Odd starting issue. Clicks and does nothing.

[DeadlyScone]

I went out to my Car and tried to start it and got nothing. First thing i did was looked at the factory boost gauge and cel all checked out fine. Next i checked the starter relay, the ignition fuse, the battery fuse, and disconnected the clutch switch and still nothing. I figured it was the starter so me and my friend pushed it down the hill and it started that way. Got the new starter in And it still did not start. So we got the good ol volt meter out and tested the terminals on the starter. The hot lead read 13 and the other one read 0 even when trying to start it; although you can feel the solenoid moving in its casing. We recently installed a wb and moved the maf close to the tb. I also have a turbo timer btw. Any thoughts because me and my friends are out of ideas
Thanks,
Austin

 

[atownturbo]

Come on guys, I've thought of everything and it still not starting. They have tried everything on this list.
But might I ask Austin tomorrow go out and redo all the fuses. One time we put one in between the contacts and it took forever to find the problem.

Could this issue be caused by the starter plate?

http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/articles-miscellaneous/217951-how-diagnose-no-start.html

 

[DeadlyScone]

My ultimate guess is maybe we knocked loose one of the wires a) on the ecu or b) on the turbo timer harness.

 

[atownturbo]

How did you wire the turbo timer? Double check that. Also pull the ecu and see if any caps leaked.

 

[DeadlyScone]

I didnt wire it. What do you mean caps?

 

[WES_393]

Caps is short for Capacitors. They can leak electrolytes onto the circuit board. Here's a link to ECM Tuning's ECU repair page. The second set of pictures is typical cap leakage.

ecurepairhome [ECMTuning - wiki]

To me it sounds like you have a missing ground, especially the one at the top of the bell housing. If the car will bump start then I doubt it's the ECU. Wouldn't hurt to check it out though. My main focus would be finding all of the grounds and checking out the turbo timer since it seems to be an electrical problem betwen the ingition and the starter.

 

[DSM1G90]

Oh pooh..! Think of the obvious...how are the battery connections - metal clean, no corrosion and TIGHT?

 

[dsmtweeker]

Make sure tha your starter is grounded.

 

[atownturbo]

Oh pooh..! Think of the obvious...how are the battery connections - metal clean, no corrosion and TIGHT?

That's already been done.

 

[bryanwheat]

Have you tried to jump the starter at the solenoid to verify where the problem is. This is a rather simple issue to fix. If there is a good ground to the engine, and 13 volts to the starter than it will turn over by jumping the + terminal on the starter to the solenoid trigger wire. If it turns the engine over like that than you have a problem with the ignition switch, wiring from the ignition switch to starter relay, a bad starter relay, bad wiring from the relay to the starter or a bad ground to the relay. It will be one of those 5 things. If it does not turn the engine over and you have 13 volts going to it, than you have a ground problem. You should have one ground wire going to the bell housing where the starter bolts and one going to the firewall.

 

[Lofty]

Edit: woops

Its the solenoid tracer wire, if it's not the battery.

 

[DeadlyScone]

Iwas going to test the starter relay today with the 12v test in my workshop manual. If not i will manually start the starter like one of you said.
So bridge the hot 13v terminal to the small middle ground on the solenoid and this should make it start correct?

 

[steve]

So bridge the hot 13v terminal to the small middle ground on the solenoid and this should make it start correct?

It's not a ground, the spade connector is the trigger input for the solenoid. If you give it 12v it will activate the solenoid, and switch the battery connections to the starter motor which should engage the pinion with the flywheel ring gear and crank the engine.

If that works you'll have to figure out when the signal isn't making it from the ignition switch to the starter. Could be your turbo timer wiring, a bad clutch safety switch, or alarm (factory or aftermarket) in addition to what Brian mentioned.

 

[DeadlyScone]

Yep after countless hours of trying, testing, and just getting no whre we finally pin pointed the problem which you mentioned; the 12v trigger wire. Now what puzzles us is we don't understand the wiring for that 12v trigger wire. Does it run from the ignition to the starter relay, to the starter? Or if i have a turbo timer does it run through that? And if so does it run after the relay to the timer? If somebody could draw us up a rough wire diagram of how its routed so we know how to trace it.

Austin,
Starts his car with a piece of wire

Thanks for all your guys replies, they have been very helpful!


Here are some pics(the red wire that's taped to the blue wire is for the 12v on the WB)
Should the white wire be hooked up to something? or is it a extra?

 

[DeadlyScone]

Does the turbo timer use the 12 "start" wire?

 

[DeadlyScone]

Anybody?

 

[bryanwheat]

The turbo timer does not use the start circuit, only the accessory and ignition supply. What do you mean that you don't understand the circuit. There are plenty of wiring diagrams out there. The wire goes from the ignition switch to the relay. The relay will have a constant power, a ground, the signal from the switch and a signal to the starter wire. The wire from the ignition switch to starter relay is black with a red stripe. You need to test for continuity from the ignition switch to relay thru that wire. IF continuity is present than test for power at the relay side when you turn the key. IF you have power you have verified that everything from the switch to relay is in good working order. The black with a yellow wire on the relay is the wire that goes from the relay to the starter. Do a continuity test on that wire from the relay to the starter. IF continuity is present than you know that wire is good. From there you are going to need to test the wire that comes from the clutch switch to the relay which is a green with a black. Do it the same way, test continuity from each end of the wire from the clutch switch to relay. This leg of the circuit is what grounds the relay. When the clutch is pushed the clutch switch connects the wire to a ground. If the clutch switch wire test's good for continuity than than you need to test to see that the wire is being grounded out when the clutch is pushed. Test for continuity to ground on the relay end of the green/black wire when you push the clutch. When you push the clutch there should be continuity to ground, when you let the clutch go there should be none. If there is none either way than the ground signal to the switch is bad or the switch is bad. To test this unplug the connector on the clutch switch and test the black wire for continuity to ground, if continuity is found than the switch is at fault.

 

[DeadlyScone]

Thank you so much, this is what i was looking for exactly. Thanks so much. I'll try this and let you know.

 

[1995 brian]

This same situation happened to my buddy and we bought a brand new starter thinking that was the issue so we put it on and still no crank at all. So we tried jumping the terminals and my buddy accidentally touched the strut tower making a good ground and walla it cranked it was as simPle as a ground.

 

[bryanwheat]

Thank you so much, this is what i was looking for exactly. Thanks so much. I'll try this and let you know.

No problem man. If you have any more electrical issues hit me up.

 

[92AWDHX40]

Been there with my 91, took a while but i figure it out.
Sometimes the simple things can frustrate you, hope you figure it out.

 

[DeadlyScone]

So i did some testing today and came up with this.

- Starter relay clicks when "trying" to start it"
- Diagram #1

Is this proper function of the Starter Relay socket(s)?
IF so, i will continue hunting down the cause.



Diagram #1

 

[bryanwheat]

So the relay does click, but there is no voltage coming out to the starter? That would indicate an issue with the relay. Try jumping power from the 12 volt constant to the wire that goes to the solenoid and see if it cranks the engine over.

 

[DeadlyScone]

So the relay does click, but there is no voltage coming out to the starter? That would indicate an issue with the relay. Try jumping power from the 12 volt constant to the wire that goes to the solenoid and see if it cranks the engine over.

yes, it starts that way.

 

[bryanwheat]

The relay does click when you turn the key to the start position? If that is the case than it sounds like the starter relay is bad. If you are good with your hands and small parts than you can pull the cover off the relay and see what is wrong with it. Sometimes they have a bad solder joint, and sometimes the contact it just dirty on the switch.