70cutlass831guy

I had my original starter rebuilt and all it does is "click" wont turn over. any suggestions ??? maybe they didnt rebuilt it right?? maybe I wired it wrong??? its on a 70 olds 350.. thanks

2blu442

Start checking with the most simple first and hopefully you find the problem soon! Yes I'd double check how you wired it up as I know I've mixed the small wires on the starter and that will keep it from starting. But I don't remember if it make a click or just nothing. Do you have a Chassis Service Manual? If not you may want to log into "Wild About Cars" and look at a diagram to review how it should be wired. John

70cutlass831guy

I double checked wiring. It looks ok. I got another starter ordered up. wont come in till monday. it worked fine before the rebuild. cranked right up . hope thats it. I also have a small drip behind the manifold. you think I can seal it up with some silicone or gasket maker or should I just remove it and start all over?? thanks for the help. feeling bumd out at the moment .

MDchanic

Check your solenoid. If it's not making good contact, then it will click but the starte won't turn.
Also check the connection between the starter and the battery - if it's dirty or corroded anywhere, it will also do this.

- Eric

Allan R

Usually when it just cliks it's the solenoid needing replacement. Did that shop overhaul everything? If they did, that's warranty. Don't pay extra for something you already paid for. Haul it out of the car and take it back to the shop.

One other thing to check before you do that - are your battery connections good and tight with no corrosion. I've had loose connections cause just a 'clik'.

EDIT: Holy mackerel Eric. Like we were typing the same thing at the same time. Feel the karma....ooooooommmmmmmm

MDchanic

Jinx!

70cutlass831guy

Im going to go through the starter tomorrow. I hope i figure it out. to add more problems to this I have a Intake manifold leaking coolant from the back left corner. I packed it with gasket maker and it stopped leaking. Do you guys think it will hold up?? or do I have to re do the intake seal?? Im just so bummed at this point. So close to start up and these damn problems..

MDchanic

Nope.

I think you'll have to reseal the manifold.

- Eric

Allan R

Any coolant gasket that starts leaking is plain bad news. The problem with just gooping it up with temporary fixit is that it's only temporary. Worse, it could be starting to leak inside where it's going to do more critical damage.

Drain the coolant, pull the intake and check out why it started leaking. A small $$$ fix now could save you an engine replacement if not corrected.

I know it's frustrating to have to do all this stuff when you really want to drive it. I'm in the same boat, I want to drive my car but I've got tons of small (and large) things to do to make sure it will be safe and reliable.

There are 2 rules to cars:
1. Don't sweat the small stuff
2. It's mostly always small stuff.

Sugar Bear

There is a tab that sticks out of the starter motor that the solenoid connects to via a screw, it should have battery voltage to it when the solenoid closes/clicks. This could be done as a bench test with the starter in a vise. I would not do it in the car it might cause an arc working in the limited space and you could get burned.

If no voltage is present to the tab the solenoid is bad.

If voltage is present and no cranking the starter motor is bad.

As previous posters mentioned this is very often a connection problem or a weak battery.

If you have to pull the starter ask the shop that rebuilt it to bench test it. This is routine for a rebuilder.

70cutlass831guy

ok so i checked wires, jumped with another car to make sure battery wasnt weak, next step I,m doing is removing my starter and testing it out of the car to make sure the starter is not the problem, next step is selenoid, oh yeah and dont forget to mention I'm pulling the intake manifold off and resealing it. I,m guessing that since I went with a valley trey instead of just plain ol gaskets that it might be the leak problem. Any tech or video recommendations that maybe I could watche or read to make sure resealing my intake manifold goes a little smoother then the previous try. i have a edlbrock performer on it . torque sequence??? thanks for all the help guys I very well appreciate it. live and learn right??

Sugar Bear

Can you turn the engine by the balancer bolt or some other means after it was installed? Trying to determine if the starter is the problem, or is it a flywheel/flexplate or a torque converter front pump problem. Auto trans. or manual?

oldcutlass

Most starter problems are caused by poor connections. Make sure all your connections are in the correct places and are clean and tight. IF it still won't start a jumper wire from the big terminal to the S terminal will cause the starter to kick out and crank.

70cutlass831guy

OK I was able to rule out the starter as the probelm by testing it out of the car with a pair of jumpers and connecting the switched cable front the igniton and SHAZAAAAM!!! The starter fired right up.. that also rules out the selenoid. This test points me directley to the wiring. I used the original wires that were in it (probably not a good idea). theyre in pretty bad condition. so now Im going to make a new set of wires and terminals. the ground wire was atttched to the alternator bracket via the alternator bolt wich I had blasted and refinished Im assuming the paint is not allowing a proper ground. where is a better ground wire position??
One step at time, One problem at a time.
still have to reseal the intake manifold.

70cutlass831guy

Yeah it turns fine. fresh rebuild. new flywheel , auto trans.

70cutlass831guy

Good advice, I did just that. starter kicks out of car with jumpers and switch. my igniton switch is good . Im getting new wires and terminals. thanks for your help..

70cutlass831guy

I pulled it and bench tested it and it runs strongh. my diag is bad or inproper wiring. what do you think?? thanks for the help also..

