wiring stuff

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saint60

saint60

Joined
Jun 16, 2004
Threads
92
Messages
528
Location
St Anthony, ID
my 85 pickup won't start. it jump starts just fine. it has current to the starter relay. when i try to start it, it clicks, then the truck loses all power. i can take the terminal off and rough it back up with a wire brush and then the power returns to the rest of the truck, but when i try to start, the same click and loss of power. seems to be a short of some sort.

solenoid? bad ground? should i just start with having the starter checked? haven't had any problems with the starter up to this point.

only seeing one grounding point coming off of the starter and solenoid, any others?

thanks.
 
Take the starter off, and change out the copper contacts. $30 at the stealer, and @ $5/pair at a car electric shop in your town. Contacts are under the trapezoidal plate (3 screws), and one side will be worn way down. Use RTV to reseal the plate.

You may still have other starting issues, but when the starter clicks, it's time to service the copper contacts.
 
just for clarification, sorry, i can't jump start it...i meant push start it works.
 
I see.... Try this, make a jumper wire about 4 feet long with aligator clips on both ends. Turn the key to on, hook one end of the wire to the small terminal on the starter, and touch the other to the + battery terminal. If it fires up you have an issue between the key and the starter, which includes the starter relay. You may want to test to see if there's continuity between the small wire on the starter to ground, sounds like you have a short, and this may confirm that.
 
I like the starter contact idea, though Jerod's test will confirm that too. The other way to test the ignition switch would be to pull the small wire at the starter and hook up a multimeter and see if you get 12V when a buddy turns the key.
 
I believe this could be important so I'll say it.

Abandon all thought of the stories you hear about relays that; they either work, or they don't work. Trust me, they can work intermittently. I don't want to go into detail but I've beat a hole in my starter "tap starting" it, I could jump it from the battery, and finally bought a relay to prove it.


I also took the starter out prior to all this and put new contacts in it :bang:
 
For a truck that old, ALL cables need to be replaced if they are OEM. Odds are your ground strap has lost most of it conductivity.

Start with cables. Then go to starter contacts. Then relay.

Report back.
 
i took the starter off and had it tested at checker. it passed. so, now to replace some cables. will update more soon. this electrical crap drives me crazy.
 
Hilux is right replace the relay
 
okay, i have replaced both the positive battery cables and the ground. the ground from the battery is bolted to the block. i took the starter out and had it tested at checker and they showed me the info and it passed.

i already replaced the starter relay under the dash, and it seemed okay for the first little bit, but then got dimmer and dimmer on the test light with every attempt to start it.

so, if all of the electrical works until i try to start it and then it sparks the positive cable, doesn't there have to be something wrong between the ignition and the starter?

ih8electrical
 
if its sparking at the cable when the key is in the start position, means there is a poor connection at the battery.

when you installe the cables, did you clean them off, as well as the battery?

there is a tool for this. basically, it scrapes a little of the lead off both the battery and connector.

you know its a good job, when its all shiny.

if there was a short the spark would only happen once, then a fuse would blow.

the start circuit is separate from anything else

have you tried checking for voltage at the starter wire (the little one) when the key is in start postion?
 
I don't know buddy, but to me it sounds like your battery is toast. If you have 12 volts before engaging the starter and then none afterwards that sounds like a bad battery, I read your posts and you don't mention having that tested. I sure hope you checked that first instead of going through everything else.
 
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