BATTERY INTERMITTENTLY GOES DEAD/REPAIR PROCEDURE

VEHICLES AFFECTED: 1986-1988 E CAR

If the above mentioned condition is encountered on the subject vehicles and all normal repair attempts fail to correct the condition, the cause may be the CRT.

If a battery drain is identifiable with an ammeter in series with the negative battery cable, note the amount of the drain. If the drain is in the area of 2.0 amps, remove the CPS fuse (#5). If the drain then goes away, the cause is probably the CRT staying powered up. In this condition the CRT will not give any indication, with the exception the CRT case will be warm to the touch. The particular item in question is an internal relay in the CRT case that operates the heater filament for the CRT tube. This relay may fail causing the contacts to stick together. If this is found to be the problem, the only correction is to install an exchange CRT from an appropriate repair centre. This relay is not replaceable at the dealership. Neither is it replaceable by the repair centre. It will be necessary to request a unit that has been sent back to Zenith (the original manufacturer) for remanufacture.

Zenith, after remanufacture, applies a label to the top of the CRT case to indicate the revision level of the changes performed. A revision level of " K "or higher (example K, L, M, etc.) is mandatory to correct this condition as it indicates that a special gold-contact relay was installed. If a unit of a lower revision level is installed, the same condition may occur.

Serial number breakpoint for the 1988 models Rivieras is JU405500. Reatta models were modified from the start of production and should not be included.

If an AC Delco repair centre is not familiar with this procedure, they should refer to Delco Electronics bulletin 8909T, dated September 1989, describing the revision identification.

General Motors bulletins are intended for use by professional technicians, not a "do-it-yourselfer". They are written to inform those technicians of conditions that may occur on some vehicles, or to provide information that could assist in the proper service of a vehicle. Properly trained technicians have the equipment, tools, safety instructions and know-how to do a job properly and safely. If a condition is described, do not assume that the bulletin applies to your vehicle, or that your vehicle will have that condition. See a General Motors dealer servicing your brand of General Motors vehicle for information on whether your vehicle may benefit from the information.