So what I thought originally was a dead starter, has turned to be something else.. I pulled the starter, jumped it on my workbench, and it worked fine! I put it back in the car, and it doesn't move at all. I pulled off the cables and gave them a good cleaning, and it still wont turn over.. Any opinions?
In order to diagnose any problem you need to provide way more info. An original car? An Av8 set up. 6 volt? 12 volt? How old is the battery? What shape is the wiring in? Could be as simple as a bad ground or dead battery to as ugly as dicked up wiring.
Sorry about that! It's an original car with a 6v system and a positive ground. Wiring's pretty decent. The battery is less than a month new. Now when I had the starter on my bench, I didn't test it with the switch on so that could be a problem... I took of the braided grounding strap, cleaned all the bolts and contacts and put it on. I however didn't clean the contact surface on the body, could that be affecting it?
the grounding strap going from the positive post of the battery is going to the body? on the stock `30 coupe i just helped with that strap went to the transmission i believe. i think a model A ford motor/transmissions mounted on rubber. then there would still be a need for a ground to the body and frame i assume
Will the engine turn over with the hand crank (you do have one of those?)? I usually ground mine from the battery to the frame and then run an extra ground to one of the bolts that holds the starter to the engine (see photo). Can you hear the starter engage but it just doesn't turn? Did you do anything to the car just before the problem started? Charlie Stephens
Follow the path of the current on both sides. One side should be pretty simple. Battery - post to solenoid / solenoid to starter. Other side = ground side + post to frame or engine/trans/ If it is grounded to the frame there has to be a strap from the frame to the engine. It's wise to also have a ground strap to the body. If you are following behind someone else you may have to correct what ever they did to make things work right. If you connect a volt meter from the battery side of the solenoid to the engine block do you get a good voltage reading? If you have a bad connection you will probably see a voltage drop due to the resistance in the bad connection.
Yeah, this is how it's grounded, should I relocate the ground? Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
I believe the "- cable" goes straight to the switch on the starter, if the solenoid is above the engine in the firewall, there's one small wire going from that to the starter switch too.. Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Don’t relocate the ground but do run a second cable from the bolt used for the ground to a bolt next to the starter (see picture). Some posts recommend a ground to the body also but I don’t usually do that. Having said that you can’t have too many grounds. Be sure all of the ground paths are bare metal. Remove the grounds and scrap/polish the down to bare metal. Be sure nobody painted the back of the starter or the flywheel housing. Your ground strap looks a little frayed. It might be time to replace it but be sure the new one is from a reputable supplier and intended for a 6-volt system. Charlie Stephens
So I just picked up some 2/0 wire for the grounds. Could it possibly be the solenoid on the firewall? I also read somewhere that people put the car in third and rock back, could that be beneficial to my situation? Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
In your picture in post #10 the battery cable goes to a switch on the starter. There should not be a starter solenoid on the firewall. You must be looking at something else, how about a picture? Rocking the car back and forth in third gear is to free a stuck bendix drive and that doesn't sound like your problem. Charlie Stephens
It seems I mistook the starter solenoid for the coil box. I'm hoping that by doing all new cables, it fixes this problem! Still haven't had time to break out the volt meter and check, I'll probably be doing that tonight! Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
The rectangular box attached to the firewall is the junction box for the wires. Some wires pass through but several looms end there and are connected to the next loom. You shouldn't find your problem there so don't open it. You can see this in the wiring diagram for your car. Another caution. If you remove the battery cable from the switch be careful when reinstalling it because you can twist the contact for the starter stud such that it will short on the side of the switch, either immediately or when it wears through the insulation. My advice would be to remove the switch from the starter and install the cable being careful that the contact strip is centered. Then screw the switch down to the starter. If there is a short it will be spectacular (please don't ask how I know). Charlie Stephens
Definitely made a note of that! Going to make some new cable's when I have time this week. I picked up some 2/0 Wire for the cables, I think I need to get a little more. I'm doing an oil change on my daily driver tomorrow so I'll pull the cables out and size the new ones to fit! Thank you Charlie, hopefully I can fix the small gremlins!
I think we are getting away from the real problem. Did you ever test the starter on the bench using the switch? Charlie Stephens
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