Help No electrical power

straightjob

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Good morning took my 68 out of a long slumber to sell, i put a fresh Die Hard in it a of course no power . The only thing working is the horn barely; and get this, the power seat! No lights dash lights and car doesn't make a noise ammeter stuck in positive direction, Car is dead as a door nail ugh any help or memory refresher would be much appreciated thanks
 
Good morning took my 68 out of a long slumber to sell, i put a fresh Die Hard in it a of course no power . The only thing working is the horn barely; and get this, the power seat! No lights dash lights and car doesn't make a noise ammeter stuck in positive direction, Car is dead as a door nail ugh any help or memory refresher would be much appreciated thanks

What is the voltage at battery?
Are the battery terminals clean and without corrosion?
Have you checked the bulkhead connections to make sure that there isn’t any corrosion?
 
Being you just changed the battery, start there & work your way through the system. Sometimes battery terminals look ok but they’re not, especially if they have the repair terminals on the ends of the cable. Good luck.
 
Do the underhood ammeter bypass, check all grounds,clean the bulkhead connectors.
Should be golden to twist her tail.
Hope this helps.
 
Half of your power into the car comes through the fuseable link right before the bulkhead connector. Check to make sure you have continuity through it. Also check the corrosion of your bulkhead connections.
 
I learned with my recent alternator woes one can get continuity through a nearly destroyed fusible if only one strand is hanging on, but it isn’t connected enough to carry a load. Get up close and personal with that fusible link and look for visible signs it may have blown.
 
Do the underhood ammeter bypass, check all grounds,clean the bulkhead connectors.
Should be golden to twist her tail.
Hope this helps.
Thanks for shaking the cobwebs off I've been working on my hipo 55 Fairlane (SACRILEDGE!) some im rusty ran a quick clip from the alternator to the battery and everything powered up like it should car turned even turned over ! im blessed!
Made a more robust bypass thanks for the guidance

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'55 Fairlanes are cool cars. Back when I was a kid, my older brother's friend had a pink and white Crown Victoria. I think it had a 272 in it with an automatic. I'm glad you got your problem with your Mopar fixed.
 
'55 Fairlanes are cool cars. Back when I was a kid, my older brother's friend had a pink and white Crown Victoria. I think it had a 272 in it with an automatic. I'm glad you got your problem with your Mopar fixed.
this one has a top loader 4 speed i think I'm going to let it go soon, its a blast to drive and just put front power disc brakes on it because it was too much fun! IM throwing a fresh starter in the Bronze bomber and new fuel source for now; my only worries is the calipers are going to give me fits, and it the brake pedal is frozen at the top, but the wheels are free. I'm doing exactly what i wasn't going to do i wanted to sell as a time capsule from its original owner . My health limits me but what the heck it sucked my right back in !
 
Check bulkhead connector, I've run into problems there after sitting awhile. I just jiggled the wires in the middle and had power. That or fusible link would be my guess.
 
Fusible link looks good I’m going to take the plug out and clean it I really think the gauge is bad I’m hooking up the by pass today to get it to turn over , making a make shift tank to see if she will fire off.

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I'd sure love to have that bronze 68. I saw your post on both your 68 convertibles. Already have two myself. 65 300L and 67 Plymouth Sport Fury convertible, both loaded with factory options. Tempted to sell one to buy that beautiful bronze 68.
 
Fusible link looks good I’m going to take the plug out and clean it I really think the gauge is bad I’m hooking up the by pass today to get it to turn over , making a make shift tank to see if she will fire off.
From what you've posted, initial symptoms and the steps you've taken prior to today, I'm nearly certain the ammeter caused your problem. Why? You had some power to 2 circuits not connected to the central ones wired off that main trunk loop of battery <-->alternator through the ammeter, Everything else went DEAD. This suggests the ammeter or one of the main leads to it shorted out. The fact that it was "pegged" further suggests this. Check the red lead near the ammeter. Try disconnecting it by connecting the lugs together AFTER making SURE NEITHER LEAD SHORTS TO GROUND! Use an ohmmeter to do that.

