No power at all '01 Ford Taurus
I drove my car to work with no issues yesterday. Went to get in to go home in
the evening and power locks didn't work. Manually unlocked and tried the
key in the ignition. No dash lights, accessories, etc. Completely dead car.
New battery was installed 2 weeks ago. Tested today and output volts read
optimal. I don't see any wiring issues aside from their age. No corrosion, no
bulging wires. Battery post connectors are solid and clean with no wiggle
room.
I'm parked in my work parking lot, 45 min from home. I had to catch a train
and have my wife pick me up last night. Any ideas here? Thanks in advance.
Make sure battery has a full charge and battery connections all good. In fuse box under the hood, check fuse 107--40amps. Not only check the fuse, use a test light and check voltage on fuse circuit, hot all the time.
Battery charge is full. All connections seem to be fine. I checked fuse 1017 (starter relay), but realized I don't know how to check the voltage on a relay. I'm researching it now. Would a bad starter relay cause the whole car to be without power overall? I mean that I have no power anywhere. The battery is brand-new, fully charged, and tests great on an ohm-meter. Connections are good, wiring seems fine.
No, I don't believe starter relay problem would kill everything. Note the diagram, the starter relay has two sides, the load side, is that arm with arrowhead. the right side of relay is the control side, The control side needs voltage and ground to energize the relay. On the load side, that top wire is hot all the time.
Thanks for your help, oilyspill. I feel really stupid, but the problem was a flat battery. I left my lights on all day and completely depleted the battery. I got a jump and drove it for 20 min and it's been going strong for the last 2 days. I like to think I know a bit about cars and then something like this comes up and blows that idea out of the water. I was certainly trying to make my problem and solution more complicated. Here's the lesson for anyone reading: Try every "basic" fix before moving on to more complex ones. It'll make your life easier and you won't feel like a moron after spending two days disconnecting wires, pulling fuses, taking voltage measurements, etc., only to find that you left your lights on and a simple jump start would solve your problem.
I hear ya, been there done that. Tried everything then find out it was something simple. It happens to all of us at one time or another. Glad you got it going.
