Car turns off while driving

HEIDI HANSON SLUYTER

MEMBER
1995 BUICK SPECIAL
V6
2WD
AUTOMATIC
75,000 MILES

It started with us having to frequently jump start car. Battery replaced and alternator checked. Next issue is that while driving the car the radio shuts off, car door locks click and engine shuts off. Car would not take a jump start, then half hour later car starts just fine. Had car in shop, they say battery, ignition and alternator all working fine. Can't figure out what is wrong.

1 Reply

KASEKENNY

MECHANIC
18,907 POSTS

Hi Heidi,

I imagine when the shop checked the vehicle that all those items checked out okay when the vehicle was operating properly. What needs to happen is we monitor battery voltage when this issue happens. I imagine you have a wiring issue that is causing the vehicle system to lose power.

Due to this being intermittent if you check them out when it is not acting up then you will not find anything. The radio shutting off and the locks clicking are all signs of low voltage. So the battery may be okay but the cables and wires that deliver the voltage may be heating up and not able to deliver the proper amount.

Again, we need to monitor battery voltage with a meter when this happens in order to see if the voltage is dropping. If it is not, then it is most definitely a wiring issue. This means you will need to do what is called a load test on the various wiring in order to find which one it is starting with the battery cables.