'87 S starter won't engage

[Flormat]

First off the battery is good. I'm at work and went to fire up the girl to go and grab some chow. The starter turned the engine over once very slowly then it just stopped turning. When I try to engage the starter there is no click or sound of any kind- absolute silence. Being that I'm at work my troubleshooting capabilities are limited. The archives seem to indicate the starter connections can get corroded. If this were the case would a shot of WD-40 give some juice back to it? I should also add that in the a.m. while starting the car to head to work the starter turned slow- but I just figured that was because it was pretty cold out. Any ideas are greatly appreciated.

[SoCal Driver]

Large cable from the battery to the starter. Check and clean the connections at both ends. That is; take them off and sandpaper/scrape them. If still no go could be the cable itself. Tends to corrode inside the insulation at both ends especially in a wet salty environment.

This is predicated on a good battery and starter.

Check the charging voltage at the battery. High 13's to low 14's is best. If you don't get this then think loose belt or voltage regulator (in the back of the alternator).

Starter would need to be pulled and bench tested.

Then this could just be the ignition switch. Think there is a plug over the top drivers side of the engine that is the circuit to engergize the solenoid. Could stick a test light on this to see if the switch is working.

[ronin]

if Hugh's suggestions don't yield results, the starter is likely gone. starters will do what you described when the coil departs for the next plane of existence. the starter will turn slower and slower (as if the battery were losing its charge) with occasional "normal" bursts until it finally gives up all-together. fortunately, they're not difficult to change. did mine in about 30 minutes (give or take)

[palaxdad]

I just replaced a starter on an early '85. got a rebuilt one from CarQuest for around $80.00.