1982 CHEVROLET CAMARO battery

GM – CAMARO 1982-1992 – Repair Guide (Checked by WxMax) 128
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Size - the larger the wire size being used, the less resistance the wire will
have. This is why components which use large amounts of electricity
usually have large wires suppl ying current to them.
• Length - for a given thickness of wire, the longer the wire, the greater the
resistance. The shorter the wire, the less the resistance. When
determining the proper wire for a circ uit, both size and length must be
considered to design a circuit that can handle the current needs of the
component.
• Temperature - with many materials, the higher the temperature, the
greater the resistance (positive temper ature coefficient). Some materials
exhibit the opposite trait of lower re sistance with higher temperatures
(negative temperature coefficient). Thes e principles are used in many of
the sensors on the engine.
OHM'S LAW
There is a direct relationship between current, voltage and resistance. The
relationship between current, voltage and resistance can be summed up by a
statement known as Ohm's law.
Voltage (E) is equal to amper age (I) times resistance (R): E=I x ROther forms of
the formula are R=E/I and I=E/R
In each of these formulas, E is the voltage in volts, I is the current in amps and
R is the resistance in ohms. The basic point to remember is that as the
resistance of a circuit goes up, the amount of current that flows in the circuit will
go down, if voltage remains the same.
The amount of work that the electricity can perform is expressed as power. The
unit of power is the watt (w). The re lationship between power, voltage and
current is expressed as:
Power (w) is equal to amperage (I) times voltage (E): W=I x EThis is only true
for direct current (DC) circuits; The alte rnating current formula is a tad different,
but since the electrical circuits in mo st vehicles are DC type, we need not get
into AC circuit theory.
ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS
POWER SOURCE
Power is supplied to the vehicle by tw o devices: The battery and the alternator.
The battery supplies electrical power dur ing starting or during periods when the
current demand of the vehicle's electrical system exceeds the output capacity of
the alternator. The alternator supplies electrical current when the engine is
running. Just not does the al ternator supply the current needs of the vehicle, but
it recharges the battery.

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THE BATTERY
In most modern vehicles, the battery is
a lead/acid electrochemical device
consisting of six 2 volt subs ections (cells) connected in se ries, so that the unit is
capable of producing approximately 12 volt s of electrical pressure. Each
subsection consists of a series of positive and negative plates held a short
distance apart in a solution of sulfuric acid and water.
The two types of plates are of dissim ilar metals. This sets up a chemical
reaction, and it is this r eaction which produces current flow from the battery
when its positive and negative terminals are connected to an electrical \
load .
The power removed from the battery is r eplaced by the alternator, restoring the
battery to its original chemical state.
THE ALTERNATOR
On some vehicles there isn't an alter nator, but a generator. The difference is
that an alternator supplies alternating current which is then changed to direct
current for use on the vehicle, while a generator produces direct current.
Alternators tend to be more efficient and that is why they are used.
Alternators and generators are devices t hat consist of coils of wires wound
together making big electrom agnets. One group of coils spins within another set
and the interaction of the magnetic fields causes a current to flow. This current
is then drawn off the coils and fed into the vehicles electrical system.
GROUND
Two types of grounds are used in automot ive electric circuits. Direct ground
components are grounded to the frame thr ough their mounting points. All other
components use some sort of ground wire which is attached to the frame or
chassis of the vehicle. The electrical current runs through the chassis of the
vehicle and returns to the battery thr ough the ground (—) cable; if you look,
you'll see that the battery ground cabl e connects between the battery and the
frame or chassis of the vehicle.
It should be noted that a good percentage of electrical problems can be traced
to bad grounds.
PROTECTIVE DEVICES
It is possible for large surges of current to pass through the electrical system of
your vehicle. If this surge of current we re to reach the load in the circuit, the
surge could burn it out or severely dam age it. It can also overload the wiring,
causing the harness to get hot and melt t he insulation. To prevent this, fuses,
circuit breakers and/or fusible links are connected into the supply wires of the
electrical system. These items are nothing more than a built-in weak spot in the
system. When an abnormal amount of curr ent flows through the system, these
protective devices work as fo llows to protect the circuit:

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Circuit Breaker - a circuit breaker is basically a self-repairing fuse. It will
open the circuit in the same fashio n as a fuse, but when the surge
subsides, the circuit breaker can be reset and does not need
replacement.
• Fusible Link - a fusible link (fuse link or main link) is a short length of
special, high temperatur e insulated wire that acts as a fuse. When an
excessive electrical current passes th rough a fusible link, the thin gauge
wire inside the link melt s, creating an intentional open to protect the
circuit. To repair the circuit, the link must be replaced. Some newer type
fusible links are housed in plug-in modules, which are simply replaced
like a fuse, while older type fusible lin ks must be cut and spliced if they
melt. Since this link is very early in the electrical path, it's the first place to
look if nothing on the vehicle works, yet the battery seems to be charged
and is properly connected.
CAUTION - Always replace fuses, circ uit breakers and fusible links with
identically rated component s. Under no circumstances should a component of
higher or lower amperage rating be substituted.
SWITCHES & RELAYS
Switches are used in electrical circuits to control the passage of current. The
most common use is to open and close circuits between the battery and the
various electric devices in the system. Switches are rated according to the
amount of amperage they c an handle. If a sufficient amperage rated switch is
not used in a circuit, the switch could overload and cause damage.

