Re: '88 5000cstq electric gremlins

[audistuff@juno.com (Paul R Anderson)]

On Mon, 27 Oct 1997 10:19:09 -0500 (EST) StevenM659@aol.com writes:
>I have a 5000cstq w/problems of electric problem-the car keeps on 
>goint dead
>after overnight or a few hours of being parked. My mechanic has been
>sleuthing it out but here some issues - the elctirc antenna is stuck 
>down and
>seems to be running sometimes even on its own. My wife noticed it in 
>the
>upright position with radio off. Then she slammed the rear door and 
>the
>antenna went down. It is now stuck in the down position. She noticed 
>the
>whirring sound (sounded like it was running) before she opened the 
>door, even
>though the radio was off. ALso I found water (@2 inches) in the bottom 
>left
>of the trunk compartment-could this be a problem?. This car has 
>113,000 miles
>and in great shape but will have to go if this continues and it won't 
>start
>reliably. Any ideas or suggestion welcome. Any idea about replacing 
>the
>antenna at a reasonable price? Thank you. Steve Meyrich - 
>StevenM659@aol.com
>


You can determine if this is your problem by disconnecting the wire to
the antenna.  There should be a drain hole in the well in your trunk,
Find it
and clear it.  If you get the water problem fixed (first priority) and
discover
the antenna is faulty, J.C. Whitney has an electric antenna on sale for
about $34.  It's not original equip. but they work.  As I recall, the
antenna is
powered by a relay.  The switching comes from the radio.  I suppose it
is possible that the radio is fouled up and is sending switching power
to the relay but, more than likely, it is the relay.

Good luck


Paul Anderson, Cheyenne, WY  87 5000SQ, 84 5000CST, 82 VW Quantum