New engine won’t crank - the battery is good, but I’m getting rapid clicking from the engine bay (1 Viewer)

[lilhelphere]

I just finished installing a new engine in my gx460, but it won’t even begin to crank. I took the battery in to be charged, and the shop said it was solid. The starter is from the previous engine and I never had issues with it. Any ideas?

 

[Mad Titan]

Frozen starter. Tap it with hammer a few times.

 

[r2m]

Can you turn over the engine manually with the spark plugs removed? Or even try the starter without plugs?

 

[Eyedaho]

Are the connections definitely good? I have seen rapid clicking like that when the solenoid engages and draws the current due the starter motor, but there's not enough available amperage so the solenoid disengages, and that keeps happening rapidly. Sounds like maybe the starter just isn't getting full juice.

 

[lilhelphere]

Frozen starter. Tap it with hammer a few times.

Tried that. The first time it actually changed things a bit… the electronics totally died and the engine started to make a gurgling sound. Now it’s back to how it was

 

[rexington14]

Dude, what happened to your engine

 

[lilhelphere]

Can you turn over the engine manually with the spark plugs removed? Or even try the starter without plugs?

It cranks manually with the spark plugs installed. Would a functioning starter still crank with the plugs/coils removed?

 

[lilhelphere]

Are the connections definitely good? I have seen rapid clicking like that when the solenoid engages and draws the current due the starter motor, but there's not enough available amperage so the solenoid disengages, and that keeps happening rapidly. Sounds like maybe the starter just isn't getting full juice.

Yeah I’ve checked all the connections several times. Maybe the starter portion of the wiring is bad, it came with this engine

 

[ericm979]

I'll second the not enough current answer above. Check the resistance of the main starter lead and the ground lead. Sometimes there's just a poor connection that won't pass enough current.

 

[WTITW]

Ground cable good?

 

[Gumby]

Bad battery or ground connections.

Voltage drop test is your friend