[inthedoghouse]

I thought I would pass on some electrical tips that made a difference on my 85. I needed a new battery as it was testing about half its rated cranking amps. Because the previous owner had a parasitic draw he never fixed, he put in a gigantic 1100 CCA battery. At half capacity it still started the car - and I drove it like this for 2 years.

I got rid of that boat anchor and got a AGM sealed H6 battery per the many great recommendations on this board. But to take it a step further, I ordered a new negative battery cable and a new transmission to body ground strap from our host.

The new ground straps are inexpensive and fairly easy to install.

The car seems to idle better and the gauges seem a bit smoother. I think 30 year old ground straps cannot be as good as new ones.

I then tested the parasitic draw and traced it to the door switches. 10 minutes of pulling them out, sanding them shiny again and adding a dab of contact grease and my parasitic loss is nearly gone completely.

If you have a regular battery drain and/or any strange electrical issues, I'd try these easy fixes in your troubleshooting.