Fig. 2: The underhood fuse and relay panel usually contains fuses, relays,
flashers and fusible links

GM – CAMARO 1982-1992 – Repair Guide (Checked by WxMax) 132
Some electrical components which require
a large amount of current to operate
use a special switch called a relay. Sinc e these circuits carry a large amount of
current, the thickness of the wire in the ci rcuit is also greater. If this large wire
were connected from the load to the c ontrol switch, the switch would have to
carry the high amperage load and the fair ing or dash would be twice as large to
accommodate the increased size of t he wiring harness. To prevent these
problems, a relay is used.
Relays are composed of a coil and a se t of contacts. When the coil has a
current passed though it, a magnetic fiel d is formed and this field causes the
contacts to move together, completing the circuit. Most relays are normally
open, preventing current from passing thr ough the circuit, but they can take any
electrical form depending on th e job they are intended to do. Relays can be
considered "remote control switches." They allow a smaller current to operate
devices that require higher amperages. W hen a small current operates the coil,
a larger current is allo wed to pass by the contacts. Some common circuits
which may use relays are the horn, headlight s, starter, electric fuel pump and
other high draw circuits.

Fig. 3: Relays are composed of a coil and a switch. These two components are
linked together so that w hen one operates, the other operat es at the same time.
The large wires in the circuit are connect ed from the battery to one side of the
relay switch (B+) and from the opposite side of the re lay switch to the load
(component). Smaller wires are connected from the relay coil to the control
switch for the circuit and from the opposite side of the relay coil to ground
LOAD
Every electrical circuit must include a "load" (something to use the electricity
coming from the source). Without this l oad, the battery would attempt to deliver
its entire power supply from one pole to another. This is called a "short circuit."
All this electricity would take a short cut to ground and cause a great amount of
damage to other components in the circui t by developing a tremendous amount
of heat. This condition could develop suffici ent heat to melt the insulation on all
the surrounding wires and reduce a multiple wire cable to a lump of plastic and
copper.

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accidental grounding. It is al
so advisable to include a standard automotive fuse
in any jumper wire. This is commonly referred to as a "fused jumper". By
inserting an in-line fuse holder between a set of test leads, a fused jumper wire
can be used for bypassing open circuits. Use a 5 amp fuse to provide protection
against voltage spikes.
Jumper wires are used primarily to locate open electrical circuits, on either the
ground (—) side of the circuit or on the power (+) side. If an electrical
component fails to operate, connect t he jumper wire between the component
and a good ground. If the component operates only with the jumper installed,
the ground circuit is open. If the ground circuit is good, but the component does
not operate, the circuit between the power feed and component may be open.
By moving the jumper wire successively back from the component toward the
power source, you can isolate the area of the circuit where the open is located.
When the component stops func tioning, or the power is cut off, the open is in
the segment of wire between the jumper and the point previously tested.
You can sometimes connect the jumper wir e directly from the battery to the
"hot" terminal of the component, but firs t make sure the component uses 12
volts in operation. Some electrical components, such as fuel injectors or
sensors, are designed to operate on about 4 to 5 volts, and running 12 volts
directly to these components will cause damage.
TEST LIGHTS

Fig. 1: A 12 volt test light is used to detect the presence of voltage in a circuit
The test light is used to check circuits and components while electrical current is
flowing through them. It is used for volt age and ground tests. To use a 12 volt
test light, connect the ground clip to a good ground and probe wherever
necessary with the pick. The test light will illuminate when voltage is detected.
This does not necessarily mean that 12 volts (or any particular amount of

GM – CAMARO 1982-1992 – Repair Guide (Checked by WxMax) 137
voltage) is present; it only means that so
me voltage is present. It is advisable
before using the test light to touch its ground clip and probe across the battery
posts or terminals to make sure the light is operating properly.
WARNING - Do not use a test light to probe electronic ignition, spark plug or
coil wires. Never use a pick-type test light to probe wiring on computer
controlled systems unless spec ifically instructed to do so. Any wire insulation
that is pierced by the test light pr obe should be taped and sealed with silicone
after testing
Like the jumper wire, the 12 volt test li ght is used to isolate opens in circuits.
But, whereas the jumper wire is used to bypass the open to operate the load,
the 12 volt test light is us ed to locate the presence of voltage in a circuit. If the
test light illuminates, there is power up to t hat point in the circuit; if the test light
does not illuminate, there is an open circui t (no power). Move the test light in
successive steps back toward the power source until the light in the handle
illuminates. The open is between the pr obe and a point which was previously
probed.
The self-powered test light is similar in design to the 12 volt test light, but
contains a 1.5 volt penlight battery in the handle. It is most often used in place
of a multimeter to check for open or shor t circuits when power is isolated from
the circuit (continuity test).
The battery in a self-powered test light does not provide much current. A weak
battery may not provide enough power to illuminate the test light even when a
complete circuit is made (especially if there is high resistance in the circuit).
Always make sure that the test battery is strong. To check the battery, briefly
touch the ground clip to the pr obe; if the light glows brightly, the battery is strong
enough for testing.
A self-powered test light should not be used on any co mputer controlled system
or component. The small amount of electr icity transmitted by the test light is
enough to damage many electr onic automotive components.
MULTIMETERS
Multimeters are an extremely useful tool for troubleshooting electrical problems.
They can be purchased in either analog or digital form and have a price range
to suit any budget. A multimeter is a voltmeter, ammeter and ohmmeter (along
with other features) combined into one instrument. It is often used when testing
solid state circuits because of its hi gh input impedance (usually 10 megaohms
or more). A brief description of the mult imeter main test functions follows:
• Voltmeter - the voltmeter is used to measure voltage at any point in a
circuit, or to measure the voltage drop across any part of a circuit.
Voltmeters usually have various scales and a selector switch to allow the
reading of different volt age ranges. The voltmeter has a positive and a
negative lead. To avoid damage to the meter, always connect the
negative lead to the negative (—) side of the circ uit (to ground or nearest

