problem with starter??need some advice

[tomcat]

Well I burned something up triing to get it started each time. My GT fried the connection between the steering column and fuse box connectors. I repaired that but still not working. The starter doesnt kick in at all. even if I try a screwdriver against the positive and what on the starter it does nothing. when i turn the key everything lights up and the gauge even goes negative like its working properly, still nothing, no starter at all. even changed out the starter twice. someone suggested it could be the ground, although i put a temporary power source direct to the starter and still nothing. well I suspect it is in my steering column, something got fried in there. so thats next. anything advice i can get will help!!

[wrench459]

although i put a temporary power source direct to the starter and still nothing.

If you installed a temp power and ground to the starter and it did not turn over..bad starter..just a guess.

[timemachine]

I'm not sure I completely understand your symptoms, but there are only a few things to go wrong with the starter. If it does not turn, it could be shorted or open internally (brushes or armature/field) or not getting power. It's pretty easy to isolate the cause. (By the way, not sure what you used but battery chargers aren't substitute power supplies.)

If you turn on the headlights and jump the big positive wire stud on the solenoid to the lug where the thin black wire(s) go with a screwdriver, do the lights dim noticeabley? If so, the battery may be defective or the starter shorted. (If the wires get hot, the starter is shorted and must be fixed or replaced along with the fusible link. Be careful, the wires get hot very fast on a shorted starter when there's no fusible link in the circuit.) If the starter turns, the problem is in your ignition switch circuit.

If the lights stay bright and nothing happens, the problem is either the battery cables or an open starter. I have seen positive cables cause starting problems as often as the negative cable. Make sure they're tight and not oxidized. (This doesn't mean the cable is good, it often corrodes inside the connectors. I have seen positive cables good enough to light lights but with enough resistance that the starter won't turn.)


So if you are still stuck, let's test the battery cables and motor. Take a known good battery, a pair of good jumper cables and a starter (you can test a motor in or out of the car). Leave the existing battery cables as they are. Clamp the positive jumper cable to the copper stud where the positive wire goes and clamp the negative to a good ground on the bracket. Clamp the other ends properly to the battery. Again, use a screwdriver to jump the big stud on the solenoid to the lug where the black wire from the ignition switch goes. If the motor turns, replace the battery cables. If it doesn't, replace the starter.

Once you know the motor circuit is working, if you still have problems it's in your ignition switch circuit.

Jim

[namba209 (R.I.P.)]

To isolate the ignition switch as being the cause of your problem, you need a VOM sert to the "OHMS" setting. Pull the White connector from the steering column to the fuse panel. Probe the Red wire (Pin #4) and the Black/Red wire (Pin#3) and see if there is continuity with the key in the start position. If there is continuity, the switch is O.K. Look elsewhere for you problem. To check the starter, there are two things I would do after removing it from the car. Hook a set of jumper cables to a good battery, hook up the positive cable to the bottom large lug on the starter and the ground to any part of the starter. It should spin. To check the solenoid, hook the positive cable to the top large lug on the solenoid, and the ground to the starter and jumper the horizontal spade lug to the positive cable, the solenoid should engage and the starter spin. HTH.