Weird electrical issue.

Alan Nyhus · 05-10-2020, 10:35 AM

Testing yesterday, I had a weird electrical issue happen. A little background...the electrical system is clean, simple, no factory wiring of any kind being used, high quality ground cables and connections, all connectors soldered. Single battery up front in the stock location.

Halfway through second gear, the car died as if the ignition had been shut off. Back at the trailer, the battery showed zero voltage. Not low voltage but 0.00 volts. It had been 13.8 before the run. With the spare battery installed, there was a big arc when the + cable was attached to the battery...like a dead short. Both batteries are AGM type. With a test light and volt meter, we checked everything back and it turned out the starter was the source of the dead short. Put the spare starter in an all was good and finished the day out with no issues.

So...here's my question. Could a broken plate in the battery cause the battery to short internally, taking out the solenoid at the same time? Or could the solenoid have shorted and killed the battery?

It acted almost like a car does when the positive power cable grounds to a header tube. I saw this a couple of times years ago and in one instance it actually exploded the battery.

Thoughts? -Al

05-10-2020, 10:35 AM	#1
Alan Nyhus VIP Member Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Lower Dakota territory Posts: 1,180 Likes: 1,074 Liked 799 Times in 236 Posts	Weird electrical issue. Testing yesterday, I had a weird electrical issue happen. A little background...the electrical system is clean, simple, no factory wiring of any kind being used, high quality ground cables and connections, all connectors soldered. Single battery up front in the stock location. Halfway through second gear, the car died as if the ignition had been shut off. Back at the trailer, the battery showed zero voltage. Not low voltage but 0.00 volts. It had been 13.8 before the run. With the spare battery installed, there was a big arc when the + cable was attached to the battery...like a dead short. Both batteries are AGM type. With a test light and volt meter, we checked everything back and it turned out the starter was the source of the dead short. Put the spare starter in an all was good and finished the day out with no issues. So...here's my question. Could a broken plate in the battery cause the battery to short internally, taking out the solenoid at the same time? Or could the solenoid have shorted and killed the battery? It acted almost like a car does when the positive power cable grounds to a header tube. I saw this a couple of times years ago and in one instance it actually exploded the battery. Thoughts? -Al __________________ "That'll never work....."