C3 electrical problem

my 72 did that once battery positive terminal on battery was loose. if u have no headlights its the battery or the connections

=========== Did you attempt to do anything besides sit in the car and wait until the power returned?,...

Just last week I suggested on this list that the ground cables have been know to corrode inside... your problem may be very similar .

Check the Battery & Check the Gorund at the frame...

No fun I know...been there done that

Bopb G...

I replaced both the ground cables (battery and engine). Car runs great but I still have the same problem. When I turn the car off All power goes out. In a minute of two the car is fine and will start and run great. When I stopped the car and had no power, I noticed that the tach does not return to 0 but stays at the rpms that the engine was at when the car was turned off. Also when the power comes back on if I turn the key to on (engine not running) and off the tach goes to 0 but if I turn the key back on (engine still not running) the tech jumps a few hundred rpms (from 0 to about 400). I also hear a bong sound. Thanks for the help.

I recently had the same problem with my El Camino and get this, when it went dead I'd push on the horn, it would blow and power would be restored. "Magic" There was a short in the horn wiring that caused the entire electrical system to shut down. Anyhow, I had bought a custom steering wheel so I when I replaced it I wanted to look at the wiring for the horn but everything just popped out when I pulled the horn so I couldn't see where the wiring problem was. Once I replaced the steering wheel and installed the new horn button I never had the problem again. What I'm trying to say is you've probably got a short somewhere. Either that or the ignition switch is on the way out. Good Luck.

Tony