Fj45 starter issues (1 Viewer)

[Jmac2633]

I have just purchased a fj45 ute with the intention of one day restoring it. Im having issues getting it started.

The ignition circuit has been bypassed from the day i picked it up. But it was still able to start by hot wiring the starter. I managed to get it to fire once only since picking the car up.

Now im having issues. Battery is brand new and puts out 12.5 volts. The engine cranks, but extremley slowly. Almost like the starter isnt getting enough power?

I also bypassed the ballast resistor to see if this was an issue. And tried a different coil too.

Any help would be much appreciated. First time post here on the forum

 

[whitey45]

G’day Mate,

Check your grounds, battery to engine, engine to chassis.
Jump the solenoid to crank over( you have done so)
12 volts to the pos side of the coil
Check to make sure your points are opening ( if it still has points)
Carb have a fuel Cut-off solenoid?

Cheers,

Brian . Oh and welcome to mud! 45’s are the best!

 

[whitey45]

Looks like an old propane setup? But I see a fuel filter?

 

[Jmac2633]

Thanks i did start looking at the grounds today. Can you point me in the right direction where they are? Checked battery to chassis. Need engine ground still.

Yep i tried that too. I unplugged all the wiring from the starter and the coil aside from the thick battery leads. Ran 12v direct to the starter and a new pos and neg to the coil too. Bit hard to explain without showing you

Yes thats right it has an lpg system on it too. Im thinking its definitely not a fuel issue as it should run for a few seconds with fuel down the carb and it doesnt

 

[Jmac2633]

Oh and best way to check if the points are opening?

Will have to look into whether it has a fuel solenoid too

 

[whitey45]

12v to pos side of coil
Neg side goes to the distributor
Pull the cap and rotor
Adjust the points( open and close when the engine turns over) .016 gap when open

You need a neg ground from battery to the engine and then engine to chassis. Very important for proper voltage and cranking voltage. You can quickly use jumper cables to ground the engine and chassis to see if it helps cranking voltage.

 

[Jmac2633]

Okay thats interesting. Currently there is a ground from battery negative direct to the chassis so this could be my issue.

Will have a look tomorrow and post my results. Im hoping my battery is still good its on charge currently so we'll see. Had a red indicator window when id finished with it today so its probably a bit low on electrolyte

 

[whitey45]

When there is no engine ground, voltage has to travel through the rubber engine mounts, thus causing a big voltage drop!

 

[pjohnson]

Check your battery cables for corrosion inside the sheath. Sometimes the connections look good but the cable is bad.

Welcome!

 

[middlecalf]

.. thus causing a big voltage drop!

yeah, not good! And if those electrons find another path they’ll try and go that way, even if that means melting (and fire)!

 

[Jmac2633]

Okay so checked and cleaned all grounds i could find. I have one from the bottom starter motor bolt to the chassis. And another from chassis to battery neg.

Also cleaned the wire going to the distributor.

Success! She fired right up. Running rough but at least it starts. Im amazed just a bit of a dirty ground could cause that much of a starting issue.

Thanks everyone for your help