Electrical problem

[THISLDO]

The last time I fired up my 91 ZR-1 I ahd to charge the battery first. I did not give it much thought as I believed I had left the dome light on. Tried to fire the car this morning and the same problem but with a another wrinkle. When I attached the charger I noticed a clicking noise near the glove compartment. The clicking noise would stop when I energized the ignition. I also get a buzzing noise from the area near the drivers side of the radiator with the fans momentarily running. I have disconected the battery in hopes that the computer resetting and solving the problem. No luck though. Any ideas? Joe Shown 1991 ZR-1 # 1009 1990 Jeal 415 ZR-1

[Boofers]

Get some schematics and a mutlimeter...

[bhamvett]

I say the clicking noise is the VATS!

[THISLDO]

The followiing was sent to me by Marc Haibeck. Marc is right and a new battery resolved the problem. Thanks for the response.

Joe Shown


Hi Joe,

I believe that you are charging a totally discharged battery. As the
system voltage slowly goes back up there are some devices in the car
that try to startup or initialize. Because the system voltage is too low
for them to fully operate, they will partially operate during the slow
voltage rise. You are hearing a relay that is trying to close but there
is not enough power to complete the operation. This is most noticable on
a ZR-1 when the door is open during the charging.

When charging a fully discharged battery, I recommend disconnecting the
battery and then reconnecting it after it is fully charged.

A charged battery protects the electrical system because it has a very
low internal resistance. This is similar to the way a surge protector
protects electrical circuits. When the battery is discharged, its
internal resistance goes up and the electrical system lacks protection
from voltage spikes. A car is especially vulnerable when a battery
charger is used to charge a totally flat battery. With a charged
battery, if the battery charger is connected backwards the battery will
resist the charger and probably win the battle. If the battery is
totally flat and the battery charger is connected backwards, the system
voltage could go negative. Negative system voltage can damage electrical
parts. Again it's a good practice to remove a battery cable before
charging a fully discharged battery. I think that an even better
practice is to prevent stored batteries from discharging in the first
place by using a Battery Tender or another charger that does "float
charging".

Best of luck.

Marc