Died while passing someone. Got it restarted after several tries, made it about 100ft, and died again. Started and died instantly. Started right back up. Made it a few miles and died again. Ten minutes later got it started and made it the rest of the way home, but it bucked a few times when it almost died, but didn't. At some point in there I disconnected the MSD6a, but it didn't make a difference.

When it died it was as if I was turning it off myself. SES light would come on too. Otherwise it ran fine.

Once or twice during the few months leading up to that night the car would die the same way as I slowed down and pulled into the parking lot at work, or the stereo would shut off and on once.

The alternator also seemed to be charging a bit on the low side at idle during the preceding couple months

Anyway, that was a few months ago, and now that it's warming up a little, I want to take care of this problem, and get the megasquirt installed and tuned at least so I can sell the neon I'm driving for now.

All I can think of at the moment would be to replace the following:

ICM
coil
pickup coil maybe?
ignition switch/key stuff
alternator and/or ground wires

The neutral safety switch is only a few years old.

Any other ideas on something to check or replace would be great. A relay or something I don't know about? Thanks

 

My guess is if it's not a fuel problem, then look at the distributor module...

 

The alternator also seemed to be charging a bit on the low side at idle during the preceding couple months

seems to me the problem is a failing altenator.. stereo shuts of.. well thats a lack of power.. low charging altenator will drain the battery fairly quickly

 

Part of the reason for low charging at idle is the underdrive crank pulley, but during the previous 4 years or so I've had that, It never really got as bad as it did before it started shutting off that night (dim lights and slow blinker at 700rpms, probly around 10v on the gauge at that point) At cruising rpms, it was charging at 13v all the time, which is where it was at when it died. The battery had plenty of cranking power.

I had an alternator quit about 10 years ago when I bought the car, and it continued running off the battery until it just slowly died and I coasted to a stop.

If it is just the alternator, that would be great, but I can't help wondering if there's something else screwy due to the symptoms being different than that of the usual alternator failure symptoms.

 

I would start with the ign module and maybe the coil as well. The NSS only has to do with the starting system, so don't worry about it.