Starter wouldnt crank the engine. So i took it out and got it tested, and it tests good. I reinstalled it, and it will not crank. I hear the solenoid working, but the motor wont spin.

Any guesses?

SOLVED: It needed an additional ground. Once i ran another ground from solenoid housing to firewall it cranked the motor beautifully.

 

Have you tried to manually turn the motor at the crank with a socket and breaker bar? Maybe the engine is seized.

 

I have a short circuit somewhere. When i connect the battery directly to the starter it spins the motor like a champ.

Now if i only knew where.... /sigh

 

TomCat39 probably meant try turning the engine instead of the starter?

 

engine spins freely. Thx.

An extra ground wire solved this problem, by the way.

 

You never provided the year or specifics of your car. I know the 92-95 civics had 2 major grounds in the engine bay besides G101 which was ECU dizzy ground. There is a major ground from frame rail to transmission, then another ground from upper rad support to Power Steering bracket on the pull side. If either of those were missing, the car will have issues cranking and starting.

Glad you got it figured out.