Thought it would be easier placing all my problems in one large post instead of posting smaller individual ones. Possibly could shine light if a few of them are all connected. 1. Engine sometimes cutting off Noticed this recently, will happen when I'm sitting at idle (1100rpm ish) and then the needle will randomly drop down to around 600-400 and come back up straight away, recently it just completely shut off while I was waiting at the lights. Any idea why and how to fix? 2. Electrics fully shutting off Now this has been happening a far bit, once or twice a week the car will fully disconnect from any power and completely reset on its own. I notice this when I get in the car and the clock is at some random time (for example today the clock indicated that it shut off at 1:17am) and AC reset back to 25 degrees. This rarely occurs when I turn on or off the car, and never when running. No idea why, and I believe the next issue is connected. 3. Ignition full electrical shut off Sometimes when I get in the car and turn the key, completely dead, no life in it at all. I find that pulling out the key fully and putting it back in makes it work again. Although one time I had to do it 3 or 4 times till it finally worked, after no issue and back on the road. 4. Radio turning on and off Have posted this before, but I forgot to mention that the clock also turns off when the radio turns off, they seem to be linked? Hasn't happened in a couple weeks though, most likely a bad head unit, least of my concerns. 5. Electrical door locks stopped work Also posted about this recently, immobiliser still works just the actual electrical actuators don't. Probably just kicked the bucket after 20+ years of service, can still lock the car with the key no problem so its just an annoyance, nothing bad. Overall the car still runs and drives fine, but I have had these issues all come in within the last couple of months. I suspect maybe water is to blame? I got caught out in some horrific rain a while ago where flash flooding occurred, and while I wasn't a complete idiot and went crossing deep water. I did have to go through some sizeable "puddles" (never deeper than the bottom of the rotor) and what was like tropical down pour so I and more likely the car wouldn't get trapped for what could of potentially been weeks out in the country. All help is greatly appreciated!
For number 3. Have a look at the back of the ignition barrel and check it's connections. You can unscrew the ignition wiring from the barrel itself with a screwdriver. Check whether the ignition switch isn't coming apart from the plastic contact piece from the metal part. It's held in by indents, that can be pushed back tighter. I ended up having to change one of mine for another same era Nissan. Though i had to re-solder the wires to suit the Z32 (You can't have ON engage before ACC ) If you wonder what your key is actually for, it's just to unlock the steering lock
Have you checked the basics? - Battery health (clock resetting overnight) - Battery terminal connections (engine shutdown while running, vehicle non responsive when attempting to start, clock resetting overnight) - Alternator health (engine shutdown while running) If you don't know how start with this article.
New battery Connections are snug as and not corroded Alternator is running healthy I wish it was something basic, potentially still could be but I'm just blanking on.
Will do, I've got some spare ignition barrels from parts cars if I do need to replace it. Interesting fact about the steering lock, always thought it did something like that as I've had a frozen steering wheel one or two times before which was fixed by force turning it and using the key. Although how would the key being put in fix a loose connector? Probably just enough movement to cause it to connect.
1. Engine sometimes cutting off This sounds like it will be separate to other issues, possibly a vacuum leak or dirty airflow sensor (especially if you've driven through puddles and heavy rain). 2. Electrics fully shutting off It's not uncommon for the clock to reset time as they known for being unreliable, the fact yours works is a bonus. If the AC temperature is always resetting at the same time, this points toward a loss of battery power causing the reset which would be a bad connection at the terminals. 3. Ignition full electrical shut off This is likely either the back of the ignition barrel as suggested above, or a bad battery connection. Easy way to check, next time it happens try turning on the map light, dome light or headlights. If these have power then remove the steering column and push the back plastic housing into the barrel (while the key is inserted and no power) to see if this brings everything to life. 4. Radio turning on and off From your previous post it seems like there was some wiring work done behind the head unit that may be contributing to this. May also be sensitive to a poor earth. 5. Electrical door locks stopped work Possibly a coincidence, possibly related. From what you've described I'd be leaning towards most of your issues coming from a bad battery connection. If this was an issue with the ignition barrel you'd likely be experiencing a random loss of all electrics while driving (ie. when hitting a bump). A tight connection is not necessarily a good connection, and no visible external corrosion doesn't mean a good connection either. Your best bet would be to remove both connectors and give the posts and connectors a light sand. A multimeter is your best friend here, and a good investment if you don't already own one. Measuring battery voltage when the issue happens, and while running can help to rule out any issues from the battery and alternator. You mention the alternator is ok, what testing has been done to confirm this? Due to age the Z32 doesn't run a 'traditional' body control module like almost all new cars do, so it's unlikely these issues are a caused by water, unless there is an issue with the targa drain hole on the front driver side, as this runs over the fuse box in the drivers footwell. An easy way to check is pouring water down the hole and confirming it exits through the front guard onto the floor. You can also remove the fuse panel to inspect while doing this but if this was your issue I'd expect your fuse panel to look pretty crusty and corroded.
Alright, I'll try cleaning it. Any advice on how to clean it and look for vacuum leaks? Clock and AC reset at the same time, it might be a bad connection at the terminals as I still have the factory leads and over the years the ground slightly expanded so on the last battery swap (couple months ago) I put a shim in which I sanded clean for it to be bare metal. This caused the lead to clamp on tight, and is a trick I've used on other cars with no issue. Maybe the Zed is being picky? Won't be the ignition barrel, when the issue occurs it's a full system shut down, nothing has power. Just weird that jabbing the key in and out a few times seems to work, or maybe that's not actually doing anything and the car is gaslighting me into thinking that.... Agree on this, I just need to get in there and check its all ok. Door locks is most likely coincidence as these cars like to play tricks on you like that... I have a feeling it might, but not at the actual terminals as those have been sanded and the battery is a new one. Although I may as well try again. I do have a multimeter which I used to check the alternator, 14.4v, was surprised how healthy it was considering its age (was replaced about 16 years ago). Fuse box has no crust. I'll go down and sand it again, then maybe consider replacing the negative lead as its expanded a bit. If I do that, any advice on swapping it out?
Get rid of the shim, this will likely be your issue. Assuming you have a battery with the correct size posts, you can use a set of pliers to reshape the terminals. Hard to describe but over the years they can deform to more of a 'teardrop' shape rather than round, especially if it previously had a larger terminal fitted (which it sounds like may be the case here). Ideally you want to get the terminals round again, but sometimes giving the bare terminal a squeeze to oval it out can allow it to sufficiently reshape around the post when tightened. Would suggest re-sanding the post and terminals as any arcing could cause contamination.
If your full system power shut down actually includes lights etc, then it does sound like a battery connection issue. It wouldn't hurt to check both battery leads condition and where they mount/connect to. My Z31's negative cable had a lot of broken wires where it mounts to the firewall. I replaced that section with a pre-made lead that mounts from firewall to battery. The following attached pictures shows a couple of ignition issues. The 1st shows the gap for an ignition switch to have power/start problems, 2nd shows 1 of 3 tabs I press back in to fix my issue which was having to jiggle the key for car to power up and then start. 3rd shows the hack job some people do when installing aftermarket stuff and ultimately removed for cleaner install
Interestingly its not a tear drop shape, just straight up doesn't fit. Fully tightened it slides over the negative terminal like its not there, although the positive has absolutely no issues. Very bizarre...
