But did it spin over quickly? If it did not you have starter problems or connection problems, but you said you checked all the connections.

Well honestly I dont think so. "BRR RR BRR RR" sounds came with about 2 "Brr RR" sounds per second..

Is that fast?

Chris,

Yes, just as Ron said, I recommend regular cleaning and lubing for the solenoid and bendix mechanism ... every two years or so, regardless of mileage!

It sounds like your starter isn't performing correctly, and a good SR-68 Bosch starter works perfectly well on stock European 3.2's with 10.3:1 compression. And, apparently they work on 3.6 conversions as well.

Either disassemble, clean, and lube your current starter solenoid and bendix assembly with a synthetic high-temperature grease with moly such as Valvoline SynPower grease #986 ... or replace the starter.

No, take Warren's advice, clean and lubricate the old starter or pony up the bucks for a new one. Based on what you said about the starter from last year, maybe buying a new one is the way to go.

Trying to get the SOB out now...

Chris--

I'd recommend going with the hig-torque starter if you replace. Take a look at this thread on removal/replacement procedure:

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-911-technical-forum/96783-engine-drop-starter-replacement.html

"Okay, I turned over the motor for 15 seconds without plugs or spark..."
--- so did the battery die under no/very little load??


"Positive cable is not warm. "
--- your not loading the system with plugs out.. so little current draw.. so battery shouldn't need a charge

Chris,

750 CCA is plenty ... it sounds like you have a problem with your battery.

Did you charge the new Optima battery ovenight prior to installing it in the car? They MUST be charged before initial use! Hopefully, that is your actual problem, because it sounds like you are only working off a 'surface charge' ... not a fully charged battery!

Warren.

Yes. I have a Sears charger... 10 AMP deep cycle that was left on overnight... Even tried jumping the battery with a known good one with the same problem.

Just for grins, I put it on a 2 amp trickle charge overnight last night though, and still got major drain after cranking the motor for 15 seconds with no spark plugs...

I had this symptom with my 5 year old optima, so I bought a new one. Same problem with this one....

I'm going to run a load on it for 10 minutes though and see where the voltage ends up... Just to be sure.

Battery is reading 12.5 volts. Will check later to see voltage drop while starting.

Chris,

That sounds pretty low for a supposedly fully-charged battery! It may be just a variation in meters, but I normally expect 12.7 - 13.0 Volts from a fresh, fully-charged battery.

Warren as many times as Chris has run down and charged up that Optima, isn't it possible he has already killed it, or at least put a serious hurt to it? Perhaps a new battery might be in order also. Chris this is putting a serious dent in your "racer" image. A 5 month rebuild held up by a slow starter!:D

Kurt,

Yes, that does seem possible. Optimas are pretty picky about the charge rates, and the red tops can be damaged by being run-down all the way, as well as being charged at too high a rate -- anything above 10 Amps, according to their website info.

Chris,

Do you have another battery you could 'borrow' just for test purposes, maybe a conventional battery???

Warren, I do. Got a conventional lead-acid int he truck that I can "jump" in. (Can i do this efectively?)

Just finished cleaning all the contacts, re-ionstalled the starter and it definitely seems to turn over a bit better now. Didn't get that tough first few cycles. It didn't FIRE mind you, but turned over easier.

Battery read 12.6 volts before I tried this. It did run down though after 5-6 good 7 second cranks.

Think I'll try the other battery and double check I'm getting spark... This would be a real pisser if a bung battery was causing all this... But this is the second battery to do it...

How long is it safe to leave a battery on a 10 or 2 amp charge? (Will it get warm before damage?) SHOULD it be warm when fully charged? Heck, maybe my charger is crap...

Oh, and none of the wires were warm after all this cranking, hell, even the starter was barely warm...

Chris I don't mean to insult your intelligence, but have you checked the timing? Too far advanced can definitely make the engine hard to turn over. Too far retarded and the engine just spins. Are you even getting a spark? Fuel?

Sounds like progress Chris. Good work. I have a 10AMP charger that will lower the current automatically (do they all do that?). Does your charger do that, if not, let me know and I can drop it off tonight.

Kurt, I think he's just checking the the starter now.

Here's the thread on the motor details;

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/porsche-911-technical-forum/102751-webers-bogging-transition-how-do-i-fix.html

Chris,

If you have a set of heavy 4 ga, jumper cables, I don't see why you couldn't just clip them directly to your 911's battery cables ... after disconnecting the Optima [they can and will sometimes explode] and leave the battery still in your truck.

If you need to replace it and want to go the high torque way, shop around...

I found a place (in New Zealand), which made a custom mounting flange (copying my mighty 0.8hp Bosch one) for a 2kw (that 2.7hp!) Nippon Denso starter. It rips over my 10.5:1 short stroke 3.2 hot or cold (the 0.8hp couldn't turn over a hot engine). The place that did it specialises in starters.

Cost was NZ$350 from memory. With exchange rates the way they are going, that has gone up to about US$200. It was US$175 at the time though.