If one of those leads is shorted, run it down, remove the whole damned thing and replace it with one size bigger wire. I have a very nice bypass method for these slab side C-bodies.
 
I'd sure love to have that bronze 68. I saw your post on both your 68 convertibles. Already have two myself. 65 300L and 67 Plymouth Sport Fury convertible, both loaded with factory options. Tempted to sell one to buy that beautiful bronze 68.
It needs paint but it’s all there ,
I’m
From what you've posted, initial symptoms and the steps you've taken prior to today, I'm nearly certain the ammeter caused your problem. Why? You had some power to 2 circuits not connected to the central ones wired off that main trunk loop of battery <-->alternator through the ammeter, Everything else went DEAD. This suggests the ammeter or one of the main leads to it shorted out. The fact that it was "pegged" further suggests this. Check the red lead near the ammeter. Try disconnecting it by connecting the lugs together AFTER making SURE NEITHER LEAD SHORTS TO GROUND! Use an ohmmeter to do that.

If one of those leads is shorted, run it down, remove the whole damned thing and replace it with one size bigger wire. I have a very nice bypass method for these slab side C-bodies.
thanks I want to do a correct by pass I have a lead from the alt post to the positive battery term .
 
I'd sure love to have that bronze 68. I saw your post on both your 68 convertibles. Already have two myself. 65 300L and 67 Plymouth Sport Fury convertible, both loaded with factory options. Tempted to sell one to buy that beautiful bronze 68.
It needs paint I’m bringing it back to life it’s a nice solid car
 
It needs paint but it’s all there ,
I’m

thanks I want to do a correct by pass I have a lead from the alt post to the positive battery term .

You got a good start on that bypass then. Run a nice hefty wire from your starter relay, through a grommet in the firewall, direct to the lugged together leads formerly across that ammeter. Put your fusible link between the starter relay and the battery. I can show you how I have mine if you like. It's easy and foolproof, unless a Better Fool comes along....
 
You got a good start on that bypass then. Run a nice hefty wire from your starter relay, through a grommet in the firewall, direct to the lugged together leads formerly across that ammeter. Put your fusible link between the starter relay and the battery. I can show you how I have mine if you like. It's easy and foolproof, unless a Better Fool comes along....
that would be awesome thanks and sis you say you have a 65 L??? I have one too!
 
that would be awesome thanks and sis you say you have a 65 L??? I have one too!
I WISH I had a '65 Anything in Mopar C body! I have a running '68, and a wrecked '66. Our '68, Gertrude is quite a find! Literally rescued from a barn around Douglas, AZ, Gertrude now runs a '65 383, bored .040" over w 915 heads, a 65 4V intake w an Edelbrock 1405, a 742 rear end at 3.23:1 and a ragtop ,almost all original save the motor and tranny, which came from our '66. I plan to put a dual exhaust on Trudy this December, God-willing, though the big single one she now has does very nicely save for one rupture in the HUGE Walker muffler on it. Gertrude is an Export, but ENOUGH about her.

Here are a few pix of the Morris Bypass, under the hood. First, observe how I use marine terminals and ring terminals on the fusible links to the + battery top post. One protects the charging lead from the alternator, the second protects all the circuits fed from the starter relay to the power node under the dash. Note how I used a big FAT wire for the circuit into the dash, bypassing that bulkhead connector. Its the one in the second pic visible near the bottom going into the grommet down low on the firewall. The fusible link measures 6" of insulation, w 1/2" bare conductor per end.
Gertrude+battery-term.jpg
Truds-dash-ckt-lead.jpg


