My '88 must have been a little temperamental this morning...

Since I don't get an opportunity to bring the ride to the office very often for reasons I won't get into I don't get to drive it much. I've recently done a few things to it and wanted to get a chance to run it before taking it up to Rennstock tomorrow. On the way down I75 this morning I hit the bumps going over the first overpass and the car died then fired back up under its own power as I mashed the clutch thinking the dreaded, "Oh **** timing belt" is gone (no audible indications of anything like that btw). But it wasn't. As I pulled over and hit the rumple strips on the side of road it died again. I sat there, fired the car, idled for a moment, got clearance for takeoff and continued on with a sinking feeling in my gut. A little way down the road, another bump, same issue. At this point in time, I have bitten a hole in my jeans with my ******* and am pretty pissed off. I pull over, open the hood and went through the usual bs:

1. Distributor on okay? Check.
2. Battery cables on the battery okay? Check.
3. Belts, yadayada? Check.
4. Pulled the sneak-a-peak stopper to look at timing belt? Check.

Hmmm...

Recently worked on stereo install and inspected wiring harnesses at main fuse panel.

God damn DME relay is more loose than a house full of hookers on nickel night.

Secured, fired, idled, asked tower for taxi and clearance on runway 75S and nailed it.

Hopefully nothing more than that. Just thought I'd share my experience as part of my anxiety coping.

Need beer.

75ohm.

 

It least it did it today, instead of 5:30 tomorrow morning.

Was the relay just loose or are the slots worn?

 

The plot thickens!

Cruised all the way home on northbound I75 with stop and go traffic all the way. Get off on my exit and once I hit a small bump as the pavement changed it happened again. I turned the ignition to off, cranked and no fire. Tried twice. Opened the hood, checked the relays again and they seemed pretty solid. Got back in the car, fired up, and drove the remaining couple of miles home.

What gives here!?

 

Loose connection somewhere. Start it up and start wiggling wires.

 

My car did that when a loose connection in the DME was starting to go out.

 

Original DME? Replace that baby and pop an extra in the glovebox.

 

Maybe DME relay, maybe ignition switch. Do you have a big wad of keys? That's hard on the switch.

-Joel.

 

Well... this is what I think I know:

Fire up the car in the garage (door open of course) and starting jiggling the DME fuse panel and relays... I clinched my teeth and went for broke on the DME relay... car still ran. Good deal. So, I work my way down the line and get the big ol' silver cooling fan relay and give it a jingle, pow... car dies...

Spock says, "Logical".

75ohm says, "WTF is this all about?"

Disconnect the negative on the battery, lift the DME fuse panel up and inspect wiring for cooling relay... inspection finds two things:

1. Loose connection from the relay to the board. Quick remedy, slight spread of prongs. Snug as a bug.

2. Slight nick in the wire coating for 12v at the relay. My oh my. Could this be a 12v supply grounding intermittently somehow through a slight coating nick? Perhaps. Quick fix, electrical tape wrap... gotta make it to Rennstock somehow.

Proof will be the 100+ mile ride tomorrow morning.

If anyone see a red 944 on the side of I75N with two guys shaking their heads, stop and give us a lift?

75ohm.

 

Negative, Joel, two keys, that's it.