This car must be jinxed. Yesterday the car started fine, today nothing. Doesn't even click, I changed the battery still nothing. Could this be the starter soleniod?

Thanks

 

Possibly, check your ground strap and battery cables to make sure that they are good.

 

Check your connections, make sure the battery is charged, clean the posts. If all else fails and voltages are good give the starter a good whack with a bfh.

 

X2 on whacking the starter with a BFH, connections are hell too when corrosion sets in....

 

Changed out the negative battery cable today with a new one, took the ground strap from engine to body off and sanded it for good connection and took the starter in to have it check, no problems there, still won't start, positive cable looks good. All the lights come on bright. I did hear a faint click under the hood, only does it one time so tomorrow I'm gonna get some help so I can figure out where it's coming from.

Are there any other body grounds for this car? 65 Jetstar 88.

Thanks.

 

Put the headlights on high beam, and then turn the key to start. Have some observe the headlights. If they dim, then it is the positive battery cable. They deteriorate under the plastic covering causing high resistance. If they don't dim, then the problem is in the starting circuit. I would be inclined to believe that it might be a defective ignition switch.

 

Thanks Junkman, that's what's so great about this site. I thought about the ignition switch too. I guess that wouldn't be so bad since the glove box trunk and doors are on the other key.

 

Could it be the positive cable junction block/horn relay on the drivers side fender well? That happened to me a long time ago...

 

Been calling around to local parts stores, no luck on finding positive cable junction block or the ignition switch with tile steering, only without. Any ideas on where I can get these items?

Thanks

 

Those type of parts are only going to be available NOS, or possibly reproduction from an Oldsmobile parts vendor. I suggest that rather than replacing them, that you clean and polish all the contact surfaces to make sure that the connections are good. Many times an old part can be made to work like new with a little cleaning effort. Don't be quick to replace a part just because someone makes a suggest as to what happened when they had a similar problem. Use that information to check the parts and make sure that it needs replacement, not just a good cleaning. If you start replacing every part that everyone suggests, then you are going to wind up with a lot of unnecessary new parts on your car, and your wallet drained dry. We can only relate what we think the problem might be, but it is up to the person asking the question to evaluate the feedback as to whether it is relevant to the actual problem.

 

Thanks for your input, but when parts are inexpensive as all these parts have been so far I don't mind replacing and it will give me piece of mind because I will know what has or has not been done, when it comes to the bigger ticket items I totally agree.

Now if I was dealing with my Benz or BMW, I definitely would not be replacing parts but then nothing would be under $20 either.

As stated earlier i did clean the grounds, never thought about doing it for the junction box or ignition.

 

Had this occur to my '66 Jetstar. Try the Voltage Regulator affixed to the firewall. A small black box. Not to expensive either. I believe this may be your problem. One day your car will start fine - then the next its gone - nothing but tick - tick.
RandallOlds

 

Junkman, has anyone told you that you're da man? I took your suggestion and cleaned the posts for the junction box and it fired right up!

 

Acually, I was the one who suggested the junction box, Junkman mentioned the ignition switch...

Just playin' Junkman, well not really, .... but yeah just joking

Either way, glad your olds is back on the road.

 

Touchy touchy, OK You are tha man too, especially with all those old oldsmobiles. Junkman suggested I clean the terminals and since I couldn't find one that's what I did. Thanks everyone. Now a few days of decent weather would be nice.

Do you have any pictures of your 65 convertible?

 

just playin'

... and my convertible is very scarey at the moment...she's a full restore job that's been put on a back burner due to all my other projects. She sat in the AZ desert for 20 years or so until I rescued her. So she's still rough. I've been collecting a lot of nos parts for her and have boxes and boxes of labeled parts all cleaned, refinished or prepped.

 

EXCEPT that if you are replacing factory parts with new aftermarket parts (rather than NOS), you cannot be sure that the new parts are made as well as the old parts were, and may just be replacing a dirty, but completely functional old part with a new part that will fail in a few weeks, months, or years.

If you take the new parts and the original parts apart, and put the pieces side by side, you will sometimes be shocked at how crappy the new pars are.

- Eric

 

No shock about new vs. old parts. Its just the sad reality.

 

Mine don't look all that great either, i got bored with it for the past 4 years, then put it up for sale, didn't sell so I started working on it. In September i will be performing Michael Jackson's Thriller again in front of an audience of over 10,000, where we recreate driving into the cemetary. last time i drove the Benz convertible, this time it will be the Jetstar.

I bought a 65 98 that was on really good condition, it had a 68 delmont 455 for $450. Took the engine, tranny, dash and airconditioning out and put in Jetstar plust sold front and rear bumpers for $300 and the mirror for $70 then solde the car for $400, it had a 425 at the time of sale. Kinda wished I would have kept it it was so clean.

This is the dash, engine and air conditioning I put in the jetstar from the 98, less the chrome.

 

Wow I would've bought that in a heartbeat for 400!

 

Yeah, I was going through a period where I wanted them gone, both of them. Here is the 98. Had it not been for finding this site, the jetstar would still be up for sale