my battery wont ground!!?!

[Anonymous]

Hey well i got my 200 in and it have everything connected so i turn the kit and all it does is " click-click" so i realized my ground was at the wrong spot and moved it to the cyl head bolt it is suppoesed to be on and now when i turn the key all the lights dimm and thats it :roll: Well if anybody has any info or has had this problem please let me know.


- Jon

 

[Asa]

the lights just dim?

is the ground good? you changed it to where it's supposed to be, but is there enough bare metal to ensure a good contact?

and if it's just dimming, is there enough power in it to actually turn it?

can you toss in a known good battery and try again?

 

[pedal2themetal45]

HI
Is the battery charged up??
They well go dead sitting on the cement. For some reason a cement floor draws the juice out of at battery..
Just a thought..
Tim

 

[ludwig]

my ground was at the wrong spot and moved it to the cyl head bolt it is suppoesed to be on

Is this correct? I have a ground strap to the block toward the rear on the passenger side and the battery grounded to the block on the front, near the alternator.
Apart from the low battery (possibly bad cell drawing down the juice real fast), do you have good grounding continuity all the way along? - like scraping the contact points where they might touch paint or some other low-tech insulator like corrosion/oxydation? The grounding is easy enough to check with a multi-meter, but I would look at the battery first, specifically age and condition.
You also may have a short to ground that is drawing the juice down while the motor is not running. Charge up the battery to full capacity, let it stand for a day or so and check the current. If there is no drop, install it in the car all charged up and see if it is drawn down the next day.
If it poops out, charge it up and let it stand without the negative lead connected. If it doesn't lose charge, there is a short to ground somewhere when it is connected.
Long ago I had a bad generator/voltage regulator on the 1963 Galaxie that would drain the battery overnight. I would simply disconnected the battery lead when I parked the car until I got the gen/v.r. replaced.

 

[addo]

It's because concrete has a large thermal mass, and is able to go on working as a "heat exchanger", sucking the warmth out of the battery. Ever laid on your garage floor in summer - it's never really hot, is it?

The cooler the battery gets, the slower the rate of chemical reaction that produces its charge. So, it seems weak after setting on a concrete floor for a while! You can get more temporary "kick" out of a duff battery by pouring hot water on it, but not a frozen one!

I put mine on wood battens, and wrap thoroughly in a plastic bag in case it develops a small leak or spits through the relief holes in the screw caps.

Cheers, Adam.

 

[wallaka]

As long as the engine is cleanly grounded to the frame, it doesn't really matter where. Mine has a ground strap near the back of the block and the negative battery cable goes to the front of the head where the A/C brace is. Make sure all of the cables to and from the battery are tight including the starter cable and everything on the solenoid switch. Fords are notorious for having to have a really clean connection.

 

[Anonymous]

Dead or weak battery--bad starter--bad selenoid--corroded cable ends/battery posts--Dead battery is most likely. If the ground was faulty the lights would likely not light at all or go out and not come back on when hitting the key.
Recently the "myth busters" did the battery on concrete test thing and found absolutely no difference between storing battery on concrete or wood. I was brought up with the rule NEVER leave a bat. on concrete. But batteies have come a long way since then.

 

[Anonymous]

Well i only took the battery out of the car for one day ( to paint the engine bay ) The started is good, because i got it to turnover a few times yesterday then lastnight it just dimms?? i moved the ground cuz i had it on the battery strap and my dad said that wasn't a good idea cuz sometimes it would turnover and other times it wouldn't!??! Well i fully charged the battery 2 days ago but i'll got to advance auto when my dad gets home and get the battery checked. Thanks for the help guys.



- Jon

 

[JackFish]

On the Fairmont, the ground goes to from the post to the chassis, and then to a ground bolt on the block. Essentially, it has an extra ground clamp in the middle of the cable. Maybe Ford thought it was worth doing for some good reason?
It still has the original beat up 28 year old cable, and it still works.
And it also has the block grounded at the back to the firewall as well.

 

[Anonymous]

The started is good, because i got it to turnover a few times yesterday then lastnight it just dimms??

A starter that is going bad may act just like that. The one in my wagon wouldn't work when it got hot. Figured it was header heat from the new 200. That starter NEVER gave me a lick of problem when it was on the 144. Then all of a sudden it starts acting up didn't do anything to it but switch engines (guess it didn't like the extra inches)- thought the battery was weak. then 1 day it just would do anything except almost turn over. Then it would crank . finally i got it up and running enough to get it home- put in a new starter and life is good again.

 

[Anonymous]

Well i got my battery checked and they said it is good!! So i am gonna go and check the starter connection. I know the starter is good ( heard this motor run with the starter 2 weeks ago, it started on the first turn ) Well i will go try that and the battery is charging again. Oh ya i moved the ground to the battery holder again. Now the solenoid clicks so i'm gonna check the starter connectors. Thanks for all the help guys and i will let you know if i get the stupid thing to turnover

 

[Anonymous]

Hey well i just think i found my problem. There is a ground cable at the firewall, that is disconnected i don't remember where it goes if you have any idea where it goes please let me know.

 

[Anonymous]

Hey well i just think i found my problem. There is a ground cable at the firewall, that is disconnected i don't remember where it goes if you have any idea where it goes please let me know.

On my falcon the battery is grounded to the block and then the body has a ground from the firewall to the block.

I know the starter is good ( heard this motor run with the starter 2 weeks ago, it started on the first turn )

that means it was good 2 weeks ago. If the bendix has stuck in the flywheel it'll act like this also--I'd pull the starter and see if it will spin with jumper cables on the floor.

 

[pedal2themetal45]

HAY
IF the solnoid clicks it not getting enoufgh power. Does it just click once or does it go like BRRRRR clicking back and forth.. If it goes like BRRRR then its not getting good power. if it goes just click once with each key turn then it may be the starter or still not getting ground or power..
tim

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for all the idea's guys i will check out the other gorund and if i can't get it to go i will pull the starter Thanks for all the help this site is amazing 8)

 

[PutPut6]

When I first got my mustang, I had a nightmare of electrical problems. I went around and sanded every electrical connection in the engine compartment with a little piece of sand paper and it really helped alot. It's amazing how much a dirty connection can mess things up.

 

[ludwig]

What he said.

 

[Anonymous]

Hey everyone well i got it all sorted out... and some good news, IT RUNS WooHooo!!!! Jus thought i would let you all know.


- Jon

 

[Anonymous]

It was good while it lasted Now it's doing the samething again :x :roll: Does anybody have any other idea's?? the battery is fully charged btw.

 

[JackFish]

Do you have a voltmeter?
Might be the solenoid, or the starter.
You can do voltage drop tests between the battery and these components.
Uh, I, however have no experience beyond the theoretical with this and would defer to others here at this point.