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6 months into my newly found ownership of my Olds and as of 1 month ago, it will not start. Here are the facts:
-Bizarre, but it will start if I charge the battery (even though I’m sitting at about 12.5v to begin with), but won’t start back up when turning off.
-Found oil on starter terminals (replaced gaskets and sealed everything AND bough a new starter).
-I’ve purchased a new battery, alternator, voltage regulator, and starter.
-When I turn the key, I used to hear a “boing” sound from a coil, not I just hear fast clicks that get slower as I hold the key in the start position.
I’m going to buy a new ignition coil tomorrow, but I’m at a complete loss as to what the hell I can do next.
Welcome aboard. I have a ‘66 98 too. Fun cars. There are smarter people than me here, but your basic task is figuring out where the starting circuit is failing.
This old car is new to you, but not new. Over the past 55 years, it’s likely someone has modified the wiring in ways that are creating or contributing to your problem. Buy a 1966 Chassis Service Manual & a 1966 Fisher Body Manual so you have the factory advice on how to identify problems and fix them. Once you have the books, look for deviations in the wiring from what Olds did in 1966.
If the battery is known-good, move on to the horn relay on the driver’s inner fender. Are the connections clean & solid? If so, move on to the starter motor, is it getting a full 12-13 volts? Followin the wiring diagram in the Electrical section of the Chassis Service Manual to trace out the problem.
If I have the logic right, a couple of other things need to be working for the starter to crank over. Other than the battery, alternator & starter, the ignition key switch and wires to it need to be in good shape. This means not oxidized, not melted, and not burned. Usually you can see the physical damage if stuff has melted. If you see melted plastic around thick wires, that’s a potential problem - intermittent or permanent. The other high amperage circuit that can prevent a starter motor from spinning is the neutral safety switch at the base of the steering column. If it is disconnected, loose, wrongly adjusted or if the switch points are burned, it may prevent the starter motor from working.
So pretty much my advice thus far is check the key switch and neutral safety switch. Basically look for melted wiring insulation, broken wires and melted plastic terminal connectors as a start
After that, you could have troubles with your distributor and/or coil. Like a loose wire, bad ground, burned points or some combination.
I’ve never heard a coil make noise. I suspect the “boing” you’re hearing is the power window / power seat relay behind the driver’s kick panel left of the Emergency/Parking brake. The fact that it makes noise is good sign. When it clicks at startup, you know at least that part of the car will work.
Boneyards and EBay are your best sources for used switch replacements. Some of 66 98 parts swap with other GM cars from 65-70 (roughly), but Olds went it own way on lots of parts, so don’t be surprised to find not much in the way of reproductions. Mid 60’s Olds big cars are not catalog restoration cars.
I’ve looked at and fixed a bunch of harnesses along the way. Usually the problem areas are the ignition keyswitch, headlights and sometimes neutral safety switch thick wires melting from some problem in the past. The other common problem area is 55 years of heating and cooling of the engine harness wires which makes them brittle, leads to cracking insulation and eventual electrical shorts.
If you do find problems in the electrical system the male and female terminals can be purchased as “Packard 56” terminals from Auveco. Google up Auveco again for some of the plastic shells your car uses.
Hope this introduction gives you some places to start. You’ll find a few posts about ‘66 98’s under my name around here. Good luck & good hunting. Enjoy the car.
Don't buy the coil, you have classic symptoms of a bad battery, bad connections at the battery, bad battery cables or bad connections at the starter.
Pull the battery and have it tested before charging and after charging it. If it is low now and tests good after a charge something is up with the charging system. Stop replacing parts and get it diagnosed so you don't waste time and money and replace old time vintage quality parts that are still good.
This^^^^. Clean your battery terminals and cable ends on both ends and make sure your battery is fully charged. The rapid clicking is a sign of low voltage at the starter.
