I'm trying to get my 1980 z28 started after sitting in the garage all winter and I'm having trouble.
Turning the key does nothing, no lights, nothing.
I hooked the battery up to a charger and after a few hours the charger said the battery had a full charge so I tried again. Still nothing.
I removed the battery hookups and cleaned everything but that still didn't work, so I tried jumping it with my other car thinking that maybe it just needed some more juice to get going. With the jumper cables attached, the lights come on and the starter clicks and it just barely turns over, but will not start.
Also, I can hear the fuel pump working but when I push down the brakes at all, the fuel pump shuts off. Not sure if that's related or there may be a short somewhere or what.
Any input would be greatly appreciated.


Thanks

 

moved your thread to the 2nd generation general section. guys should be able to help. the ask gm section is for dealer type questions for a new car.

 

Yeah I realized right when I posted it that I was not in the right section. Thanks

 

Sounds like you may still have a connection issue. Did you check the battery cable connection at the starter too, or just the battery end? Check that also and try again. If there's no change you may have to pull the starter and have the solenoid checked. If the fuel pump is cutting out, you may also have a bad ground, so don't forget to check both ends of the ground cable too!

 

Yours is carbureted, and came with a mechanical fuel pump. Did somebody add an electric pump? You could have a dead battery. If it's shorted out internally, even a jump start may not help. Before tearing other stuff apart, try replacing with a known good battery and see what happens.

 

I'll check all the connections after work today and give it another shot.
And yes, an electric fuel pump was installed by the previous owner, along with many other things. The pump has always been very loud too, not sure if that's normal or not.
Thanks for the advice!

 

Yes, electric pumps are loud, and depending on the mounting method some transfer more noise than others.

 

I agree with the Battery being the issue since you have removed and cleaned the cables.
You either need to have the battery load tested (to prove that it is holding a good charge), or replace it with a good battery.

Even though your battery charger showed that the battery was charged, it may only be in good enough condition to show a surface charge and once you try to put a load on it, it immediately goes flat. This is sign of a shot battery.