911 wont start...Again!! starter cable?

[jgurnari]

911 Carerra 3.2 has new battery, new starter.

How difficult is replacing the starter cable that attaches to the chassis?

Will I need to have the engine dropped?!

I had trouble recently trying to find figure out why it started periodically and found loose ground, car started for 2 months a once and again it will not...not even periodically.

not sure what it could be this time, will check for loose connections again first.

Could it be the starter cable?...of course could be anything!

Starter strap more likely? never replace either one.

Thanks

[sugarwood]

Would a bad tranny ground strap cause no crank?

[911obgyn]

I imagine it would
Double check grounds, use some silicone grease on them so they don’t corrode, the yellow wire to the starter from the ignition switch goes through 2 or 3 connectors on its way to the solinoid use a switch and wire clips with wire to make a remote starter or buy one and jump the starter to see if it’s the circuit or starter

[Oneredspyder]

Is the fuel pump going on? Do the lights go on? Is It the relay under the driver seat?

[juanbenae]

Originally Posted by jgurnari

911 Carerra 3.2 has new battery, new starter.

did you crawl under it to do the starter and battery replacement yourself?? or did a shop do this?

did it exhibit the same fail to start symptoms prior to the new battery and starter? if not why were they replaced, specifically the starter?

when you say you found a loose ground if not the neutral side of the battery what ground was it?

seems English might be a second language?

[jlex]

You say it doesn't "start".... does it at least crank?

[Dan J]

I once had an 88 that was an intermittent no start that drove me crazy
until I did a voltage drop test and found that the positive battery terminal was corroded inside
A voltage drop test is kinda old school but very effective

[sugarwood]

Originally Posted by Dan J

I once had an 88 that was an intermittent no start that drove me crazy
until I did a voltage drop test and found that the positive battery terminal was corroded inside
A voltage drop test is kinda old school but very effective

Dan,
Can you recap the testing for voltage drop?

Is this right?

1. DVM is set do DC Volts
2. Black DVM lead connects to positive battery cable at the starter?
3. Red DVM lead connects to positive battery cable at the battery?
4. Crank car.

What should peak value read if the cable is good vs. bad?
Good means voltage drop of .5v?
Bad means no voltage drop?

[jgurnari]

Yes, a mechanic changed the starter out
Yes, I had this problem prior to the starter replacement, voltage test is good
No, it’s not that is not turning over I just get a click when turning the key

[T77911S]

do you have a car alarm, aftermarket.

check and clean all grounds

have you replaced the ignition SW.

take It to a parts store, they can test starters IN the car.

[jlex]

On my '88, about 20% of the time, I'd just get a click, then after a few more tries, it would turn over. Thought it was the starter going out, but decided to do the easy stuff first. Bought a new $10 braided ground that goes between the transaxle and the body and that cured it 100%. Starters require a lot of power. A corroded ground strap will place too much resistance on the circuit. $10 is a small price to pay to rule that out as a problem. Can get a replacement at any local parts store. Cleaning the connections alone did not help me...it wanted a new strap after 30 years!

[proporsche]

as T77..said ..we need more info in order to help you.........
1.any alarm
2. what year is your 911
3.do you recall factory alarm ..look at the drivers door if there is a slat for a key
4.look under the dash where the ignition is a take a picture of the wires so we can see them..Usually the big yellow wire is cut and aftermarket relay is inserted into the system

report back

Ivan

[cabmandone]

Key switch.
Go under the car (with jack stands in place obviously), have someone hit the key and check voltage at the solenoid coil wire. If there is 12 volts at the solenoid, check voltage at the main starter terminal, not the hot wire but the wire that will be hot once the circuit is completed. If you have 12 volts, your starter puked or you have something preventing the starter bendix from moving forward far enough to complete the circuit and energize the starter motor. The solenoid moves the bendix forward which completes the circuit to engage the starter motor.

[sugarwood]

Originally Posted by cabmando

Key switch.
Go under the car (with jack stands in place obviously), have someone hit the key and check voltage at the solenoid coil wire. If there is 12 volts at the solenoid, check voltage at the main starter terminal, not the hot wire but the wire that will be hot once the circuit is completed. .

Where is the solenoid coil wire?
Where is the main starter terminal?

For those of us following along at home, where do you place the red lead and the black lead?

[cabmandone]

The solenoid coil is the smaller wires that go on the male pins of the solenoid. Just to be sure when testing I put my negative lead on the transmission to chassis ground. I think keyed hot was the large yellow wire but you'd want to check that since it was last fall when I fought with my starter issue.

[sugarwood]

Do both yellow wires go to the same nut? So, red lead goes on to yellow wires stud, and black grounds to chassis. And you test for 12V?
If you do get 12V, then how do you test the "main starter terminal"?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WMXENKujYtc

[cabmandone]

Originally Posted by sugarwood

Do both yellow wires go to the same nut? So, red lead goes on to yellow wires stud, and black grounds to chassis. And you test for 12V? If you do get 12V, where is the "main starter terminal"?

You just blew my mind man. Let me go get a pic of my car and post it. My 85 has pins that take a female spade connector. I'm thinking your pic is of a SC?

Wait! I get you! You're talking the meter leads. Yes the red would go on the yellow terminal point and the black on the trans/chassis ground. The wire that goes hot once the solenoid makes full throw is the one on the bottom in your pic that doesn't have the heavy red wire.

I got under my car and there's only one yellow. I think the other wire was for cold start or something like that on a SC.

[T77911S]

the solenoid requires a LOT of current to pull in.
you CAN have 12v at the YEL wire and it still not work due to low current.

my brothers 911 had the same issue. random no start.
after he replaced the starter and IGN SW problem was still there.
I put a test light on the YEL wire and I could see there was a problem.
also, it was easy to compare the YEL wire to batt cable and see the difference.
turned out he had a car alarm.
the crimp at the relay was bad. (this is why I solder my connections)
I removed the relay and soldered in a butt splice and all was good,

if you want to use a MM, ground one lead to bare metal. it really does not matter which one, it may just read NEG voltage, but black goes to ground.

with a test light, same thing, ground the clip, compare the battery cable to the YEL wire.
I usually check a test light at the battery first to get an idea of how bright it is.

[cabmandone]

Just curious, how did a test light show you there was a problem? A test light only indicates voltage of above something like 10 volts. If current was the problem, an amp probe around the yellow wire would indicate current draw and show whether there was a problem.

[sugarwood]

Originally Posted by cabmando

Wait! I get you! You're talking the meter leads. Yes the red would go on the yellow terminal point and the black on the trans/chassis ground. The wire that goes hot once the solenoid makes full throw is the one on the bottom in your pic that doesn't have the heavy red wire.
.

Yellow terminal point? Don't see any wire on the bottom in my photo.
Never mind, too hard to learn from reading. Waste of both our time. Thanks for trying!