signal light on sometimes both with no tick and its not supposed to show the turn signal light maybe a crossed wire? the original owner was definatly a ......

 

It sounds like it does have a few wiring issues that could be causing a drain, but also don't forget that battery cables can be bad on the inside, and usually are. It is normally the positive battery cable that goes bad inside under the insulation, especially when it runs near the exhaust heat.

 

thanks!! i replaced it and also found another wire that was running off the battery cable into a fan -for the heater/ac that doesnt even work- an it was drawing power aswell with the key off. since all this has been corrected havent had any more battery problems.. but the dash is still got me puzzled i plan to take the dash out this weekend and start hunting down wires so much fun v.v