98vtec

This started happening last night. I was leaving whataburger and it wouldnt turn over. Turn the key and it would just click once. My first thought was dead battery. So i had a buddy of mine jump the car. Fired right up. Figured that was the problem. But its just a year old Optima Red top so my next thought was why the battery was dead....alternator. But a few months ago, i had taken the alternator off and tested at autozone and it came out perfect, passed everything.

2 days ago, i had taken out my alarm. The brain and the "kill" switch. After removal of it, the car started fine, so i figured if anything was still there to keep the car from cranking, it wouldnt have let me crank the car in the first place after removing it.

Then this morning, i was leaving for work, same thing happened. Click. So i got someone driving by to jump start me. We had the cables on for a good 5 minutes with her revving the engine as i tried to crank. But still only got the click. Could last night been its last breath?

So i grabbed the alarm brain and kill switch and reinstalled everything. Tested it to make sure everything was good by pressing the kill button. I got no starter sound at all, so the kill switch was working fine. Pressed it again to make sure it went back to normal and got the click again. So the alarm checks out good.


The only thing that i have left to do is to jump start the solenoid by running a wire all the way from positive battery terminal in the trunk, to the solenoid. The helms stated that if that did not start the car, the starter has internal problems and needed to be replaced.

Can you guys think of anything else that wouldnt shoot straight to a bad starter?

The only way i have been able to start the car is to pop the clutch in second while rolling.

btw, i have power to the interior. Windows roll up fast with the keys on "acc" so thats another reason why i have ruled out the battery.


Sorry for the long post, but as you can see i've done nearly everything i could think of besides the jumper wire (dont have a long enough wire) and i didnt wanna be a noob and post a thread when it could be an easy fix by searching.

98TypeSH

I have almost exactly the same problem. Except you can hear the sucker spin real fast.

What sucks even more is the fact that the little solenoid is 270 dollars and the new starter is 220.

I think i may run a wire from my batt to the connector on the solenoid and see if that kicks it.

98vtec

yea thats the only thing left i have to do. Just trying to see if you guys have any other suggestions or maybe ideas other than the actual starter.

problem is the only wires i have are from the JDM h22 harness and they wont reach to the trunk

gotta find a friend


and im getting tired of pop starting the motor. I know its not really rough on anything. But just the thought of whats really happening is kinda discerning, lol.

98TypeSH

So which connector are you talking about ? the actual Power for the starter? ( big *** wire in the loom connected to the + on the batt , or the little tiny one next to that ? ) I dont want to hook the little one up if it wasnt designed to take the full power of the battery then for sure set it on fire...

98vtec

the small solenoid wire so says the helms above.


I just found a long *** wire to do the test. Its just some speaker wire but i think it should do the job.

Techna600f4i

i have that problem, tunes out its the battery conections, go out and wiggle them and try it, it will work, when you jumped it the first time you may have moved it and that why it got a good conection. go try it im allmost certin thats your problem, loost conection to the battery. justtry it

98vtec

already did that.

i used sand paper to clean off the connection points on both the starter and the battery terminals. Everything was nice and shiny when i put it all back on.

Techna600f4i

damn, it allways fixes mine, does the same thing too, just the one click, maybe trace those wires and chcok all connections, im sure you did this allready, andywas thats all i got for sug... good luck.

98TypeSH

Just did the test. I hear the click and the instant spin of the small gear. its just not catching on the flywheel. Ive pulled the starter off and left the shaft in and ******* hand engaged the thing and it caught instantly on the flywheel. im at a loss here.

98vtec

when you did the test, you just had the key at the "on" position correct?

98TypeSH

nope. key wasnt even in the car. Ive tried jumping in the car to start the ****** too. same ****. Its not even catching on the flywheel.

If you actually pull the starter off and apart, you will see a shaft that is on a bearing that sits in the starter, and the small actual motor which is connected to a smaller gear which spins the shaft. When you put the key in the car it kicks the little solenoid on which pushes the shaft in and over the flywheel thus starting the car. I got spin, but no shaft engagement.

I dont ******* get it. It worked perfect today. i pulled the thing off for 5 ****** minutes, put it back on, now its dead ? what kind of horse **** is this. I pulled the starter back off yet again for the 6th time now. Pull the shaft out off the transmission, put it back in the starter, put it back on and tried to start the car, nothin. same ****.

and in what chapter in the helms are you finding all of this. ive looked over the thing 3 times and found no info...

EDIT:: nevermind, im a noob and skimmed right over it.

98vtec

lol, 4.

thats weird mang. I'm stopped expletiving with it tonight. Just gonna have to pop start it for til 4:00 tomorrow when i get off work

btw, thanks for explaining the inner workings of the starter

Beau Gotti

mine has been having problems, i just hit each battery terminals a few good times and its fine lol. and cables are on nice and tight, i dunno what the deal is.

Jago

98vtec you have burnt starter contacts and 98TypeSH you have a bad starter drive
both require replacing the starter.

yOnKiNaToR

i looked all over in my helms for the that page too and i can't find. what page guys?

i was about to guy buy a reman. starter too

98TypeSH

I bit the bullet and replaced mine. $195.99 dollars later the car started up first shot.

Also, now im throwing a nice Code 6 for the ECT sensor. replaced the sucker, still throwing a code 6. everything just seems to be landing on my head right now with this thing.

Its in Chapters 01-04 in section 4-5

yOnKiNaToR

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 98TypeSH &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I bit the bullet and replaced mine. $195.99 dollars later the car started up first shot.

Also, now im throwing a nice Code 6 for the ECT sensor. replaced the sucker, still throwing a code 6. everything just seems to be landing on my head right now with this thing.

Its in Chapters 01-04 in section 4-5</TD></TR></TABLE>


i did the same.. got one for 150 with lifetime warranty.

98vtec

aight picked up a new starter for 150 at autozone. Installed it and at first all it would do was spin. i kinda sat back and thought for a sec pondering because this is the same thing that happened to 98TypeSH. I loosened the bolts and turned the starter counterclockwise all the way. Turned the key. BAM. It starts right up

soundbomber

haha don't you ****** hate cars sometimes?

98vtec

u know it. maybe she is mad because i havent washed her in like 3 weeks and i have all sorts of **** sitting in the car.

Rosko

iTrader: (1)

glad you guys got it worked out.

Blake you only needed like a 3 inch wire... You got battery power at the starter (the big 4 guage wire) all you had to do was jump from there to the solenoid.

98vtec

w3rd.

oh well. Fixed now

bluedlude

good job dude. sorry you didnt see this though

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors...11270