i own a 1990 300z automatic 2+2 non turbo (if it matters.)

the car just dies randomly. what's weird is that their is still power from the battery to everything. the starter runs, the lights work, all the electric is there, but the car will not start back up unless it's hooked up to another battery with jumper cables. even though the starter runs when you turn the key.

i'm not much of a mechanic so please try to make your advise easy for an idiot like me to understand. thank you.

 

Get your battery load tested. Be sure you have clean, tight corrosion free terminals on both ends of your battery cables. Be sure the ground (negative) cable goes to a bolt into the frame before going to the starter. grounding through the starter is not a reliable connection. Z's don't like low voltage. causes the electronics to act funny. it is possible to have enough amps to crank but not enough voltage to run the electronics. If you have one size fit all cheapo clamp on terminals they are a problem waiting to happen. Usually on a rainy night around Oh Dark Thirty.

Clean the connectors for the maf or afm, ecu and tps. Deoxit by CAIG is probably the best connector cleaner on the market. spray with CorrosionX after cleaning and before putting together this will help prevent any further corrosion. DON'T USE DIELECTRIC GREASE.