Alright this is a weird one. For the last couple of days my turbo timer would flicker and reset whenever I would go over a harsh dip or bump on the road, and sometimes my head unit would shut off as well.

Last night I was on my way home and I noticed that the car started to die when I was on my way out on the street. Next thing you know it died completely. I tried cranking it again, but not even a turn or click was heard. The funny thing is my car was on the ON position but the instrument panel was not on. Headlights were working fine and so was the interior lights, but the instrument panel, head unit, and turbo timer was not going on.

Well I'm no mechanic, but for the engine to crank, the instrument cluster has to be on during the ON position, i think. Like I said, I'm no mechanic. Well, me and my buddy tried jumping it and no go the first couple of times. I told him to rev it the second time and the instrument panel went back on so i cranked it. I decided to let the car idle so that the battery could recharge, but after 15 min., the car died again - no lights in the instrument panel again during the ON position.

I don't know what the hell is wrong with this car. I love Z's but good Lord, these cars are notorious for problems occuring often. I checked the battery this morning and the negative terminal seemed a little bit loose, so I tightened it, but still no power in the instrument panel when the key in the ignition is in the ON position.

Like I said, headlights are fine, interior lights are fine, even the door chimes are ringing fine, its just that I got no damn power to the ignition. I had people tell me it was the turbo timer, and I had people saying it was battery, which cant be possible because I have a new Optima battery with new battery terminals!

My best guess would be the ignition. I'm planning to check all the wiring right now, but man is that a bitch! I would appreciate your replies greatly on any reccomendations on what the problem might be. I fixed a lot of problems on my car thanks to this forum site. Hopefully you guys can help me again with this new problem as well. Thanks in advance!

 

Check the ignition wires. Turn the ignition "ON" and wiggle the key - if the instrument panel lights turn off, you might have a bad ignition switch.

 

yea but the instrument panel doesnt go on in the first place when it is in the on position, oh yea i got no power to my windows either and my alarm wont work.

 

Ive seen this problem before, check the fuses/relays in the ignition system, and if thats not it check them in the security system I cant remember which one it is that causes exactly that.

 

do you know anybody that does know it? im kinda in a hurry to get it fixed, cause this is my primary ride for now. my other car is being used by my brother and he went up north for a week

 

Sorry, your 1st post was a bit difficult to read because its all in 1 paragraph, so I missed the part about the instrument panel.

Does your car act like it's about to die if you wiggle the key in the ignition while it's running? That's the first thing I'd check, since it's free and simple to do.

 

well i would try it out. but the car doesnt start in the first place, once its in the on position. the panel just wont light up

 

Check all your fuses. Check all your fusible links under the hood near the battery. Check for continuity on the blue fusible link. If that one is bad you can't tell just by looking at it.
If none of that works, check your wiring for your timer. Sounds like it's shorting out and affecting the dash.

 

hmm, i think ill check it out right now! my buddy did say something about the timer. Ill check the continuity as well

 

well i tested the blue line that you advised me on, i have a line tester that i used and it lit up, as far as the fusible links that i would have to check tomorrow due to the lack of light i have available here cause it is pretty late. as far as the timer, ill double check on it. although i unplugged it, the car still has no power during the "on" position. im starting to think there might have been a loose wire of some sort that shorted something out or a loose ground or something. but if that was the case i dont know how my car started again when i got it to run after the few tries the first evening it died out on me.

well im still open to any other suggestions if anybody can figure out what the hell is wrong with it. thanks again, feel free to hit up this post again for i will be checking up on it.

 

when you said your car started to die while driving it, did you mean things started to power down while driving?
If that's it then it's your alternator. Might end up needing a new battery as well.

 

no it just died instantly, i've had a alternator go out on me before. i know how that is. and the symptom seem all fine. dunno but im gonna take another crack at it

 

When you turn the key, does the engine try to start at all? Do you hear the starter, fuel pump, anything?

 

check your battery cables. one could be shorting out somewhere.

 

I can see that I'm not the only one having trouble reading his 1st post. Would someone please split it up into more paragraphs, so that it's easier to read?

Here's the part that kind of hides:
So, he is getting an electrical current, but apparently not to the ignition.

 

i saw about the battery and terminals, but i mean the cables themselves. i had this happen on my old blazer. sometimes it would start, sometimes it would just click the solenoid, and sometimes nothing. and sometimes the rest of the electrical worked, sometimes not. it turned out that a battery cable had touched against the exhaust manifold, melted through the jacket, and was shorting out against it, but only sometimes. worth a check.