Cougar

I would check to see if a connector to the lights got partially disconnected when the battery was installed. Check around in that area and if there are some connectors there I would try pushing them together. To check relays with a meter you will need to leave them in the circuit or power them up with a power source. A basic relay is usually used to turn on a high current circuit from a low power switch. It is a electric switch that has a coil of wire in it to magnetically close or, sometimes open, contact connections. The most common problem with them is the contacts get dirty and cause a bad connection. Checking a relay with a meter it is about the same as a checking a normal on/off type switch except you have the coil circuit included to make the relay function. The switched contacts will either be open or closed depending on the relay condition. Lets say the relay is switching 12 volts on or off to a light that has a common ground point, as vehicles do. With the meter set to measure volts and the meter common lead is tied to ground, the meter will show 0 volts on the switched side of the relay when it is off. When the relay is on, the meter will show 12 volts on the switched side because the contacts are now closed and making connection to the power source, and the light turns on. Another thing that can happen to a relay is to have the coil open and that will disable the relay. You can measure the voltage across the coil to see if that is ok when the relay is supposed to be activated. To see if a coil is ok usually measuring the resistance of the coil with no power on, or the relay removed from the circuit, will verify it.

After looking at my wiring diagram for reference it seems the way I had thought the headlights worked was incorrect. I had previously thought that the center wire to the headlight connector was always ground to both the low and high beam filaments but after looking at my manual it appears the ground wire changes and the filaments are in series with each other when the high beams on. I though they were in parallel. This means your fuses and relays are ok since they power the low beams also. The problem would seem it is due to either the headlight switch, the wire to the headlights for the high beam ground is open or, both the high beam filaments are open. Could it be? Checking the filaments with a ohmmeter will tell the story. EDIT: For those that read this post please note that after further consultation with one of our other top board members (Skip) I have found out that my above thoughts on the wiring are incorrect due to a misprint in the factory service manual. The power wire to both filaments is in the center of the headlight connector and the ground connections to the other side of each filament is provided through the light switch. Fuses 7 and 8 provide power to the left and right lights respectively.

I agree that the problem is most likely due to worn solenoid contacts. You can purchase replacements for around $10 dollars I think.

Wires-R-Us. What do you need to know?

The relay contacts internally are most likely dirty and intermittent. A common problem. Replacing the relay on the board should fix you up. The other parts on the board are very reliable.

The item that is most likely to fail is the relay. The rest of the parts usually don't have trouble. A transistor may fail but you can usually use a generic one to replace it. I repaired the ECU in my '88 GL-10. A transistor had failed in the fuel pump driver circuit after I replaced the alternator.

Welcome to the board. Once you get 'the bugs' fixed on the car hopefully things will settle down. Things like this are not out of the ordinary to happen with the milage you have on this. If the brakes haven't been replaced then they be next to need repair.

I would suspect a problem with the ignitor coils. You may be able to locate the trouble by spraying water on suspected ignition areas with a spray bottle.

The dash voltmeter is at a different connection point than the alternator output so the two points can be different in voltage level though they should be the same. Typically there is about a one volt difference in voltage between the battery level and what the meter shows due to wire losses. You stated that the test light was brighter than normal at the point you connected it to. This would indicate more voltage than what is normal. The true test is with a meter probing across the battery posts and the alternator output, which should be very close to the same readings. If you have more than 15 volts out of the alternator then you have a regulator problem. If the dash lights are on, then there is either a problem with the alternator or the wiring to it.

Those dash lights are tied into the alternator exciter circuit and will light up when the alternator has trouble. It sounds like the internal regulator is bad in the alternator. I wouldn't drive it until the alternator is replaced, the excessive voltage output may damage other things.

I would check for a intake manifold air leak and the ignition area for any problems.

The buzzing sound is most likely coming from a solenoid or relay that is contantly turning on and off. Something isn't right with that circuit. You should be able to locate the unit by touching it and feel the vibrations from it.

