1978 Lincoln electrical question
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1978 Lincoln electrical question
My uncle has had a 1978 Lincoln for two or three years now. It was in good shape, only had 23,000 original miles on it when he got it. Of course anything rubber had to be replaced as it sat for six years (or more) in a barn out of the weather. It even had a shoe box of 8-track tapes in the trunk and a Sinatra tape in the player!
This winter the problem developed that the battery would not hold a charge. The battery was a new NAPA battery, but seemed undersized for that 460. So we went and got a new, larger CCA battery and upon installation, I noticed a bright blue spark jumping between the battery cable and post. I also noticed a clicking sound (like a relay opening or closing) in the driver's side area of the firewall. Everything than can be turned off is off.
This was covered over in the electrical forum, generally, but nothing on the "relay click" you hear when connecting/disconnecting the battery. There weren't that many relays in those older cars and none that can be seen in the area of the fuse block/parking brake pedal/driver's side firewall (other than the plug-in relays or flashers which aren't doing the clicking).
Any suggestions?
I'm more than a little baffled.
This winter the problem developed that the battery would not hold a charge. The battery was a new NAPA battery, but seemed undersized for that 460. So we went and got a new, larger CCA battery and upon installation, I noticed a bright blue spark jumping between the battery cable and post. I also noticed a clicking sound (like a relay opening or closing) in the driver's side area of the firewall. Everything than can be turned off is off.
This was covered over in the electrical forum, generally, but nothing on the "relay click" you hear when connecting/disconnecting the battery. There weren't that many relays in those older cars and none that can be seen in the area of the fuse block/parking brake pedal/driver's side firewall (other than the plug-in relays or flashers which aren't doing the clicking).
Any suggestions?
I'm more than a little baffled.
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My '85 had a relay that held the juice on for a few seconds after shutdown to purge fuel from the carb. Relay stuck, dead battery.
You might be able to trace it by looking for stuff that's hot when it shouldn't be, or get a wiring diagram.
Good luck.
You might be able to trace it by looking for stuff that's hot when it shouldn't be, or get a wiring diagram.
Good luck.
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