trouble getting the car to work

[nonextant]

Brakes on the BMW went out and I had to take the 928 to work today. Car was running great then the engine died on the.freeway. I started to pull over and it fired back up on its own then died again after 30 seconds. Once I got over it would crank but not start. I fiddled with the fuses and pushed in on all the plugs and after about ten minutes I gas it some gas and it fired up. Also. The passenger door wont latch closed now. I've tied it shut with my GPS power cable. Any ideas where I should start troubleshooting?


I was able to get off the freeway to an autozone parking lot. It died again and cranks but no start.

[MPDano]

Put the Model and Year of your car like you did with your other cars in your Signature. There are way too many variables between the cars.

[riber.bentsen]

Sounds like the main battery to frame ground cable - we've been seing a lot of those lately. The symptoms of a bad ground cable are just what you discribed - one minute it works fine, sudden death the next.

Try hooking up the ground post on the battery to one of the nuts on the strut tower with a jumper cable, and see if you still have problems. Or cut open the insulation on the ground strap and check for corrosion.

[JhwShark]

Originally Posted by MPDano

Put the Model and Year of your car like you did with your other cars in your Signature. There are way too many variables between the cars.

+1...have a volt/ohm meter available and check continuity and main ground contacts as recommended...depending on MY, many tangents besides grounds...green wire degrading, FI relay iff, ECU...'82 euro or ??

[Landseer]

put a two-way jumper in place of the fuel pump relay and you should hear it fuel pump running.

Then,

Put a three-way wire on 30-87-87 in place of the injection relay (XVI) and try to start the car.

[JK McDonald]

Hey Nonextant, Did you ever make it to work ? It can be frustrating trying to troubleshoot an engine shutdown while sitting in a parking lot - but at least you landed near an Autozone.

After reading about the various roadside failures that can occur on the 928, I built up a couple of crib circuit description sheets, simplified wiring diagrams and an assortment of basic emergency parts that I keep in my glove box. You might also consider marking all your relays, make up a few relay elimination jumpers and keep one of those cheap $14 digital multi-meters handy as well. Personally, I think having all this stuff with you puts a protective spell over the car cause I haven't had a whimper out of Miss Purdy for several years.

Let everyone know the model and what you found - it goes into the official data bank to help others.

Good Luck, Michael