70cutlass831guy

[QUOTE=Allan R;396911]Any coolant gasket that starts leaking is plain bad news. The problem with just gooping it up with temporary fixit is that it's only temporary. Worse, it could be starting to leak inside where it's going to do more critical damage.

yes sir, Im pulling it. better safe then sorry. I have too much invested to have a small problem become a hug problem. thanks for your advice. I appreciate it.

MDchanic

One possibility, which does involve "bad" wires (poor connections, etc.), is a low voltage to the solenoid, that doesn't provide quite enough voltage pull it in all the way.

I would recommend reinstalling the starter with an extra wire securely attached to the START terminal of the solenoid, then try again to start it.
- If it just turns right over, then you've somehow fixed it .
- If it behaves the same way that it did before, then touch the START wire you added to the POS battery terminal. If it now wings right over, then you've got some sort of an inadequate connection somewhere between the battery and the solenoid, which includes the fuse block, the ignition switch, and the neutral start switch, and all of their connections.

If this turns out to be the problem, then you have the choice of either carefully going through everything in the path that I mentioned, or installing a relay on the way to the solenoid, to bring power straight from the battery to the solenoid, which will fix the problem.

- Eric

70cutlass831guy

Very good!!!, I will do just that and report my findings.
thank you.

70cutlass831guy

The problem was a bad hot wire. I replaced it and the starter fired right up. as for the Intake, I removed the galley trey and used standard gaskets and it sealed right up.
Thanks for all the help ..
sorry for the sidways pic I hate macs ........ Sometimes

MDchanic

See? It's easy once you figure out what's wrong!

You're welcome.

Just open image in Preview, then -R to turn right, or -L to turn Left, then Save.

Easy.

- Eric

Allan R

Glad you got it all worked out. Now you have to find something else that needs doing. Trust me, on these old cars there's always something else to do.

Eric - you da mac. I mean man.

MDchanic

  

Allan R

You realize of course I have no idea what the heck that is? I don't own a Man. What ever your man is doing, it's also changing Capital letters to lower case. Oh well, since I loaded Chrome at least I've got spell check on my dialogue boxes!

MDchanic

From your message, I infer that the characters that you see on the screen, and those that I see may be different.

I typed three large apples -    .

What did that come out as on your computer?

- Eric

Allan R

Nope what I see are 3 large squares. Same as in permalink 22? your apples show as squares. Maybe only a man computer can see those apples?
was is supposed to look like this? If it was, I think you ate the half of the worm that was sticking out on the right side?

70cutlass831guy

yeah really is. its weird cuss the picture was on my desk top facing the right way then I loaded it and it was sidways!!!!!

70cutlass831guy

HAHAHAAH you totally jinxed me. I am sure you typed this before I started up my motor cuss now I am not getting any gas . I sat there and turned the motor and no gas. now what here I go again.

Allan R

I think you have to save it in the new position?

My bad. No gas at all???
1. pull the air cleaner and pump the throttle on the side of the carb to see if fuel is coming in. no?
2. Check the fuel filter for blockage. It's ok?
3. You might have a stuck carb float. Lightly tap the (right front on q-jet) float bowl to see if it comes loose. You might need to rebuild the carb and adjust/replace the float.
4. Could be a fuel pump? Was the car running before? I'd try 1-3 before anything else.

70cutlass831guy

Not a single drop of gas. New carb (edelbrock) and mechanical fuel pump(Napa auto parts). I have a clear fuel filter (Fram) and no gas is getting to it. I cranked the motor with the fuel line disconnected (bad idea)and i feel small amount of pressure and smell fumes but no liquid.
I have a vaccum bleeder. I am goin to try vaccuming gas then connecting it back up. It has about half a tank of high octane mixed with some fuel stablizer.
Lets see what happens.

Allan R

I don't know you all that well, so don't be offended by this. Is there ANY CHANCE you installed the fuel pump without getting the the pump lever into the proper position on the cam eccentric? If that happened it won't pump anything at all. Just a thought....

MDchanic

Never mind that, and the half tank of high octane gas notwithstanding, is there ANY CHANCE that there's no gas in the tank?

- Eric

Allan R

???? I get the inference, but he's said the tank is about 1/2 full. I suppose it wouldn't hurt to check if someone siphoned out all the remaining gas.....

70cutlass831guy - if you pour some gas down the carb does it fire right up? When was the last time the car was run?

MDchanic

I've KNOWN I've had a half a tank of gas before, too.

Believe me, the car gets heavier after you push it the first mile...

The only way to be sure is to pull the hose off the fuel pump and suck until you've got a mouthful of fuel.

- Eric

Allan R

I knew a girl one time who could suck a golf ball through a garden hose. Used to call her "Darling"

Highwayman

I remember waking up to a call at 2 or 3 in the morning from a buddy that borrowed his Mom's car and it quit while idling. He insisted it had gas because the gauge said so. I took 5 gals with me anyway. I pored the gas into the tank and saved a little to prime it. It started right up and ran back to town.


There's more to the story that included his girlfriend and a spot in a farmers field far off the county road and so far out in the boondocks that you couldn't even see a yard light from a nearby farm. I did remind him often afterward.

70cutlass831guy

Its possible. I do feel a small amount of pressure. If i had missed the cam dont you think there wouldnt be any pressure at all??

70cutlass831guy

I put 40 dollars of gas in it. you think thats not enough??

70cutlass831guy

I shot break cleaner down the carb and it stumbled a litte. It was started up like 3 years ago when I bought it before the rebuilt motor.