No Lights after replacing batt wire from key ignition to starter relay

[sjcalv]

K, kind of messed up situation with my 69 charger.
Over the course if 2 days my key ignition slowly failed, would take 10-50 turns of the key to get the car to catch and start.
Then I lost all power..nothing, could jump the start relay and car would crank but no start.
Finally sourced the problem to the wire that runs between the starter relay on firewall and the back of the key ignition, not getting power to key ignition, abandoned old wire and ran new and car started right up and has ran fine but with no interior console lights or done lights.
Tonight I went out and gave it a good shot of a stoplight and all dash lights went real bright then ALL lights went dead, head, tail, dash everything bit car ran great....... Help any ideas???

[Pete in NH]

Hi,

The first thing I would check out is the bulk head connectors. Try unplugging and reconnecting the bulk head connectors several times to clean up the contacts a bit. If things start working again it's time to carefully check out the bulk head connector pins  and look for corrosion, burnt pins and melted plastic. If they are just dirty, clean them up as best you can and put a good contact cleaner like DE-Oxit on them.

[Canadian1968]

Would check the bulkhead first as well . You were obviously down there moving stuff around it doesn't take much disturb something and cause an intermintant problem. If bulk head checks out , it gets a bit harder I would trace back threw the harness and check the multi-splice connection that is I the stock harness . It wil be inline with wire that runs off the back of the ammeter .  Your probably in for a bit of headache !!!

I had an electrical problem had to pull out the entire dash harness ! Ran all new power feed wires and all wires front ignition switch .... Has not given me a problem since , and my dash lights/ dimmer work flawless .

You start stripping wires back and they are green 2 inches back it's not a good sign !!

[sjcalv]

So traced/tested everything and found I'm getting 20 volts to headlight plug, dome light etc.
Tested ignition side of the voltage regulator and got like 9 volts and battery was 12.5.
Can't make sense of it.
Any other test I can do with meter or test light?
Does voltage leave regulator on ignition side and get distributed from there?

[Pete in NH]

With the engine running above idle you should have 13.8 to 14.5 volts across the battery. I'm not sure what the 20 volts at the light switch is about and it may be a measurement error.

69 was the last year for the single field wire alternator and they frequently were upgraded to the newer two field wire alternators with electronic regulation. Look at the back of the alternator, you with have a heavy output wire and one or two field wires. Post back whether it's one or two.

Once we know what system is in your car I can point you in the right direction. But, first, check out the bulk head connectors.

[sjcalv]

Alt has one lug output and 2 other female connectors.
Unplugged and cleaned up the 3 bhead connectors  yesterday, no difference.
Could the ammeter be gone and the high volts not making it back to the battery, doesn't seem like the battery is getting charged, it reads below 12 v now when car is running.

[Pete in NH]

Okay, that's the newer system with electronic regulator. Yes, the ammeter could be open. But, the other possibilities are- bad alternator, bad regulator, open wire somewhere or blown fusible link.

On a 69, there should be a fusible link between the 5/16" battery stud on the starter relay and a pin on the bulk head connector. If that link opens the alternator output is no longer connected to the battery. With the car not running see if you have battery voltage at the alternator output stud.  Of the two fields wires on the back of the alternator one should be blue and the other green. The blue wire should have 12 volts on it with the ignition switch in the run position.

[sjcalv]

I know there is no fuse able link off the stud of the starter relay as the one cable goes to the started and the other I wired directly to the key switch as I found melted wires and this solved my no starting problem.
I will check the back of the alt as you suggested.

[sjcalv]

Just to be sure, does the key switch battery feed come directly from the batt terminal on started relay directly to key switch? The old one was ran this way but a portion disappeared through a loop in the harness under the day, just wanna make sure I didn't miss a relay or something.
Thanks

[Pete in NH]

Okay, I think I understand what is going on now. There is a really good chance your alternator output is not connected to the battery. Check your Hotmail.com mail box, I'm sending you wiring diagrams for your car.

As you can see on the wiring diagrams, the alternator output goes through a bulk head connector pin to one side of the ammeter. The other side of the ammeter goes to another bulk head connector pin, through the fusible link, to the 5/16" battery stud on the starter relay and on to the battery. The alternator side of the ammeter also goes to a big slice joint that feeds the fuse block and most of the electrical stuff in the car. Without the fusible link in place most of the car's electrical stuff is not connected to the battery. This includes the voltage regulator for the alternator.

The fusible link is a special 16 gauge wire that melts like a fuse if too much current flows through it. The stock link for your car is blue in color and is 16 gauge. You can find this wire at an auto parts store. You will also need a Packard type 56 pin to go into the bulk head connector location shown on the diagram. The other end of the link gets a 5/16" ring terminal that goes to the battery post on the starter relay. These links are a pain in the neck and are prone to failure with age and corrosion. I like to replace them with a more modern 50 amp Maxi-Fuse in a holder.

[Dino]

Pete I think I need to get into gear and draw up my new electrical system, I think many could benefit from it.  I installed the 50 amp maxi fuse as you suggested and am running heavy gauge wiring throughout with a bypassed ammeter.  It's really not that hard to convert and I for one will feel a whole lot better driving around with the upgrades.

[Pete in NH]

Hi Dino,

I was thinking of you as I read this thread and that you had planned out a safe, well thought out upgrade to add a big alternator. You're right, it isn't all that difficult and it would be great if others could follow what you did.

There is another thread not too far down in this section with a big single wire alternator, electric fans and a mention of hot battery cables. I'm sure your system plan would be a big help to the original poster.

[Dino]

Hi Pete,

I have a bunch of exams and assignments to do in the next few weeks but when it quiets down a bit I'll make a nice diagram and post it.  I always wanted to take an existing diagram and make the changes so people can go between the two to see what's going on.  I also would like to incorporate the headlight relay mod as I feel it is a much needed upgrade by itself. 

I should probably test the car before I do this but that may take a real long time.  The electrical is just about done but there is more to do.

[sjcalv]

Solved it, ammeter shot! Seems to be a common issue with these cars.

[Pete in NH]

Great to hear you found the problem. With a new ammeter or that one bypassed hopefully everything is working again and the battery is being charged.