HELP needed!! Car wont start

[Denny]

Hi all,

I'm new to the E30 cars and my newly acquired 1987 325is 5-speed doesnt start....actually its completly DEAD!

Nothing ..nada...no lights, no horn, no instrumental cluster lights.....its like it has no battery at all.

Car was working before and I did not start it for 1 week then all of a sudden its dead!

The car has a brand new battery tested and fully charged...the terrminals look good. I'm guessing the Main relay? how do I test one?

All I did so far on it was remove the seats and carpet!! could I have disconnected something important in this car!!

Can somebody shed some light in helping find the cause of this.. I have a voltmeter and can use it to test.

thanks

[wodcutr]

There is a fusable link in the thick black wire that connects to the + post of the battery. lift up the trunk liner and see if the plastic wrap has melted in the area of the link. You can also tell if the link is bad by testing the block at the firewall for voltage. If this block does not have power then that is your problem!

I would first make sure that the battery is still charged and has 12.8 volts or more in it. E30's have a tendency to drain a perfectly good battery if they sit for a week. The bentley manual can tell you how to find what is draining the battery. If you don't have one, get one...it will answer most of your questions!

[Denny]

There is a fusable link in the thick black wire that connects to the + post of the battery. lift up the trunk liner and see if the plastic wrap has melted in the area of the link. You can also tell if the link is bad by testing the block at the firewall for voltage. If this block does not have power then that is your problem!

I would first make sure that the battery is still charged and has 12.8 volts or more in it. E30's have a tendency to drain a perfectly good battery if they sit for a week. The bentley manual can tell you how to find what is draining the battery. If you don't have one, get one...it will answer most of your questions!

Some reason the old owner had relocated the battery to the front...

You just helped me remember something...I will test grounding of the battery to the body...my old 90 mitsu eclipse now that I think of it did the same thing...(cleaned the ground) car started right up...

I smell a bad ground has I'm getting no electricity and I have a good charged battery (tested from positive pol to negative pol on battery) but it may not be grounding at the cars body...

going to go check right now

[IronmanE30]

The car would still have power to crank over the engine if the main relay is bad, it just would not start. I pull the main relay when doing a compression test and the starter still cranks over the motor. Hopefully it's your ground.

Cheers,

Jim

[Denny]

The car would still have power to crank over the engine if the main relay is bad, it just would not start. I pull the main relay when doing a compression test and the starter still cranks over the motor. Hopefully it's your ground.

Cheers,

Jim

Ok thanks for that info I did not no.

I went back and did more testing with my voltmeter:

1. My battery is at 8V I swear it was at like 12V+ yesterday (maybe my voltmeter is faulty..) would a battery at 8V still be able to light up the dash or any sign of life?

2. The ground is working on the connection on the strut tower but not on the cars chassis...

[wodcutr]

8v is dead dead dead! The car has a hard time with anything less than 12.3v. I would try and relocate the battery back to the trunk where it belongs. It is much better for the longevity of the battery.

[IronmanE30]

8v is dead dead dead! The car has a hard time with anything less than 12.3v. I would try and relocate the battery back to the trunk where it belongs. It is much better for the longevity of the battery.

Give it a charge and you should be ok. I have a couple of E30's and if I don't drive them every week the computer in the car drains them down pretty fast.

Cheers,

Jim

[Denny]

8v is dead dead dead! The car has a hard time with anything less than 12.3v. I would try and relocate the battery back to the trunk where it belongs. It is much better for the longevity of the battery.

I cant right now....but I will do. Just got the car 1 week ago and moving houses in few days... just trying to get it up so that I can tow it away easier.

The car is going to go trew a frame up restoration...soon have my restoration thread up when I move in my big new garage...cant wait to strip it down and remove all the cancer!! hopefully I can revive her ...I think 1 or 2 more years and this car would of been crushed in between a old cavaler and old ford tempo at the bone yard...