Re: [Amc-list] Attn Hornet Sportabout owners, advice on rust issues, woodgrain, battery drain wanted...

[Glen Hoag <hoag@xxxxxx>]

At 11:31 AM 3/7/2009, Jerry Casper <gremlingts@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
>Well, it became "official" Thursday when I got the title changed over
>on Thursday, registered it  and some temp tags. I ordered VA 
>speciality plates,  AMC
>BZNU, for it. First time in awhile I'll have had personalized tags for
>something worth it. LOL!
>    The wagon has 69k on it, fairly solid, some door rust due to the
>woodgrain applique, but that junk is comin' OFF of there! Eventually.
>Anyway, planning on driving it home on Sunday, and then the fun begins.
>It has a battery drain that kills the battery after a few days of
>none-running. Driver's door door paddle spring is broken, so it's
>"scooter" entry only from the passenger side. A/C and radio both work,
>a huge plus. And 4 brand new donuts to eat up the road with. So, for
>$300, not a bad buy! 6-cylinder 258, of course. Wish it had been a V-8!
>Oh well. Can't have it all.
>
>  Several questions on the woodgrain - how easy is it to get off, is 
> there actual paint underneath, and what should I do to remove it? I 
> think I remember there being some sort of solvent that you spray on 
> it to remove it. If anyone has gone thru the procedure, I'd like to 
> hear about it.

There is paint beneath the woodgrain.  Any chemical remover is going 
to have to work in conjunction with peeling the Di-Noc film off.  I 
think that heat should help and would try using a heat gun to warm 
the film and adhesive to help remove it.  Then I'd follow up with Goo 
Gone or similar to remove the remaining adhesive.

I'm going to have to do this on my '80 Pacer wagon soon, but will 
probably install fresh Di-Noc.


>  The car has an electrical drain that kills the battery after a few 
> days, so I was told, long as you drive it,it's staying charged up. 
> So I'll have to start looking for that. I'm thinking either 
> overhead light / door switches shorted, clock, glovebox light, etc. 
> Glove box doesn't open, latch spins, so I'll check that out, and 
> other issues. Any suggestions as to possible items to look at for 
> battery drainage is welcome as well.

For this sort of problem, I'd hook an ammeter between the positive 
battery post and the positive battery cable to see what the draw is 
when the car is just sitting.  (Key off, doors closed, hood down if 
equipped with underhood lighting.)  Then, armed with the wiring 
diagram, start pulling fuses to see what causes the ammeter to go to 
zero.  Once you have isolated the correct circuit, you can track down 
the problem, since you will know what items are powered by that fuse.

Some circuits don't go through the fuse block and you will have to 
use other means to track them down, but this is where the wiring 
diagram comes in.  Just determine what items are powered elsewhere 
(headlamps, horn, etc.) and find a convenient place to disconnect 
them.  Don't forget that the alternator is also connected to the 
battery and a shorted diode might cause this problem.  Disconnect the 
charging wire at the back of the alternator to see if the drain goes 
away.  Alternators are three phase generators and will still charge 
somewhat even with one blown or shorted diode.

Note that a mechanical clock will cause an intermittent current spike 
when the mainspring winds down and the solenoid in the clock winds it 
back up, corresponding to the "click" sound from the clock.  A quartz 
clock will cause a very small continuous drain on the battery, but 
shouldn't cause it to run down in days.


>   Well, all for now, any helpful hints, comments, suggestions 
> welcome. More interested in the battery drain condition now, but 
> the woodgrain needs to come off, so I can see the rust damage, want 
> to start on that soon ( getting it off , that is ). Soon to be AMCing again...

_______________________________________________
Amc-list mailing list
Amc-list@xxxxxxxxxxxx
http://splatter.wps.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/amc-list