Awe Crap, not another 'My Car Won't Start' thread...

[unclebilly]

OK, my car car won't start sometimes...

I turn the key and get a faint click so here's what I did...

#1 Cleaned the battery terminals.

#2 Replaced the starter solenoid. This seemed to make the problem occur more frequently.

#3 Cleaned the terminals at the starter. I really thought I had it this time....

#4 Ordered new ignition switch (probably not the problem because the solenoid does go 'Click'.

What are some other possibilities?

Engine grounding strap - looks OK but???

Any other ideas? One thought I have is low battery - I should check the fluid level.

[87coupe]

Have you checked the battery with a multimeter? What's it reading?

[unclebilly]

Not yet but I will in the morning.

[RoninLB]

could even be a dirty battery connection. If it clicks the sol should be ok.. confirmed by a new sol.

[Driver Ed]

It could also be the starter motor. Many years ago in high school, I had a part-time job rebuilding starter motors for a shop that specialized in electrical diagnosis and repair. One of the things we always replaced was the "Bendix" (which is more properly called the over-running clutch as in Ronin's diagram.) As you can see from the diagram, it's supposted to slide along the shaft to engage the pinion gear with the flywheel, but sometimes they forget to slide. If that happens, then all you'll get is a faint click, since the solenoid plunger can't move except for whatever slop there is in the linkage, and the starter motor never turns because the plunger hasn't engaged the starter motor contacts.

[unclebilly]

DE - Ya know, I think you're on to something there because the benix wa sticky and difficult to slide to install / uninstall the solenoid.

Ronin, that relay (some) that you show - is that in the smuggler's box?

[RoninLB]

Originally posted by unclebilly

Ronin, that relay (some) that you show - is that in the smuggler's box?

the whole pic is a simple elec dia of the starter solenoid. That
"relay (some)" is when a relay is used to connect the solenoid triggering power to a better source of electricity than the wire from the starter switch/ignition switch. In our cars the yellow wire going to the solenoid would trigger a relay instead. It was not a factory installed design in our cars.

Installing a relay may be considered a fix when our solenoid yellow wire or ignition switch fails to deliver the necessary current to enable the solenoid to function.

And DE's very nice thread and info should lead to a routine greasing of the shaft anytime the starter is removed from a small boat. I guess the same routine for a wet area like Washington as I do here at home in a place like Long Beach NY. Me bad assuming the Bendix orifice and shaft was greased and manually worked.

[unclebilly]

OK, so I pulled it apart and cleaned up the shaft and the bendix real good and lubed 'er up with White Lithium Grease and it solved the problem completely... until this evening.

What type of grease should I be using here?

[Early_S_Man]

Valvoline SynPower Synthetic Grease with moly #985 or #986 ...