Electrical Problem on the Highway

While driving home from work and finding myself along a cute blonde and her convertible on the highway my Italian beauty (82' 308GTSi) decided to have a mental break down. I noticed the engine was running hot, not extremely hot but 225 hot. Hit the fan switch on and ran the heater and after awhile and no change to the temp I turn off the switch and within a minute I noticed a plastic burning smell and quickly followed with the car shutting down. The first thing I noticed was that the oil pressure needle just dropped and thought I blew something but after the car finished drifting to the shoulder I opened the trunk and there was no signs of any liquid on the ground or engine bay (there was never any smoke and plastic burning smell quickly went away). The car wouldn't start and had it towed to my house. Alternator? A electrical short?? All the lights, the radio, fans, work but not the windows. I haven't had time to check fuses/relays but hopefully this weekend (father's day weekend) I'll be spending some time with it...

Are there quick simple tests I can do to narrow my culprit in this headache? And no, the blonde didn't stop to see if I needed any help...

 

look for coolant in the front area (heater core flow switch failed?).

Check fuses and relays.

When car starts, check if alternator light goes out (if it does, then alternator should be fine).

The starter could have failed engaged and disintigrated; so, if you turn to start and nothing happens, look there for melted stuff.

BTW, shutting the car down reduces oil pressure.

Also, should have asked the Blonde for a ride. You opening line: "my car thought you were so beutiful that it really dropped dead..." .

 

My guess, fuel pump fuse and or some melted wiring. if you smell something burning in the cabin, most likely coming from the fuse block. old wires etc... poor design.

turn the key on and go back to the K jet system and unplug the blue connector to the main fuel distributor... if you hear buzzing then the pump is good, no buzz, means the pump is not working. then check the fuse for the pump. this seems to be a common issue.

hoping its just a new fuse that gets you going.

 

The fuel pump fuseblock connection is famously known for meltdown problems as the rivet holding the spade connection loosens creating resistance and thus excess heat and then melting that part of the block and wire. Not saying this is the issue but should be checked out since you smell burning wire in the cabin. If that is the ast you can temporarily bypass the fuseblock with a pigtail fuse. Just make suer the wire are intact, strip back and install new connectors if needed.

 

Thanks guys, I'll take a look this Saturday (maybe this evening). I'll be looking at the owner's manual to see which fuse is for the fuel pump but why doesn't the windows want to operate? Something just different or is it related??

 

Of course it goes without saying that the first thing to do after purchasing a 308/328 is to order a set of birdman fuseblocks!!

 

You have an '82 308. Have you done the Birdman fuse block upgrade? If not, get to Birdman's website, order the replacement fuse blocks, and start there. Be sure to disconnect the battery before you start taking the old fuse blocks apart and putting the new ones in. When you dig in, you may find that either the old fuse block has melted, or some of the connectors are scorched and melted. Be prepared to replace some of the connectors, and make sure that everything that connects is in good condition, clean connectors, etc. Make this upgrade regardless of whether it is the actual cause of your problem or not.

And be sure to track down all the wiring in the circuits that are not working, make sure all connectors are clean and tight. Also, be sure to check all grounds. In most old cars, 99% of electrical problems can be traced back to a bad ground. Also consider swapping out the old relays for new ones. You can still get the metal relays on line. They are Bosch relays and you can cross-reference them. I've gotten them from rockauto.com. Worth considering, if you are having electrical problems. Save the old ones as backups.

 

Ah, you snuck in before me, while I was typing. LOL

 

Oh, by the way, once you get it running again, you probably want to address the overheating issue. There are lots of threads on overheating in these cars, and the cures, but definitely check the major components -- radiator (clean, not leaking), hoses, water pump belt, water pump, thermostat, expansion tank cap, etc. If the system has not been flushed in a while, consider flushing it, replacing the thermostat, 50/50 mix of good quality coolant like Prestone plus a bottle of Water Wetter. And check your hoses. If they are old and soft, or showing signs of cracking, replace them ALL.

 

That was because your mail contained much more information than my fire-and-forget note

 

+1 and sometimes it's not visible from the front of the fuse box but in the back side.
If it's not melted wire, it's the circuit board of the fuse box.

 

308 only dudes...

 

Yes, the car is equipped with Birdman's fuseboxes... I see that there's a fuel pump relay, can I switch that relay with any other relay to see if it's a relay problem?

 

The fuel pump sircuit will be obvious from the melted plastic at the fuse holder rivets..I don't recall what other circuits are joined (on the back) on the line side of the fuses, but there are some that share common input wiring...

Birdman's re-engineered blocks (different fuse design altogether) are great, or Jim400i has some usable used ones in his Parts Stash.

 

UPDATE... it was the fuel pump fuse. I've had in the past my Boxster, my VW and other car breakdowns on the side of the road resulting in hundreds and hundreds of dollars but I now own an Italian classic and the whole incident including the towing (AAA member) was less than $10.00 to get the car started and back on the road again.

I'm not done yet... the windows still don't work, the fuse (wipers) next to the fuel pump fuse was also blown and now replaced. I will definitely keep extra fuses in the car...

The engine was running very hot that day and I'm going to address that issue (water pump?) soon, but can that be the reason for the blown fuel pump fuse? Or is it something else??

Thanks for your help guys!!

 

It sounds like a general electrical overload...

Do more than replace fuses; check all the charging system components.

If the fuel pump draws the most current, and is always running, it would have been the "canary in the gold mine" by dying first.