[Dog Welder]

So my car won't start and I already replaced the battery aand starter. One of my buddies then tells me it might just be the negative ground cable. He says they build up a resistence overtime. I'm pretty sure that I have the stock ground cable that came with the truck 16 years ago. I cut open the sleave and there is green corrosion throughout the cable. So I want to try and replace the cable but I try to follow it and it goes way down into the depts of the engine compartment. Really hard to get to. If I were to get a new ground cable ...do I have to route it back to the stock location? or can I just hook it up any where? There also seems to be another cable thats grouinded in the same spot. If I ground the negative somewhere else willl this affect the other cable? Thanks.

 

[ALEXIS_DH]

well.
if you have replaced the battery and starter, i´d assume they are right.
you dont get ANY sign of the starter spinning when you crank it up???

if you have a multimeter.. test the resistance between the battery - and ground (the engine block, head, chassis, whatever.. its all the same).

if you want to replace the cable, do all you can to bolt it in the original place.
you can bolt it to the engine block, chassis, etc, etc (they are all the same in the end)... but without actually looking at your engine bay, i´d say be safe and bolt it to the original place.

check the fuses too.

 

[Dog Welder]

No sign of starter spinning...no muiltimeter...its gonna suck balls trying to rebolt this thing to its original position. Fuses...how do you know if they're blown? Pretty obvious?

 

[foesjunky]

Pm Dirtymike he is a Certified Master Mech

 

[buildyourown]

Does the horn work? The horn is a good test because it draws lots of amps. A multimeter really can't tell you much other than yes or no.

No horn - disconnect neg cable and use a jumper cable to attach the neg battery terminal to the frame. Does the horn work now?
Give it a quick crank to see if the starter is getting juice.
I wouldn't start the car rigged this way but it should give you a yes or no on the cable before you go looking for the other end of it.

If your horn is working, check the starter solenoid. If they stick open, nothing will happen when you touch the key but the horn will work.
You should have done a little more diagnosing before sinking money into a starter and battery.

 

[johnbryanpeters]

...If I ground the negative somewhere else willl this affect the other cable? Thanks.

Get the right cable and hook it up in the right place. It might work someplace else, but it could also drive you nuts with obscure problems.

 

[Dog Welder]

You should have done a little more diagnosing before sinking money into a starter and battery.

No ****...but at least it was a learning experience...

by the way what is a starter solinoid? is it that gear that sticks out to engage the flywheel?

 

[johnbryanpeters]

No ****...but at least it was a learning experience...

by the way what is a starter solinoid? is it that gear that sticks out to engage the flywheel?

The starter solenoid is an electromagnet that does two things.

1) It moves the gear into engagement with the teeth on the flywheel.
2) It then switches the current to the starter motor on so it runs.

 

[ALEXIS_DH]

No sign of starter spinning...no muiltimeter...its gonna suck balls trying to rebolt this thing to its original position. Fuses...how do you know if they're blown? Pretty obvious?

fuses are pretty obvious. just see them against light, and you´ll see if the filament is broken inside, or its more obvious if they are burnt.
if you replace them, get the same color, the color is code for the amp load.

if you have everything connected, test the horn like others say.
if there is no horn, no lights, then check the connections. find a way to see if your starter has 12v coming in, and is connected to ground right. (a 12v bulb would make the trick)

if when you crank it up, you hear a "click" coming from the engine.. thats the bendix poping out (the solenoid as you guys call it). then i´d guess that your solenoid is fine, but the starter does not get enough amps to spin.
if there is not even a click.. then it might be the solenoid, or the little carbon thingies inside the starter that wear with time, or the most obvious, the starter is not getting any electricity.
do what buildyourown says about using another cable to the frame from the battery -. then try the horn and lights, etc-..

multimeters kick ass, get one if you can.. then you´ll see the resistance on the cables, if there is continuity where it should, and whats the voltage your starter is getting... anything under 11.8v and no starter will crank up an engine...

check the wiring and make 100% sure everything is fine.

 

[rooftest]

Just take it to a damn mechanic!

 

[SkaredShtles]

Put a pipe bomb between the engine & the firewall, light it, and then observe from a safe distance.

 

[buildyourown]

if when you crank it up, you hear a "click" coming from the engine.. thats the bendix poping out (the solenoid as you guys call it). then i´d guess that your solenoid is fine, but the starter does not get enough amps to spin.
.

When all you get is a click, that often means the solenoid is BAD.
My old truck used to go through solenoids. You would turn the key and all you heard was click. You could do this 10x and then it would fire right up.
Solenoids are cheap too.

 

[reflux]

When all you get is a click, that often means the solenoid is BAD.
My old truck used to go through solenoids. You would turn the key and all you heard was click. You could do this 10x and then it would fire right up.
Solenoids are cheap too.

Your advice is golden. My truck has been starting to do that click 8 times deal, ableit only once or twice a day, and I've been freaking clueless as to why. I'll definitely look into that.

 

[dan-o]

Your advice is golden. My truck has been starting to do that click 8 times deal, ableit only once or twice a day, and I've been freaking clueless as to why. I'll definitely look into that.

An alternative to repeatedly cycling the key is to beat on the solenoid with a hammer/screwdriver/wrench. A few good raps and it should fire up. While you're down there you may as well just replace it though.

 

[ALEXIS_DH]

When all you get is a click, that often means the solenoid is BAD.
My old truck used to go through solenoids. You would turn the key and all you heard was click. You could do this 10x and then it would fire right up.
Solenoids are cheap too.

it also clicks when the starter is not getting enough current, like when the battery is discharged (enough current to turn on lights, but not enough to crank up the engine), or there are problems in the wiring...
thats why a multimeter comes handy. if your battery is >11.8v, and there is continuity on the cables, but still only clicks, then is the starter solenoid.

 

[reflux]

An alternative to repeatedly cycling the key is to beat on the solenoid with a hammer/screwdriver/wrench. A few good raps and it should fire up. While you're down there you may as well just replace it though.

Thanks. I'm meeting up with some friends this weekend who have done some extensive work on their own rides. My hope is that my truck will again have "problems" starting up so that they can maybe help diagnose the problem. So far I've been told it could be the starter, solenoid, or a worn flywheel. I replaced the battery and negative cable last year for unrelated probs.

**Edit: Are the starter and solenoid the same? I don't have my Chilton's handy, but now that I think about it...**

 

[urbaindk]

the solenoid is a sub-assembly of the starter. Cheaper to replace than the whole starter.

 

[johnbryanpeters]

solenoid