It just sorta blew up!
Printed From: West Coast Fieros
Category: Technical Topics Forum
Forum Name: Technical Questions and Discussions
Forum Description: Got a technical question about your fiero? ask it here.
URL: http://www.westcoastfieros.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=2941
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Topic: It just sorta blew up!
Posted By: Shakey Dave
Subject: It just sorta blew up!
Date Posted: 03 June 2012 at 2:42pm
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I was just beginning to get my car ready for the All
Pontiac Show and was disconnecting the negative terminal on the battery. The long adjustable wrench I was using slipped out of my hand, fell to the left and connected with the positive terminal with a shower of sparks (the negative end was still connected to the wrench). Now the car won't even turn over when I try to start it, even though all of the other electronics still seem to be working OK. Can anyone give me a clue as to what or where I should be looking for the thing that I must have damaged? Thanks Shakey Dave  ------------- "Shakey" Dave Hathaway www3.telus.net/myhistory |
Replies:
Posted By: DannyCanuck
Date Posted: 03 June 2012 at 4:06pm
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Have you tried an new battery?
------------- 88 duke, bog standard 
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Posted By: Shakey Dave
Date Posted: 03 June 2012 at 5:25pm
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Because the rest of the electronics (lights, blower, radio
etc. are still working, my limited knowledge of electricity tells me that the battery is still active. However my plan for the current upgrade includes a new battery, so we'll see if that works. I'll pick one up tomorrow. Shakey Dave ------------- "Shakey" Dave Hathaway www3.telus.net/myhistory |
Posted By: Dawg
Date Posted: 03 June 2012 at 9:50pm
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It is more likely that you damaged the connections to the battery. By
damaged I mean there is enough current carrying capacity for lights and so on, but not enough for the starter. The starter needs MUCH more current. I would disconnect the terminals and inspect the connectors. Are they clean and functioning normally? Any melting present or burn marks? The battery is probably as fine as it was before you touched it. Unless we are talking about a long short circuit, more than 3 or 4 seconds. Dawg ------------- You dream it up....I'll make it |
Posted By: Capt Fiero
Date Posted: 03 June 2012 at 10:46pm
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Although it should not happen, you could have blown a fusible link in the ignition. The starter solenoid wire goes from the ignition, out to the main harness plug, then through the power distribution and then down to the starter. If the stuff that Damian suggested does not fix the issue, grab a multimeter and check the fusible links. There are 2 I believe right near the battery. ------------- Capt Fiero 88 Fiero GT 5spd V6 Eight Fifty Seven GT V8 5spd. |
Posted By: Dawg
Date Posted: 04 June 2012 at 8:56pm
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Read that again Dave....:). He shorted directly across the battery
terminals. All the current travelled through the wrench and posts. So nothing else would have happened. Dawg ------------- You dream it up....I'll make it |
Posted By: Shakey Dave
Date Posted: 05 June 2012 at 10:22pm
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Hello Dawg, Capt, and Danny etc.
Thanks for the tips on how to fix my sick Fiero. I'll be buying a new battery in the next few days, lets hope it works and that nothing else is wrong. Because of the electrical/battery problems, plus some minor body damage to the front end, I won't be bringing my car to the All Pontiac Show this year, giving the younger drivers a better chance at placing in the notchback class. However, I will try to be there in person a little later in the day to cheer them on. See you all on Sunday. Shakey Dave ------------- "Shakey" Dave Hathaway www3.telus.net/myhistory |
Posted By: ARTIC-1
Date Posted: 07 June 2012 at 5:34pm
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You could check your fuse box,not likely one blew but you never no. hope you get it fixed soon Dave. ------------- SNOW MAN 87-GT/AUTO-2.8_ WHITE 88-TTop/ Duke-2.5. RED |
Posted By: Shakey Dave
Date Posted: 08 June 2012 at 1:02pm
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Thank you everyone. My Fiero is now up and running. All
it took was a 100% new Bosch alternator and a new red top Optima battery (red to match my car!). My son and I could have saved about $100 to $200 by using cheaper parts, but we decided to use quality parts so that we can rely on them in the future (if it ever happens again). BTW: My son, who is a qualified mechanic with big hands, absolutely HATES working on the Fiero. I've never heard him swear so much as when he was working on the heat shield! Cheers Shakey Dave ------------- "Shakey" Dave Hathaway www3.telus.net/myhistory |