Battery cut off switch

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ScottD
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Battery cut off switch

Post by ScottD »

Hi, I have an Austrian 712, and today the battery cut off switch stopped working. I drove around, and when I parked, I turned the cutoff "key" to the off position, and it did not disconnect power. When I undid one of the battery terminals, I could hear what sounded like a solenoid click, and the power went off. I could then turn it back on with the cutoff "key", but again it would stay on when I moved the "key to the off position until I disconnected the battery terminal.

Have others seen this, and is it just a dirty or faulty switch in the cutoff box?
Thanks
Scott
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David Dunn
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Re: Battery cut off switch

Post by David Dunn »

Did you turn the ignition switch off before turning the main disconnect off ? If not, the solenoid is there to protect the alternator.

If you did turn the ignition off, it could be a bad ignition switch. Also, has any wiring been added where it went back to the batteries directly? This could defeat (and usually does) the disconnect switch.
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The Trojan Horse... the 1st Pinz used to covertly carry troops into battle .




ATL Pinzgauer XM 718K TUM(HD) 6x6 FFR (aka The Green Grail)
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ScottD
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Re: Battery cut off switch

Post by ScottD »

Thank you for the reply. The ignition switch was set to off before turning the battery cutoff switch off. With the ignition off, the cutoff switch will correctly turn on the solenoid. Once the solenoid is on, the ignition works normally, but the cutoff switch will not disconnect the solenoid. I have to disconnect a battery terminal to get it to turn off the solenoid.

There are things connected directly to the battery, but they have been working fine for years and this just started. I can disconnect those things to see if they have any effect on the trouble.

The ignition switch works in that the truck works when the solenoid is activated, does that still point to a possible faulty ignition switch?
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David Dunn
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Re: Battery cut off switch

Post by David Dunn »

Send me your phone number in a pm
It sounds like it is working correctly considering an additional leads to the batteries which can blow out electronics added.
The solenoid engauges with the engine running
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The Trojan Horse... the 1st Pinz used to covertly carry troops into battle .




ATL Pinzgauer XM 718K TUM(HD) 6x6 FFR (aka The Green Grail)
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ScottD
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Location: New Hampshire, USA

Re: Battery cut off switch

Post by ScottD »

Thought I should get back to everyone with what the fix was. As suggested above, an accessory connected directly to the battery (bypassing the cutoff switch) provided a parallel current path that caused the solenoid activated by the cutoff switch to stay powered. Thanks for the detailed info from forum members!
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ScottD
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Joined: Mon Jan 02, 2017 8:57 pm
Location: New Hampshire, USA

Re: Battery cut off switch

Post by ScottD »

Thought I should get back to everyone with what the fix was. As suggested above, an accessory connected directly to the battery (bypassing the cutoff switch) provided a parallel current path that caused the solenoid activated by the cutoff switch to stay powered. Thanks for the detailed info from forum members!
Texas710
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Re: Battery cut off switch

Post by Texas710 »

Thank you for the update, It bugs me when a topic doesn't close out. Glad you found the culprit.
lifefloat
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Re: Battery cut off switch

Post by lifefloat »

Forgive me reviving this post after it had a happy ending but I am kinda wondering how an accessory device would have caused this problem. Was it an accessory that was somehow an integral part of the Pinzgauer electrical system?

Case in point, at the moment I have a dedicated 24V fuse block that is tapped and fused off the batteries. It is independent of the electrical system of the vehicle so to speak. If the cutoff switch is in either the on or off position this fuse block is always hot. So am I correct in my interpretation of this thread the OP 's issue was his accessory was somehow tied into the Pinzgauer wiring after receiving a tap off the battery?
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ScottD
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Re: Battery cut off switch

Post by ScottD »

Yes, in my case it was a set of solenoids that I use to send power to a winch.
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David Dunn
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Re: Battery cut off switch

Post by David Dunn »

lifefloat wrote: Fri Oct 22, 2021 6:25 am Case in point, at the moment I have a dedicated 24V fuse block that is tapped and fused off the batteries. It is independent of the electrical system of the vehicle so to speak. If the cutoff switch is in either the on or off position this fuse block is always hot. So am I correct in my interpretation of this thread the OP 's issue was his accessory was somehow tied into the Pinzgauer wiring after receiving a tap off the battery?
His problem was running a ground wire back to the batteries, , with solenoids on both hot and ground leads. Though he normally had the solenoids off, someone left it on creating a ground back to the batteries , negating the cutoff switch.

IF you add any electrical equipment to your gas Pinz and run a ground wire back to the batteries, you stand a chance to make those items a chassis ground and fry them if happen to open the cutoff switch and try to start the Pinz ...Without the large gauge of the negative cable, the ground will look to any path back to the batteries, and the equipment chassis, circuit boards and wires will be it.

The 716 and 718s have the cutoff switch on the positive side and allows for wires to go to the batteries (FYI, They have 2 circuits that are always hot. no matter if the c/o switch is on or off)
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The Trojan Horse... the 1st Pinz used to covertly carry troops into battle .




ATL Pinzgauer XM 718K TUM(HD) 6x6 FFR (aka The Green Grail)
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