Car just died....Need Help, Please!!

[Marmeister]

Finally got some great weather so took my newly purchased Luigi (1980 FI 2000) for a good run. Was running great for a good 30 min at highway speeds. Towards end of drive, it just quit and i had to coast to the shoulder. Tried to turn on emergency flasher - didn't light up. Thought battery was dead or newly installed battery disconnect (green knob) worked its way loose. Green Knob was OK and battery seemed to be fully charged - was cranking over pretty good but not starting. Looked at gas tank - showed empty, even though I knew I had 1/2 a tank when I started. Added a bit of gas anyway, cranked again a few times, still no good. Had to get it towed home!

Because it looked like there's no power to turn on emergency flasher or indicate real amt of fuel in tank and radio wouldn't turn on,...thought there's an Electrical problem that's causing this.

Is there a fuse for the fuel pump - don't even know if PO installed an an electrical fuel pump. But even if there is and its blown, where is it? And if its the problem, why would it affect the emergency flasher, radio, etc..??

Anybody??

Thanks

[narfire]

Take a look under the dist cap. The two wires get VERY brittle with time and just break usually the furthest point from home. Car stops dead. Some will carry a spare pickup and a few tools in a ditty box in the trunk.
There is an electrical fuel pump driver side just in front of the rear axle, under a shield. fuel filter is there as well. Check conections,perhaps a lead fell off.

As for the fuel tank...it holds about 45 liters and a stock FI will get about 1liter/10 kms. Set the trip odometer after filling up and that is a better gauge than the fuel gauge idiot light that seems to come on at half a tank. I fill at 350 kms or there abouts.

[dmwhiteoak]

Check your wiring on the starter and alternator. I haven't looked at any diagrams of the Fiat wiring but usually the fuse box if fed from the starter. Sometimes I have seen broken wires at the alternator cause simular problems in other makes. ThT would account for no power to the flashers , radio, and other electronics including the distributer. Just my opinion.

[vandor]

Do the 2 red idiot lights come on when you turn the ignition on? If not, it could be your ignition switch is not turning on one or both of its circuits. Also as suggested above, check that you have no broken wires at the alternator or starter. There is also a plastic connector close to the starter, check for a good connection there too.

[rlux4]

Yes, there is a fuse for the fuel pump. It's a dedicated inline fuse that's up behind the main fuse panel. Look for a brown wire with a white stripe. It may be hard to find, they've been known to be hiding on top of a brace. The factory fuse holder can go bad and not make good contact with the fuse, so even if the fuse looks good, it may be the holder.
If you don't have one, here's a good wiring diagram from Brad Artigue:
http://www.artigue.com/fiatcontent/wiri ... 0_1982.pdf
The other electrical problems are unrelated to the fuel pump fuse, so you may want to clean the contacts in the main fuse panel and squeeze them together slightly to get more solid contact.
Ron

[So Cal Mark]

since the fuel gauge isn't reading, I'm betting on a poor connection inside the ignition switch or at the harness connector about 6 inches down from the switch. Do a visual inspection of that connector, if it's burnt on one or two of the wires you'll have to repair that connection.

[Marmeister]

Wow! Thanks for the quick responses everyone - summers up here aren't as long as a lot of places in the U.S.....so no time to waste. I'll start tracking the various tips and look for a link between car dying (and not re-starting) AND no power to radio, emergency flasher & fuel tank gauge - THAT link is still not clear to me, but I'll re-read tips carefully...

Although I may have more than one problem.....as evidenced by my last post when I reported back after discovering and fixing multiple problems with 2yr old 95A alternator - intermittent open ckts on 2 of the wires on the VReg connector and a cold solder joint on the alternator rotor

Stay Tuned and thanks again!
Adham

[TX82FIAT]

A very good starting point would be those two idiot lights for charging and oil at start up. The ignition swicthc is a common failure point. Let us know how what you find.

[Marmeister]

Hi Everyone, here's the update.....
When I turned the ignition switch to ON, only the battery light turns on. Car cranks but doesn't start. Emergency hazard light doesn't come on when pressed; fuel tank gauge shows empty even though 1/2 full; interior light stays off even though door is opened.

I checked the fuses under the dash, then pulled the rubber boot off the ignition switch and all the connected wires seemed ok. I then followed the wires further down to the two white plastic connectors. All the wires on on either end of each connector seem fine.

There are 4 wires on alternator B+ stud - One to voltage regulator, one heavy gauge to starter, and two wires together. Didn't like the look of the two wires soldered to one connector, but couldn't get meter to show an intermittent open ckt....however, still didn't like the look of it. So I replaced connector and resoldered the two wires to the new connector and put all wires back on alternator stud.

As soon as I did that, emergency hazard light started flashing and interior light came on (door was open). I put the key in the ignition switch and turned it to on. Fuel Gauge started working and indicated 1/2 tank. I still only showed ONE red idiot light - for the battery. Oil idiot light still OFF. I checked Oil level and it was fine. Oil temp has always been 190 degrees during driving, so no problem.

So, still not sure why Oil idiot light DOESN"T come on with ignition switch ON...Any ideas ???

However, the best news is...................Luigi started !!!

Charging battery now and when the weather improves will take him out for a confirmation drive, but all signs look back to normal........

THANKS , EVERYONE !!

[divace73]

could the globe itself be out?

[4uall]

Glad to hear it is moving in the right direction

[vandor]

>So, still not sure why Oil idiot light DOESN"T come on with ignition switch ON...Any ideas ???

Bad bulb or bad sender? Remove the wire from the sender and ground it, the light should come on. If it does, then everything works, so it's likely the sender.

[Marmeister]

Thanks David and Csaba!
Was out of town; will check sender and bulb.
Adham

[bradartigue]

>>So, still not sure why Oil idiot light DOESN"T come on with ignition switch ON...Any ideas ???<<

Because the sender is bad? Unplug it, does the light come on? Ground it, does the light come on? Plug it back it. Remove speedometer, check bulb. Check continuity with sender wire. At some point you'll find the issue, this is a very simple device.

[Marmeister]

Hi all,
Finally managed to take Luigi on "confirmation" drive to ensure previous "fix" is still good.
Fully charged battery yesterday evening, Luigi started right away this morning and off I went. 3 mins of driving later....

Same symptoms returned: Car died instantly - no sputtering, just died, fuel gauge doesn't work, hazard lights don't work, radio doesn't work and interior light (with door open) doesn't work. Battery still powering lights and more than enough juice to crank engine, but it won't start. I fiddled with the same 2 wires at the alternator - no change. They seem to be going to a couple of relays on the inside fender, gave them a sharp couple of taps (wishful thinking) - no change.

Hey Mark, I think you mentioned the last time, that you suspected a problem INSIDE the ignition switch - How would I check that??

Having checked for visually obvious problems the previous time....not sure what to do next. Any help would be greatly appreciated !!

Thanks,