Electrical guru help needed LJ70 2L-T hot start issue

[richmason]

Hi all,

Trying to get the LJ70 ready for the meet later this month and I am still vexed by an intermittent hot start issue - turn key and nothing but a click from the starter relay. I have replaced the battery, starter relay, cleaned and renewed all of the grounds in the engine bay, and had the starter rebuilt. Rocking it in gear has no effect and neither does hitting the starter with a hammer. I noticed today that the starter has a threaded post pointing towards the ground near the end furthest from the engine about three-four inches from where the wires connect that has nothing attached to it. Is this for an additional ground? If that's a non-issue, can someone please tell me how to step by step check the system so I can determine what to replace next? Resistance in various wires? Starter switch functionality? Etc.? It only happens hot and will start once it cools down for an hour or so. Every now and then it will start after an initial failure after lots of repeated attempts but this is rare.

Sincere thanks for any help y'all can provide.

Best,
Rich

 

[AirheadNut]

It sounds very much like a faulty starter solenoid. I had this exact issue on my G-Wagen because the dump pipe off the turbo ran right over the starter solenoid and over time cooked it. I had reasonable success taking the solenoid apart and lubricating it with a small amount of high-temp grease. When you hit the starter with a hammer, did you hit the motor or the solenoid? Hitting the motor won't accomplish anything, sometimes hitting the solenoid will (though not recommended). Another option is to unplug the starter solenoid wire and check that it is getting a full 12 volts when the key is turned (since presumably the relay is good, there could be an issue with the fusible link). When you had the starter rebuilt did that include the solenoid?