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76 midget

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76midge

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hi, my 1976 midget has an electrical problem. it sat and the battery was dead. i put on the charger, and got the car started, turned off the charger and let it run for 10 minuites. well long enough to charge the battery, and get it warmed up. however, when i cut off the car, and put it into first gear (clutch is rusted to fly wheel) to start in first gear, the only thing i got was the indicator light barely lighting up to indicate the fuel pump was working. it would not even turn at all. so, the only possible things i know of are;
1. the alternator is bad, and if this is so, i can restart the car and let it run longer. since the alternator would not be charging the battery, the car would run the battery all the way down and the car would stop on its own...or someone could teach me how to do a continuity test on it.
2. there is a short somewhere in the system...in which case, im screwed.
3. could be a bad battery that wont hold enough charge.


that is about all i know on it. any help would be great. some other problems it has are; bad brakes, rust, clutch, and the pipe that goes into the gas tank it above the bottom of the tank, so when it gets down to 3 or 4 gallons left in the tank, it can get anymore gas.

thanks for any input...
Jason
 
Pull the battery, charge it, and take it to a local autoparts store to have it load tested. If it is good, put it back in the car, connect one terminal and connect a test light between the other terminal and the other cable. If it lights with the key off then there is a load somewhere that is draining the battery (note: Do not attempt to start or put any load on in this configuartion - you will fry the test light), start troubleshooting. If there is no load, then hook up the battery the normal way and try starting. It should start with a good charge. I'm not real familiar with the '76 wiring but my '73 has a charge light that is on when the key is off and usually at real low idle, then goes off at higher RPM's - I think yours has this as well. This tells you if the alternator is working. Report back the results.
 
The way that Chris is describing the operation of the charge light is correct The charging system indicator will glow when you turn the key on but don't start the engine. It is ok if it glows faintly or even a little bit more than faintly at low engine rpms. That red light on your dash really doesn't have anything to do with the fuel pump unless someone has really done a number on the electrical system. Anyway, best place to start is with a known good battery. See this post to access the advice and help I had when I experienced a similar problem.
https://www.britishcarforum.com/ubbthread...part=1&vc=1
JC
 
Another quick way to tell if the alternator is bad is with a simple test. The cars generally runs of the alternator so, charge the battery & get the car started. While it is running, disconnect the positive cable from the battery. If it dies, the alternator is bad.
 
cool. thanks guys...it is getting cold, so i will buy a battery and take a break. i have had the frozen clutch issue before. hope it is easier than last time. last time it took an entire day of jerking the car around to get it broken free.
 
Not to be a nay sayer but I don't think it is a good idea to disconnect the battery with the engine running. Older generators could stand this but I'm thinking you will cause damage to the control circuit of the alternator if you do this. Just my $.02 and it may not be worth even that much.
JC
 
JC is correct, disconnecting the battery on any car with an alternator is a bad idea. Usually results in fried alternator or fried parts in the rest of the electrical system. Also, that light on the dash is the alternator warning light, which lights up when the alternator isn't put anything out. Has nothing to do with the engine driven mechanical fuel pump, unless that has been changed to an electric one at some point.
 
it is an electric fuel pump. and it lights up when the ignition is turned on. what battery should i get for the car? i am getting a new one. i dont know what to buy though...help?
 
A large lawn tractor Battery will do it...lol Hey nice looking car! what color is that? its looks to be in pretty good shape.
oh yea battery... i went to sears to buy mine one day , they asked what i had ...so i tod them. brought batt home it didnt fit, go figure. take you old battery with you! match it up. that way you get one that fits.
the red lit should lite when you turn the ignition on, it should go out when car starts.

mark
 
A group 51-R automotive battery fits nicely. I found one at NTB. Don't go to Autozone, the size their computers call out doesn't fit.
 
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