2002 GT Total Electrical Loss

[Reynard]

Hi all.

Got a bit of a laundry list of issues going on - which sounds like it may not be all that uncommon for the 97-03 GP's - so please bare with.

OK, so... My 2002 GT 3.8 with 157,000mi has recently and randomly been losing total electrical power after starting the engine. Engine fires like a champ then after 2-3 seconds will completely die- no engine, no lights, no radio, no locks, nada. The key will be stuck in the ignition and can remove it after playing with it. After a time that I haven't been able to determine, electrical power will be restored after I reinsert the key. Sometimes she will stay running after restarting: sometimes not. But she never hesitates to start.

After the first occurrence she ran fine for 3 days but did notice the driver information center would flicker. It never went completely dark, but go from bright to dim- which has previously never happened.

The car has been parked outside and it has been raining quite a bit- I did notice a few times there has been water on the passenger side floor. I had this problem years ago and it was supposed to have been fixed at the shop.

Also of note: I've had the known GP ignition lock issue where the key will not release for the past 3 years. Just been using a pen to manually release the lock from the bottom of the steering collumn.

Don't think it's a battery problem as it is less than 2 months old.

Thinking these issure might somehow all be related.

I am an extreme novice when it comes to all things electrical, but was hoping someone can give me an idea of where the issure may or may not be. Would just be nice to be a little informed when/if i gotta take it into the shop.

Thanks for reading!

[aleekat]

I would be checking all battery cables, connections, clean them and all grounds you can find. Just because the battery is "2months" old, doesn't mean it can't go bad.

[DrRadar]

Thinking these issure might somehow all be related.

Not necessarily.

I am an extreme novice when it comes to all things electrical, but was hoping someone can give me an idea of where the issure may or may not be. Would just be nice to be a little informed when/if i gotta take it into the shop.

Don't sell yourself short. Knowing a few basics may enable you to solve many electrical/electronic issues. For example, for electrical stuff to work, current needs a path to flow from source to sink; the source is the positive battery post, the sink is the negative battery post. (For those that want to get picky with the semantics, conventional current flows from positive to negative, but electrons - the things that actually move - flow from negative to positive.) If something interrupts that path - like a broken wire, bad connection, failed part, etc. - the stuff won't work. So the concept of continuity - having that path for current to flow - is important and can often be checked with an ohmmeter. (Technically, we buy multimeters that can measure resistance/continuity, voltage, and sometimes current. The quantity to be measured is selectable, for example, by a dial.) Understanding Ohm's law (V = I * R) is also important. You can learn about that and other basics from library books or websites. Might be a worthwhile investment of your time in the long run to learn these basics.

The car has been parked outside and it has been raining quite a bit- I did notice a few times there has been water on the passenger side floor. I had this problem years ago and it was supposed to have been fixed at the shop.

Under the passenger side dash, there's a box that contains the evaporator core and heater core. It has a drain through the firewall through which condensation can drain. Sometimes stuff can block or restrict that drain and water can accumulate and leak onto the passenger floor. Get under the hood on the passenger side and find that drain; it's fairly low on the firewall, kinda behind the power steering pump. It usually has a rubber elbow on it to direct the fluids down. Remove that elbow and use something to ensure the drain is clear. It's been a long time since I had to do this and don't remember what I used; maybe something flexible but not flimsy.

Water accumulation could possibly cause electrical problems with the blower and/or other electronics located down there, but I doubt it is responsible for your complete loss of power.

Also of note: I've had the known GP ignition lock issue where the key will not release for the past 3 years. Just been using a pen to manually release the lock from the bottom of the steering collumn.

I've done the same thing for years because that minor inconvenience hasn't been painful enough for me to fix it. Apparently, there are electronics in the steering column to ensure the shift is in park before releasing the key. Those electronics can fail or a wire can break (remember the continuity thing?) preventing the release of the key. That car is in dry dock currently, so mine may finally get fixed.

Again, I don't think related to your overall problem.

Hi all.
OK, so... My 2002 GT 3.8 with 157,000mi has recently and randomly been losing total electrical power after starting the engine. Engine fires like a champ then after 2-3 seconds will completely die- no engine, no lights, no radio, no locks, nada. The key will be stuck in the ignition and can remove it after playing with it. After a time that I haven't been able to determine, electrical power will be restored after I reinsert the key. Sometimes she will stay running after restarting: sometimes not. But she never hesitates to start.

After the first occurrence she ran fine for 3 days but did notice the driver information center would flicker. It never went completely dark, but go from bright to dim- which has previously never happened.

Don't think it's a battery problem as it is less than 2 months old.

Now we get to your primary problem. I also doubt it's a battery problem because of its intermittent nature. If everything thing is losing power simultaneously, then the prime suspect is a loss of continuity near the current source (positive post) or sink (negative post) because those areas are shared by all electrical circuits. Once the power gets to the distribution/fuse panel, things separate and problems would likely affect only some functions.

As aleekat suggested, check your grounds especially around the negative post. First thing I would do is disconnect the negative post then positive post and use a wire brush post cleaner to "polish" the surfaces. Oxidation and/or corrosion can build up, even between the mating surfaces, and cause loss of voltage/current/power. Also check the connections where the negative post is grounded to the body.

If you don't find a problem there, then consider an alternator problem because the alternator output connects directly to the positive battery post.

Good luck and post your results.

[Reynard]

Thanks for the replies.

Just wanted to give an update: I checked every ground I could find and the battery terminals. They were all spotless. However, when I took a wrench to the negitive cable terminal I was able to give it just under two full turns.

Thinking as you both suggested it was a loose cable (or keeping fingers crossed for that). It's been just over a week and have not had a single issue.

Thank you both again for your help on this one!

[aleekat]

Thanks for the update.