Hello all,
I have a 69 Ford Country Sedan wagon that I recently purchased that has been sitting since the 90's. The wagon is complete, has low miles, and was running well when parked. I am in the process of trying to get it running but seem to have run into an electrical issue. When I hooked up a good battery for the first time and tried to turned the key I immediately noticed smoke coming from behind the alternator (the starter did not engage when I turned the key). I unhooked the battery as quickly as I could and decided to removed the alternator and inspect it. Once I got it off I noticed that the wires going to the alternator were bare, I dont know if the wire casings melted or were already worn down due to age. I kinda thought maybe one of the wires was grounding out which was causing the problems, so I re-wrapped all the wires going to the back of the alt. I installed the alternator again and hooked up the battery and again smoke started coming from the back of the alternator. I also noticed that the wires heading to the starter relay were super hot. I took the alternator to Autozone and had them test it and their machine said it was no good. So I purchased a new alternator and installed it and sure enough the exact same thing happened.
I have inspected all the wiring from the alternator, to the starter relay, to the starter itself and haven't found any other issues. Could a bad starter relay cause this? Any help would be appreciated.
I have a 69 Ford Country Sedan wagon that I recently purchased that has been sitting since the 90's. The wagon is complete, has low miles, and was running well when parked. I am in the process of trying to get it running but seem to have run into an electrical issue. When I hooked up a good battery for the first time and tried to turned the key I immediately noticed smoke coming from behind the alternator (the starter did not engage when I turned the key). I unhooked the battery as quickly as I could and decided to removed the alternator and inspect it. Once I got it off I noticed that the wires going to the alternator were bare, I dont know if the wire casings melted or were already worn down due to age. I kinda thought maybe one of the wires was grounding out which was causing the problems, so I re-wrapped all the wires going to the back of the alt. I installed the alternator again and hooked up the battery and again smoke started coming from the back of the alternator. I also noticed that the wires heading to the starter relay were super hot. I took the alternator to Autozone and had them test it and their machine said it was no good. So I purchased a new alternator and installed it and sure enough the exact same thing happened.
I have inspected all the wiring from the alternator, to the starter relay, to the starter itself and haven't found any other issues. Could a bad starter relay cause this? Any help would be appreciated.