As someone stated before, the problem area is where the damage is occuring. If the ground or lightswitch were a problem then they would be heating up. When excessive resistance occurs in a high current circuit like this then a voltage drop appears across that resistance. This is basically acting like a heater element, but you don't want that to happen at your fuse connection. The connection resistance should be close to what the feed wire resistance is. I would check the connections to the fuse contacts. Since it sounds like too much damage has now occured to the connection and you may have to replace the fuse connection with a replacement in-line type fuse. The fuse contacts may not be repairable and will have too much resistance no matter what you do to them. Here is an example of a fuse holder that will handle the current and has the proper size 12ga. wire for the current load. Inline ATO/ATC 12 Ga. Fuse Holder Inline ATO/ATC 12 Ga. Fuse Holder Inline fuse holder for ATO/ATC fuses. Rated to a maximum of 30 amps capacity. Features a 'Write-in' space to easily identify the circuit. Includes 12 ga. red wire and fuse cover. Does not include fuse.

I agree about checking the connections at the fuse. Having a poor connection there will cause this problem. The wiring on the backside may be the problem. If the fuse contacts can't be repaired you can install another fuse with a pigtail and bypass the old position.

Thanks for the update. Glad you found the problem.

Error codes are checked by viewing the LED in the end of the ECU. The codes are pulsed out by the flashing LED. Long pluses are tens digits and short pulses are single digits. The ECU is a box located under the dash near the steering column. If I remember correctly you don't have to remove the ECU to view the codes.

I used to dream of flying one of those but after seeing what happened to a couple of them you couldn't pay me enough to go up in one.

Since the bad distys don't generate a code or let the car start then I have to think that the timing pulses are getting to the ECU but are distorted somehow. Perhaps low voltage level. It would be interesting to see what a scope shows up on the waveform.

Do those distys have the ignitor mounted on them? If so, I would suspect that as the problem or the connection to it.

Did you do any work on the engine, like change the timing belts or change the disty? If so, then I would suspect a problem may be in that area. Not to say that you messed up mind you. It's just that many others have channged belts and found out that the proceedure they used to install the new belts was incorrect. If those things are ok then you might try marking the disty position and then try moving it as someone cranks the engine to see if that will help get it started. Also check the firing order. I think the rotor moves counterclockwise.

I am a little confused about the intake system. Are you using a SPFI intake? If so, then the injector may not be closing properly.

Using a voltmeter is pretty easy. Do you have a digital meter? If so, all you need to do is set it to read DC volts and put the red test probe wire in the volts, ohms, and current connection and the black test wire in the common connector. If the range setting on the meter is automatic then the meter will select the correct voltage range. If the ranging is manual, then select a range that will handle more than 12 volts. Then use the probes to measure across what ever you want to test. A digital meter doesn't care what the polarity is and if the voltage is negative with respect to the common lead then a minus sign will show on the display along with the voltage reading. If you have an analog meter, the type with a meter movement, then you will need to select the proper voltage range and keep track of the polarity. The black common lead needs to be on the grounded side (usually this is the minus side but not always) of the circuit. It is good practice to place the black lead of either meter to the grounded side of the circuit unless you are doing something different than a normal measurment. I think the fuel pump connection is under the rear seat on the passenger side. You may be able to wrap a small wire around the connect to monitor the power to the pump.

The CAS is INSIDE the disty, underneth the rotor. If it fails, the ECU has no way to determine the ignition timing. There will be no spark if the CAS doesn't work and a code will be generated. There is also a device called the ignitor (a transistor) in the ignition circuit that acts like the points used to. This can be a problem also but again there will be no spark if it is bad. I don't think a code will be generated if that goes bad or is intermittent since it is not checked by a input to the ECU.

With some ingenuity one could make something to hook your household vacuum to.

I will have to say replace the flasher unit. You could take the original unit with you to compare to other ones.