Kendog 170
Let the boy go !
My dart was doing that. I could jump the starter relay with a screwdriver and it would start. Finally found bad ground terminal on battery.
Click,Click,Click!
- Thread starter olddman
- Start date
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I have had grounds do this, bad cables do this and batteries also.
The tell tale is the power to everything else dropping out.
When i take the engine ground off i inspect it closely and look for evidence of arcing. Also, lock washers arent great for battery cables. No washer gives more surface area to pass current.
Clean bright and tight!
Glad its solved.
Test system after you make one change,this way you know what fixed it.
The tell tale is the power to everything else dropping out.
When i take the engine ground off i inspect it closely and look for evidence of arcing. Also, lock washers arent great for battery cables. No washer gives more surface area to pass current.
Clean bright and tight!
Glad its solved.
Test system after you make one change,this way you know what fixed it.
67Dart273
Well-Known Member
Many of you guys would do well to learn a bit of troubleshooting. With voltmeter. And forget "grounds." Wood boats don't have grounds and neither does a 12V car battery. It is a plastic box with two terminals. ANYTHING in the circular path from the neg terminal of the battery and back to the positive terminal that has enough voltage drop will cause the starter to act up. This can be right in the battery clamp--to cable connection, corrosion within the cable itself, again at the cable to eyelet terminal, and a loose or rusty connection where the eyelet bolts to the starter stud or the engine block
There can EVEN be a bad connection within the battery (cell to cell connections and I had that happen once)
Start by doing whatever is necessaary to get at least 10V and better is more right at the starter and the starter case.
Voltmeter is bare minimum, a test lamp can be a help, and the use of a "carbon pile" battery tester is creme on the top
When I troubleshoot, "to start with" until I have proven otherwise, I use the engine block as the "lowest common point." That is where I hook the meter neg test probe. If necessary, "rig" a big long wire long enough to reach wherever you are going----to the rear of the car if that is where you are working or where the battery is located
Remember that CURRENT DRAW is what causes VOLTAGE DROP. You cannot find a voltage drop without putting a LOAD on the circuit. Matters not if it's a light circuit or a starter. You need load.
A remoter starter switch can be useful if you don't have a wife, teenage son or other "help."
Don't be afraid to try to eliminate things and simplify the circuit. Later you can worry about whether that part is working OK
If the starter won't crank, figure a way to jumper power to the solenoid. You have just eliminated a whole bunch of wiring, the neutral safety circuit, the ignition switch. if it won't crank, suspect even the big wire from the relay down to the solenoid. Jumper it there, right at the starter. If that does nothing good, all you have left is the starter, cables, battery and connections.
There can EVEN be a bad connection within the battery (cell to cell connections and I had that happen once)
Start by doing whatever is necessaary to get at least 10V and better is more right at the starter and the starter case.
Voltmeter is bare minimum, a test lamp can be a help, and the use of a "carbon pile" battery tester is creme on the top
When I troubleshoot, "to start with" until I have proven otherwise, I use the engine block as the "lowest common point." That is where I hook the meter neg test probe. If necessary, "rig" a big long wire long enough to reach wherever you are going----to the rear of the car if that is where you are working or where the battery is located
Remember that CURRENT DRAW is what causes VOLTAGE DROP. You cannot find a voltage drop without putting a LOAD on the circuit. Matters not if it's a light circuit or a starter. You need load.
A remoter starter switch can be useful if you don't have a wife, teenage son or other "help."
Don't be afraid to try to eliminate things and simplify the circuit. Later you can worry about whether that part is working OK
If the starter won't crank, figure a way to jumper power to the solenoid. You have just eliminated a whole bunch of wiring, the neutral safety circuit, the ignition switch. if it won't crank, suspect even the big wire from the relay down to the solenoid. Jumper it there, right at the starter. If that does nothing good, all you have left is the starter, cables, battery and connections.
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