Non-Start Issue

[livewirevoodoo]

Where to start with my non-start issue? I know the battery is good. I turn the ignition, no turn over, no tach needle bounce. The dash lights dim a bit, but that is all.

Only thing I noticed the past two days was that when turning the key the starter(?) felt alot "looser", if that makes sense... In that it seemed to keep spinning a second or two after the engine kicked in... Any thoughts anyone? TIA.

[fast924S]

have the starter tested, might be a bad starter silinoid

[Eldorado]

try push starting it.
if it fires right up, it's the starter, or the wiring for the starter..

[fast924S]

hes got a auto I believe, pop starting wont work

[livewirevoodoo]

Correct. Its a 3 speeder.

The starter looks easy a pie to remove. Can it be bench tested and measured reliably?

Fast, do you know any place in the southern CT area that repairs/rebuilds starters? If I have to pay pelican $145+ core so be it, but the shipping delays (weekend is upon us too) would suck kak.

Anyone care to share what they paid on starter repairs so I can get a ballpark?

Thanks.

[fast924S]

OK, Jack up the car and put the e-brake on, get under the car with a hammer and have someone keep clicking the key to start while you tap the silinoid with the hammer, if it starts then its a bad silinoid, Or you can unbolt the starter and connect direct batter power to it and see if it spins. There is a place right down the road from me called WESTEND I believe that rebuilts starters/alt for like 40 bucks or something its in guilford off of rout 1. I will see if I can get the number for you tomorrow

[BananaClip]

solenoid

[auh]

Originally posted by fast924S
hes got a auto I believe, pop starting wont work

I think i learned in auto shop class once that on older autos, if the car is going faster than 35mph a drop from N to D should start it...not sure if you really wanna try though

[924Sman]

No tach movement I would look hard at the speed sensors.

[Razorback1980]

Try getting a multimeter and reading the volts on the battery....should be in the 13 to 14 range. Then take the multimeter and check the voltage on the starter solenoid...should be the same. If not, look at the battery cable or the connection on the solenoid. If so, then check the voltage on the other wire on the solenoid...with the key in the start position which means you'll need an extra hand there. If there is no voltage there, then it's the switch key. If there is voltage there but the starter still doesn't turn, then it's inside the starter or a ground. With the lights being dim, I'm thinking it's more of a not enough power to turn the starter over problem or switch key. My first step would be to take the power cable off the starter solenoid and clean it very well and check the voltage on that end of the battery cable. I think you are going to fix the problem at that point. Please do not try and push start the car...it may damage your transmission. This should be a relatively easy problem to fix. You should also check your grounds for loose corroded connections as the ground cable can cause the same thing. You can use the ohm meter to check to see if you are getting full ohms through the ground cable. Keep us informed of what you find.

Of course you can also take your starter off and take it to an auto parts store and they will check it for free. That's what I did with mine...nothing special about a Porsche starter that will keep the techs there from being able to test it. I paid $150 for my last starter and I bought it from O'Reilly as they could get it to me in a couple of hours. It's worked okay for me but I'm not saying they all will. With rebuilt, it's always a guessing game IMO.

[livewirevoodoo]

Razor - thanks for the walk thru. Starter is bieng bench tested today. Hopefully just sloppy grounds.

Fast - I spoke w/ Westend. Soonest they could have it back to me is Tuesday Couldn't give me a price without inspecting it. Wanted $180 for a rebuilt one, wouldn't be in till tuesday.

Per the benchtest, if I need to replace I'll go with Pelican ($145 + overnight) with a 1 year warranty.

Thanks for the help everyone.

[auh]

I hate to take away business from Pelican but check out www.********.com they have the cheapest online prices

944 starters start at 103 plus shipping