QuestionI have a 1973 tr6 and I put a lot into this car. One year ago I had the entire engine completely rebuit. A new battery and alternator are on the car.I went to my garage the other day, reconected the ground wire to the battery and I didn't have a drop of power. I was told to didconnect the ground if I don't drive the car for a few months. I had to jump the car which worked right away but after running the car for quite awhile I turned it off and tried to start it again. No power whatsoever. Please advise what to do next. Thank you.
Answer1. Measure the battery voltage without the engine running, ignition off (Should be between 11 & 13)
2. Measure the battery voltage with the engine running. (should be 13+)
You should not have to disconnect the battery unless you have a wiring problem/short in the system. If you replaced the wiring harness sometime in its history, you should be OK
A sudden failure like this indicates one a couple "significant" failures
1) battery shorted out, produces no voltage
2) wiring to ignition switch has burned through,
Because it continues to run, but won't crank, that tends to indicate the alternator is OK, and the problem lies in the battery itself, or the battery wire to the ignition/power switches. If the battery voltage is OK, then start tracing lines between the battery and the ignition switch.
Hope that helps.
