crazy electric system, please help

[260ZRED]

i am getting very tired of replacing the fuses for my rear lights, they blow out about once every two-three weeks. the gauge lights sometimes work, but mostly dont. sometimes they start flcikering, very dim and get brighter and brighter, but the next day - nothing! what in the world is causing all this??? also, my little lamp light used to work and now - well its messed up along with the rest of these SOBs... can anyone tell me how to go about trying to fix this? also, my tach jumps around like crazy sometimes... any ideas on how to trace the cause of this annoying problem???? please help!

[Kevin Shasteen]

Chances are you have multiple problems, such as a defective alternator-voltage regulator along with wiring gremlins.

 

Go to AutoZone and have them run a check on your alternator.

 

That will atleast give you some idea if the alternator is or is not a part of the problem.

 

As far as the wiring gremlins-welcome to the world of old Z's; you will have to trace the problem yourself as there is no easy fix for wiring problems.

 

Kevin,

(Yea,Still an Inliner)

[Pop N Wood]

Kevin's right. Probably have an old wire (or several) that have cracked or chaffed insulation that ocasionally short out to a body panel somewhere. Could also be dirty, corroded connectors.

 

I would start with a good visual inspection of everything. Follow along all wires looking for defective insulation. Pay particular attention to places where the wire goes through any body panels and replace the rubber grommets if needed. Pull every wireing connector (one at a time) and clean up any corrrosion. Then check for a good tight fit when reconnecting. Clean out any gook or corrosion in the tail light sockets.

 

If all of that checks out, then you need to get a wiring diagram and start chasing down individual problems.

 

Good luck.