My first ever project car...and i seek advice (s130)

[the_lettuce]

Hi, I drive a 280zx 1983 turbo

 

I was wondering the electricity in my car is very weak, if i turn on the radio the power cuts off the lighter/phone charger, so its either i pick radio or charge my phone..

 

im very new to cars i know nothing at all, that is the reason i got the car so i could learn from it and get ideas/guidance from the pros

 

the car is running fine and is in great shape, its just the electricity in it is pretty low and the lights dont really help at all theyre brightness is too low as well.

 

i asked a mechanic and he said i should change its spark plugs but i did not understand do spark plugs really help with electricity in the car?

 

i did however check the wires in my car and theyre in a bad condition, the previous owner just taped the wires with water-resistant tape (or whatever you call it) where the core of the wire is visible so i thought i'd get a new set of wires.

 

i also saw a few using MSD wires/spark plugs etc.. are they good? (i know the brand is good i use it on my jetski but for cars.. especially an s130 are they good or is there something better?)

 

i know my questions might seem dumb and stupid but im really knew with this kind of stuff and was hoping someone could teach me a bit about it.

 

thank you

[skirkland1980]

You need a voltmeter to check this. Do you have one? I'd start by checking voltage at the battery with the engine running. It should be 13.6-14.2 volts.

[the_lettuce]

You need a voltmeter to check this. Do you have one? I'd start by checking voltage at the battery with the engine running. It should be 13.6-14.2 volts.

thank you for the quick reply but no unfortunately i dont, but i would check first thing tomorrow in my friends garage i remember he has one

 

but lets say my voltage is low, should i just get a new battery?

[ISPKI]

If your voltage is low when the vehicle is running then it is most likely the alternator as the alternator powers the electrical system when the engine is running. You can test just the battery voltage with a voltmeter when the car is off. It should read 12.7v BUT your battery could still be bad even if it reads 12.7v. An auto parts store can test it's cranking amps if you bring it to them. The battery in my Datsun was reading 12.7v but it was only holding about 250 amps which was barely enough to get the engine started. I would suggest getting a decent multimeter, they aren't very expensive and you will use it constantly when working on your car.