GM – CAMARO 1982-1992 – Repair Guide (Checked by WxMax) 138
the ground side of the circuit) and
connect the positive lead to the
positive (+) side of the circuit (to t he power source or the nearest power
source). Note that the negative voltme ter lead will always be black and
that the positive voltmeter will alwa ys be some color other than black
(usually red).
• Ohmmeter - the ohmmeter is designed to read resistance (measured in
ohms) in a circuit or component. Mo st ohmmeters will have a selector
switch which permits the measurement of different ranges of resistance
(usually the selector swit ch allows the multiplication of the meter reading
by 10, 100, 1,000 and 10,000). Some ohmmeters are "auto-ranging"
which means the meter itself will dete rmine which scale to use. Since the
meters are powered by an internal battery, the ohmmeter can be used
like a self-powered test light. When the ohmmeter is connected, current
from the ohmmeter flows through the ci rcuit or component being tested.
Since the ohmmeter's internal resi stance and voltage are known values,
the amount of current flow throug h the meter depends on the resistance
of the circuit or component being test ed. The ohmmeter can also be used
to perform a continuity test for suspected open circuits. In using the
meter for making continuity checks, do not be concerned with the actual
resistance readings. Zero resistance, or any ohm reading, indicates
continuity in the circui t. Infinite resistance indi cates an opening in the
circuit. A high resistance reading w here there should be none indicates a
problem in the circuit. Checks for s hort circuits are made in the same
manner as checks for open circuits, ex cept that the circuit must be
isolated from both power and normal gr ound. Infinite resistance indicates
no continuity, while zero resi stance indicates a dead short.
WARNING - Never use an ohmmeter to check the resistance of a component or
wire while there is volt age applied to the circuit
• Ammeter - an ammeter measures the am ount of current flowing through
a circuit in units called amperes or amps. At normal operating voltage,
most circuits have a characteristic amount of amperes, called "current
draw" which can be measured usi ng an ammeter. By referring to a
specified current draw rating, then measuring the amperes and
comparing the two values, one can det ermine what is happening within
the circuit to aid in diagnosis. An open circuit, for example, will not allow
any current to flow, so the amme ter reading will be zero. A damaged
component or circuit will have an incr eased current draw, so the reading
will be high. The ammeter is always connected in series with the circuit\

being tested. All of the current that normally flows through the circuit
must also flow through the ammeter; if there is any other path for the
current to follow, the ammeter readi ng will not be accurate. The ammeter
itself has very little resistance to curr ent flow and, therefore, will not affect
the circuit, but it will measure current draw only when the circuit is closed
and electricity is flowing. Excessive current draw can blow fuses and
drain the battery, while a reduced current draw can cause motors to run \
slowly, lights to dim and other components to not operate properly.

GM – CAMARO 1982-1992 – Repair Guide (Checked by WxMax) 141
4. To isolate the short, probe a test point
at either end of the isolated circuit
(the light should be on or the mete r should indicate continuity).
5. Leave the test light probe engaged and sequentiall y open connectors or
switches, remove parts, etc. until t he light goes out or continuity is
broken.
6. When the light goes out, the shor t is between the last two circuit
components which were opened.
VOLTAGE
This test determines voltage available fr om the battery and should be the first
step in any electrical troubleshooting pr ocedure after visual inspection. Many
electrical problems, especially on co mputer controlled systems, can be caused
by a low state of charge in the battery. Excessive corrosion at the battery cable
terminals can cause poor contact that will prevent proper charging and f\
ull
battery current flow.
1. Set the voltmeter selector switch to the 20V position.
2. Connect the multimeter negative lead to the battery's negative (-) post or
terminal and the positive lead to t he battery's positive (+) post or
terminal.
3. Turn the ignition switch ON to provide a load.
4. A well charged battery should register over 12 volts. If the meter reads
below 11.5 volts, the battery power may be insufficient to operate the
electrical system properly.
VOLTAGE DROP

Fig. 2: This voltage drop test revealed high resistance (low voltage) in the circuit