car is dead.

[Lobo1186]

So my car has decided to die. It has no electrical of any kind working. I put the key in the ignition and it died. Funny thing is I was driving it earlier just fine. Im guessing a fuse but they all look good under the dash... any ideas.

[Nimbus117]

Dodgy ignition switch, well known for failing and can cause all manner of electrical problems.

[dghii]

I agree about ignition switch but first lets check your battery, given the car is dead.
How dead is dead? Will your lights come on, at least a bit? Do flashers work?

Usually, if a car is dead all of a sudden, its a battery or charging system issue.

How old is battery? can you pull it and get it checked if over 2 or 3 years old?
Battery terminals clean?

Check this easy stuff first and post your results.

[particlewave]

Originally Posted by Lobo1186

So my car has decided to die. It has no electrical of any kind working. I put the key in the ignition and it died. Funny thing is I was driving it earlier just fine. Im guessing a fuse but they all look good under the dash... any ideas.

Ignition switch.
Batteries don't just go dead instantly.


EDIT: like dghii says, check the easy stuff first.

[Porsche9]

Originally Posted by particlewave

Ignition switch.
Batteries don't just go dead instantly.

I would not say that. Since living in Phoenix it has happened to me three times. Some times you will get ONE warning, a slow starter, and then it's dead and other time no warning.

[dghii]

Originally Posted by particlewave

Ignition switch.
Batteries don't just go dead instantly.

....

....Either do ignition switches!

Actually, both can go instantly dead.

Sorry but I respectfully disagree. The worst thing to do when troubleshooting is not eliminating the easy stuff.

I've replaced Boxster ignition switches on various cars (3 or 4) and I know they fail and can present weird symtoms prior and during failure. The fact that the OP describes his car as 'dead' leads me to believe that the failure is beyond the ignition switch. We need to determine what dead really means!

I had a 99 BMW Z3 that crapped its battery in the spring of 2000. I turned the car off while I went inside to pick up my son after school. We got back in the car and it was completely dead. As it was under warranty, BMW picked it up and flat beded it back to the local dealer.

Defective battery.

Also had the battery go out on 2005 Pathfinder the same way. Drove to store no problem, came back out and the battery was completely dead, no click of solenoids or anything. Of course, this battery was about 4+ years old when it happened.

[particlewave]

It's the ignition switch, I promise

[dghii]

I wouldn't bet against you but I'm sticking with battery until we have further info!

[nieuwhzn]

Check the battery leads, see if they are broken.
I had a broken mass lead a couple of months ago, caused by the battery moving around. Everything working fine, suddenly completely dead.

[particlewave]

Originally Posted by dghii

I wouldn't bet against you but I'm sticking with battery until we have further info!

Yes, check the obvious and easy things first. The ignition switch is a PITA...and so am I

[dghii]

I'm pretty good with the ignition switch R/R now. Practice makes perfect.

I struggled big time the first time I did the replacement. After that, I went the route through the air vent and found it much, much easier.

I also 'fabricated' a special tool. ie. I took a jewlers screw driver, cut it down by about half and added some wings out of JB weld for extra leverage.

[mikehkang]

Hi particlewave and dghii.

I don't know if you read my recent run in with the ignition switch but I replaced the two screws to two hex heads screws. It makes the ignition switch job a walk in the park - remove the air duct, and reach in only with your arm to replace the switch.

Here is the link.
http://986forum.com/forums/general-discussions/51181-ignition-switch-holding-screws.html

[Nine8Six]

I also want to play this

1. He passed through a nasty magnetic field and everything fried. NSA prototyping outdoor, who else to blame these days

2. Could also be a spectrum of gamma rays bursting from the-far-far-away sky and aiming at his Porsche car in particular

3. While parked in Tha City's ghetto, wires got eaten by street rats

4. Key got swapped with a blank by the (extra)GF, she doesn't want him to leave

5.

Anyone else care to guess?

[Lobo1186]

I just got to my destination on the road trip i was leaving on when this all happened. The verdict... Battery cable came loose!. I was in my work parking lot, so I had limited options. The battery, alternator and ingnition switch are all brand new. The real ass pain is that with absolutly no power you cannot open the trunks, I was able to coax my passenger headlight out and then pull the emergency trunk cable.

I had been driving over a lot of poorly paved roads the night before and it must have slowly loosened the cable. Now, why did it just die when it was just sitting still? I have no idea. Logic would dictate that it could pop off while moving due to vibration and what not but while sitting perfectly still working one minute and not the next is pretty strange. However, that was the issue. Thanks for all the help though and sorry it took so long to respond.

[Jamesp]

Originally Posted by particlewave

It's the ignition switch, I promise

I'm just wondering what Particlewave did to the ignition switch, and why.

[M4SGK1986]

Originally Posted by Lobo1186

I just got to my destination on the road trip i was leaving on when this all happened. The verdict... Battery cable came loose!. I was in my work parking lot, so I had limited options. The battery, alternator and ingnition switch are all brand new. The real ass pain is that with absolutly no power you cannot open the trunks, I was able to coax my passenger headlight out and then pull the emergency trunk cable.

I had been driving over a lot of poorly paved roads the night before and it must have slowly loosened the cable. Now, why did it just die when it was just sitting still? I have no idea. Logic would dictate that it could pop off while moving due to vibration and what not but while sitting perfectly still working one minute and not the next is pretty strange. However, that was the issue. Thanks for all the help though and sorry it took so long to respond.

Glad it was a simple fix. However as you say, in the event that you loose all power you can't open the trunk with the switch. What i have done on mine is moved the cable to where you screw in the front towing eye behind the flap on the bumper. its a bit of a ball ache to do because i had to remove the front bumper to do it (although gave me the opportunity to clear the radiator ducts). But in the event your battery goes flat you can easily open the trunk. Apologies for moving off topic!

[dghii]

Good deal! A PIA but not a big problem.