Now see how the charging wire goes into the flex toward the front of the car. I run it in front of the radiator yoke, down low, then in and up to the battery. The third fusible link feeds my auxiliary fuse
Truds-alt-charging-lead.jpg

box, for the radiator fan, headlight relays. stereo amp and 2nd cigar lighter socket. All three of my links are made of #12 AWG fusible link wire, cut to 7" total length, leaving 6" insulated. This protects #8 AWG circuits running at up to 100 A at 12VDC (nominal) at wire lengths no greater than 7 feet ( Automotive Wire Size Calculator – Wire Gauge Chart | MGI SpeedWare ) with a 5% voltage drop. Given that my alternator is rated for 95A when the Moon is in Aquarius and so forth, 'tis good to have a suitable conductor for the charging. For the sake of minimizing V.D.* to all the circuits fed from the starter relay, I also upsized to #8 over #10 which was Ma Par's chosen size. Note that they used #14 AWG for their stock fusible link on the later Slab sided cars too, as can be seen in the following pic:

Truds-orig-fusible-link.jpg


Note how I taped the connector up, as this thing likely is still hot, having not removed anything under the dash, but rather just re-routing a few wires. I lugged the two wires feeding the Dashboard Destruct Mechanism or ammeter as it was called, together, and fed both of those with that nice fat piece of #8 fed through the grommet in the firewall. I also taped up the old alternator charging wire, which was a skimpy bit of #12 AWG in the engine compartment and from the Fiery Destructo Device. I may leave these wires in place in case Some Future Owner might want to restore them to use. I hope to be dead by such a time, and haunting the car.

Twist your joints well, and get it wired!
 
I WISH I had a '65 Anything in Mopar C body! I have a running '68, and a wrecked '66. Our '68, Gertrude is quite a find! Literally rescued from a barn around Douglas, AZ, Gertrude now runs a '65 383, bored .040" over w 915 heads, a 65 4V intake w an Edelbrock 1405, a 742 rear end at 3.23:1 and a ragtop ,almost all original save the motor and tranny, which came from our '66. I plan to put a dual exhaust on Trudy this December, God-willing, though the big single one she now has does very nicely save for one rupture in the HUGE Walker muffler on it. Gertrude is an Export, but ENOUGH about her.

Here are a few pix of the Morris Bypass, under the hood. First, observe how I use marine terminals and ring terminals on the fusible links to the + battery top post. One protects the charging lead from the alternator, the second protects all the circuits fed from the starter relay to the power node under the dash. Note how I used a big FAT wire for the circuit into the dash, bypassing that bulkhead connector. Its the one in the second pic visible near the bottom going into the grommet down low on the firewall. The fusible link measures 6" of insulation, w 1/2" bare conductor per end.
View attachment 625056View attachment 625057

Now see how the charging wire goes into the flex toward the front of the car. I run it in front of the radiator yoke, down low, then in and up to the battery. The third fusible link feeds my auxiliary fuse
View attachment 625058
box, for the radiator fan, headlight relays. stereo amp and 2nd cigar lighter socket. All three of my links are made of #12 AWG fusible link wire, cut to 7" total length, leaving 6" insulated. This protects #8 AWG circuits running at up to 100 A at 12VDC (nominal) at wire lengths no greater than 7 feet ( Automotive Wire Size Calculator – Wire Gauge Chart | MGI SpeedWare ) with a 5% voltage drop. Given that my alternator is rated for 95A when the Moon is in Aquarius and so forth, 'tis good to have a suitable conductor for the charging. For the sake of minimizing V.D.* to all the circuits fed from the starter relay, I also upsized to #8 over #10 which was Ma Par's chosen size. Note that they used #14 AWG for their stock fusible link on the later Slab sided cars too, as can be seen in the following pic:

View attachment 625062

Note how I taped the connector up, as this thing likely is still hot, having not removed anything under the dash, but rather just re-routing a few wires. I lugged the two wires feeding the Dashboard Destruct Mechanism or ammeter as it was called, together, and fed both of those with that nice fat piece of #8 fed through the grommet in the firewall. I also taped up the old alternator charging wire, which was a skimpy bit of #12 AWG in the engine compartment and from the Fiery Destructo Device. I may leave these wires in place in case Some Future Owner might want to restore them to use. I hope to be dead by such a time, and haunting the car.

Twist your joints well, and get it wired!
Thanks so much ill get to it this week im going to get it done and get back to you asap , thanks so much!
 
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