Wow, a new starter motor can really work wonders. First time I started
her up with it I was positively startled by the sound of the engine
roaring to life. No more "whump-whump-... whup.. whuh"
count-the-rotations starting, but a healthy whir that can put the honda in
the next slot over to shame. Should have done this years ago. It even
makes other problems more managable. Now when she floods, I can clear the
engine by flooring it and cranking. Before, there wasn't enough oomph in
the starter so I just had to wait about 30 minutes (15 if I pulled a few
plugs). The hot start problem is also gone. It could have been the
starter or the wiring somewhere to the starter or solinoid (I replace all
of it). In reality, I feel that there are a few carb problems I need to
address, but they no longer leave me push starting the car or waiting to
get the engine started.
Thanks to all for the advice and support,
John Weale
"British Racing Orange" 1980 Spitfire
On Sun, 3 Dec 2000, John Weale wrote:
>
> First off, a thanks to everyone who replied. With a better idea of the
> potential problem areas, I tackled it this weekend.
>
> I replaced the lead from the battery to the starter solenoid, and cleaned
> up the solenoid ground (it uses the mounting screws, and only one rather
> rusty one was present). Moving to the starter end, I found the lead very
> loose. I also found that the end plate of the starter was loose. So, I
> cleaned up the connection to the starter, tightened it up a bit and
> tightened up the 1/4" bolts holding the end plate on (it was actually
> hanging off a bit). I pulled the ignition wire from the distributor cap
> and decided to see how she cranked now with clean electrical connections
> everywhere.
>
> A small electrical fire and large cloud of smoke later, I've decided the
> starter motor is shot. The solenoid appears to have fused shut, and the 4
> gage or so wire to the starter motor melted through. The whole body of
> the starter was also hot. As a quick side note, when faced with an
> obvious short, go for yanking the negative lead rather than the positive
> to avoid the exciting yet distracting sparks from bumping the frame while
> unscrewing the lead.
>
> So, I've decided there is a starter problem. Errr, probably a starter
> solenoid problem too at this point. And the connection wire is certainly
> shot. And a little wiring harness collateral damage (electrical tape
> time!). Now I'm onto trying to get the starter out of the little hole it's
> stuck in (I think I just need to pull the fuel pump so I can get it out)
> and replacing the whole mess.
>
> Thanks for the help,
>
> John Weale
> "British Racing Orange" 1980 Spitfire (out sick for the week)
> 1999 Zappy Electric Scooter, 18V mod (charging for the commute tommorrow)
>
> On 21 Nov 2000, Richard B Gosling wrote:
>
> > John,
> >
> > An old, worn starter motor can act just like you have a flat battery - very
> > slow, laboured turning of the engine, giving up after 2 or 3 turns, even
> > though the battery is totally full. Happened to me last year - 30 quid
>($45)
> > on a re-conditioned starter motor, and the problem was immediately solved.
> At
> > that sort of price (I assume it is similar in the US), there is not a lot
>of
> > point trying to dismantle the starter and fix the problem yourself, unless
>you
> > fancy doing so for your own education/experience/amusement.
> >
> > If there is no movement at all when you turn the key, listen for a single
> > click. If you've got one the solonoid is working, so it is probably the
> > starter or the wiring to it (although it may be possible the solonoid is
> > moving, but not closing the circuit - I don't know if that can happen), if
>you
> > don't have a click the soloniod, or the wiring to is, is at fault.
> >
> > If the pinion teeth were ground off (also if the pinion was not engaging
>with
> > the flywheel ring gear) you would get a different symptom - engine not
>turning
> > over at all, but you can clearly hear the starter motor whizzing round.
> >
> > What I cannot understand is why this should only happen with the engine hot.
> > Maybe heat affects an already dodgy starter and makes it worse? No idea.
>If
> > you can bump start the car, I doubt there the engine itself is jamming -
>that
> > would sieze it too solid to be able to push the car successfully, or if
>not,
> > you would still feel a hell of a jerk as you let the clutch out to start
>the
> > engine turning, and broke it free. Metal chips in the engine are not too
> > serious a problem, depending where they went they will quickly work their
>way
> > down to the sump, where they will sit harmlessly, and will probably come
>out
> > at the next oil change. Unless they are VERY small, they will not be able
>to
> > make it through to the bearings - even if they do get picked up out of the
> > sump with the oil they will make it no further than the filter. They
>might do
> > some damage to the pump on the way past, but you will soon know about that
>as
> > you will have low oil pressure. Anything that makes it through the filter
>(if
> > it is working properly) will be too small to damage the bearings.
> >
> > Fault no. 2 - I have twin SU carbs (and don't totally understand them), so I
> > can't help you there!
> >
> > Richard & Daffy
|