starter issue

[subie22]

Ok, this going to be hard to explain, but i will try my best. Ok well i blew my clutch awhile ago, so i started to take everything apart and eventually got the trans out. Replaced the clutch. Know everything is back, im having a electrical issue. At least i think i am. It has something to do with the starter. I have literally taken this starter out a few times, then find out it was bad, i had 14.2 volts going to it and it would click. So i was like ok must be the starter, also it would sometimes engaged and spin. But i was like ok i will get a new one, since i have a lifetime warrenty. So i did. Got the other one, to let you know i am doing all this without the starter attached to the trans, reason being so i dont have to keep taking it out. I figured it would be easier to diag the issue with it outside the car. Ok back to my issue. I have power hooked up to it and i ground it out on the neg batt cable, which is grounded at the firewall. And i go to start it i get clicking. So i ground it out on the starter and it engages and spins, when i turn it to start. Like i said its kinda hard to explain whats going on, but i think i did pretty well. I have a feeling theres a bad ground somewhere or not grounded somewhere. Like i said it only engages and spins when i ground it out on the starter itself.. Makes no sense, and its a very simple circuit, and i shouldnt be having these kinds of issues. Its prob something stupid, and im not seeing it right know. So and help would be nice. I also have the ground on the trans, and theres another one on the firewall, thats attaches on the top of the intake manni.. Thanks again.

 

[luv2rallye]

Sounds like you have too high resistance in your connections. Even 0.05 ohms is too much. All connections must be absolutely clean and tight from battery posts to their terminals thru cables thru connectors at other end thru the bolt/stud at destination. Also the starter ground cable MUST be directly on battery negative post - NOT on cable that goes somewhere else (eg. body) and from there to negative post. The negative to body must be a different cable. The starter end of negative cable MUST be under starter mounting bolt - not to engine block or body. Any other places add too much resistance for the high starter current (0.05 ohms at 100 amps drops 5V). Starter positive must go directly from starter solenoid to battery positive post. If cables are too old, frayed, partial cracked they will have too high resistance and need to be replaced. It's easy to find a too high resistance joint by simply measuring the voltage drop across it while trying to crank (don't measure resistance as it is too small to get an accurate reading). Example: measure from actual battery post to terminal on it or from one end of a cable to the other, etc. Also if you put a battery jumper cable across a connection (like from one end of a cable to the other) and it now works, you just found the high resistance item. If the starter is clicking, measure the voltage right across the starter from it's positive stud to it's casing while cranking. If not >10V you have a high resistance problem in cables or connections.

 

[subie22]

thanks, yea i was grounding it out right onto the starter. But theres two posts on the starter do i just take a ground wire and bolt it onto that one and than bolt it into the trans. I figured i had high resistance somewhere. I also replaced the batt, the postive batter cable also whatever runs to the starter, also replaced the neg batt cable too.

 

[subie22]

also when i did a voltage drop at the starter, i was getting like 8.86 when it was cranking, which i know is not enough to crank the starter.

 

[STI2TALON]

I had starting problems like yours and then I bought a negative battery cable with terminals from autozone, and grounded the engine block to the strut bolt. Surprisingly this worked like a charm and havnt had problems since.

 

[luv2rallye]

also when i did a voltage drop at the starter, i was getting like 8.86 when it was cranking, which i know is not enough to crank the starter.

Keep measuring voltage drops across all the cables and connections while cranking and you will find your high resistance. Or jumper across them with battery jumper cables. Make sure your battery is putting out enough voltage (from post to post - not from terminal to terminal).

The starter negative is the case, not the post so battery negative cable should go under the head of a clean starter mounting bolt. The block or tranny case works since it's bolted to it but the starter case has the least resistance (since that's where is current is coming out of) so is the best place.

 

[subie22]

thank you luv2rallye, its running a fixed, im a happy man. My first clutch job seems to be a success.