Starter Trouble?
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corfie13
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- Joined: Sat Mar 16, 2013 10:22 pm
- Location: Delbarton, WV
Starter Trouble?
I'm short on time, so I'll make this quick. Yesterday I took the truck(68 F100 I6) out and the first time it started normal. Second time at a gas station it cranked really slow but still fired up. Then I ran into a store and it did the same thing. Now at this point I was getting worried and considered going home, but I'm young and dumb so I continued with my errands. Finally finished I walk out to the truck and its cranking super slow and won't start. I try again and just get a low gurgling/grinding noise from the starter. I popped the hood just to make sure the positive terminal hadn't slipped off a little and feel the starter solenoid and it's so hot it almost burned me. I just replaced this solenoid about 3 weeks ago so I'm skeptical of it being the problem but I'm new to this whole working on cars thing. So my question is do you guys think its the starter or something else. Also can Advanced Auto or NAPA check starters to see if they have gone bad?
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68RGR
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- Location: Central Alabama
Re: Starter Trouble?
It does sound like the starter has problems. But, first make sure the battery, cables and the new solenoid are OK.
You can disconnect the starter cable at the solenoid and check the voltage between the starter terminal and ground while a buddy operates the starter switch. Or, you can manually do it by applying 12 volts to the switch terminal on the solenoid.
Also, turn the lights on high beam and run the heater fan on high while you check the battery voltage.
I wouldn't advise trying to operate the starter again because there is a problem somewhere and, if it is the starter, continuing to operate it could damage the solenoid, cables, etc as you discovered.
The starter seems to be drawing more current than normal (hot solenoid) and, if so, it could have mechanical issues (like bearings going bad, etc) or electrical issues (like an internal shorts, etc.)
However, it could be that your new solenoid isn't making good contact when it is energized by the ignition switch. Starters draw lots of current. A very small amount of resistance in the solenoid's internal contacts could result in a significant drop in the voltage going to the starter. As the solenoid contacts heat, the resistance could increase making matters worse.
For instance, let's assume the starter is drawing 100 amps. If the resistance across the solenoid's internal contacts is just 0.01 ohms, the voltage drop would be one volt. The power dissipated by the contacts would be 100 watts. Imagine a 100 watt soldering iron inside the solenoid. When the 100 watts starts heating the contacts, the situation can get worse. What's more, there is also a voltage drop in the cables and others connections. So, the starter might be seeing 10 volts or less. That's a long way of saying don't assume your new solenoid isn't the problem.
If you do remove the starter and you are tempted to hook jumper cables to it to test it, remember to secure the starter. Otherwise, if it is working properly, inertia will likely cause the whole thing to spin when voltage is applied. In other words, the outer housing will try to spin around the armature which can be a revolting development - No pun intended.
If you don't see any other problems, then you probably should remove the starter and take it to the parts store for testing and/or replacement.
Let us know what you find.
You can disconnect the starter cable at the solenoid and check the voltage between the starter terminal and ground while a buddy operates the starter switch. Or, you can manually do it by applying 12 volts to the switch terminal on the solenoid.
Also, turn the lights on high beam and run the heater fan on high while you check the battery voltage.
I wouldn't advise trying to operate the starter again because there is a problem somewhere and, if it is the starter, continuing to operate it could damage the solenoid, cables, etc as you discovered.
The starter seems to be drawing more current than normal (hot solenoid) and, if so, it could have mechanical issues (like bearings going bad, etc) or electrical issues (like an internal shorts, etc.)
However, it could be that your new solenoid isn't making good contact when it is energized by the ignition switch. Starters draw lots of current. A very small amount of resistance in the solenoid's internal contacts could result in a significant drop in the voltage going to the starter. As the solenoid contacts heat, the resistance could increase making matters worse.
For instance, let's assume the starter is drawing 100 amps. If the resistance across the solenoid's internal contacts is just 0.01 ohms, the voltage drop would be one volt. The power dissipated by the contacts would be 100 watts. Imagine a 100 watt soldering iron inside the solenoid. When the 100 watts starts heating the contacts, the situation can get worse. What's more, there is also a voltage drop in the cables and others connections. So, the starter might be seeing 10 volts or less. That's a long way of saying don't assume your new solenoid isn't the problem.
If you do remove the starter and you are tempted to hook jumper cables to it to test it, remember to secure the starter. Otherwise, if it is working properly, inertia will likely cause the whole thing to spin when voltage is applied. In other words, the outer housing will try to spin around the armature which can be a revolting development - No pun intended.
If you don't see any other problems, then you probably should remove the starter and take it to the parts store for testing and/or replacement.
Let us know what you find.
Bill
68 F100 Ranger
73 F100 Ranger XLT
Believe me, my young friend, there is nothing - absolutely nothing - half so much worth doing as simply messing about in garages. (Apologies to Kenneth Grahame.)
68 F100 Ranger
73 F100 Ranger XLT
Believe me, my young friend, there is nothing - absolutely nothing - half so much worth doing as simply messing about in garages. (Apologies to Kenneth Grahame.)
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corfie13
- New Member
- Posts: 12
- Joined: Sat Mar 16, 2013 10:22 pm
- Location: Delbarton, WV
Re: Starter Trouble?
Well guys I think the starter is completely shot. I pulled it from the truck today and it looked pretty [censored] over just from what little I could see. I hooked it up to the battery of my truck while it was sitting on the ground and it arced like crazy but didn't actually do anything. I guess I'm off to napa this weekend to hand over some more money. I wanted a project, I'm starting to think I got one 
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