PLEASE help, starter bad on Xmas away from home???

[kis86]

I drove down to my mom's for Christmas eve and planned on leaving that night to go home...


Not going to happen :P I turned the key, and got "clickclickclickclickclick" so I figured my battery is dead. I put the battery charger on it and it's already at 100%, put the charger on "Start" mode and "clickclickclickclick" again.


I popped the hood and hit the remote starter that's been installed since I bought the car...no idea what type it is or anything. I hear the "clickclick" sound, seems to be coming from the starter area.

Is my starter bad? or that "starter interrupt relay" i found in other posts? I've had no issues starting the car up until this moment, so it seems very strange.

How do I use the screwdriver trick to get it going so I can at least get home today?

[redlightningsvx]

Try cleaning and retighteing the terminals.

[kis86]

Cleaned and tightened, no change

[kis86]

Kept trying to start it over and over...played with the shift selector, sprayed wd-40 into the ignition (just in case, I don't think that could be the issue since the remote starter also didnt work)

I FINALLY got it to turn over, just by luck the solenoid kicked in or something? No idea, but it's staying running til I get home. I saw the power light blinked at me when it started. That would indicate a tranny code correct? What could it be? No blinky lights before this so it's related...will update when I get home. Input is still very much appreciated...don't think it'll start again so I still need to figure out the problem.

[ensteele]

I wouldn't rule out the battery. I would clean the posts and make sure the battery is charged. The clicking is usually a low battery. Did you try jumping it? That would help figure it out. Good luck and let us know what you find out.

[kwren]

Try making a small wire 10-12 gage) with a spade conector on one end with a 20 amp fuse in the lin, long enough to reach from the starter to the battery.. Push the spade connector on the starter and touch the other end, striped enough to make contest to the + (positive battery cable). Just touch the striped wire and see if the starter turnes over.

If it does, with the ignition switch turned to "run" doing that will start the car.
if this works, tape the stripped end so it won't short out while you are driving and go home. If you have to kill the engine, you can follow the directions and start it any time!

You seriously have a shot at this working!

Merry Christmas,
Keith

[kwren]

Of course always have your car in park when doing that and when trying to start with a jumper, the ignition switch has to be turned on to "run"

Checking for a battery problem for starting your car can be as simple as turning the ignition to run, turning on the headlights to bright, trying to start and see if the headlights dim but no cranking is happening.

If this is the case, it ain't the battery.

[legacyau]

you could have a bad ignition switch it may only be putting low voltage through which is not enough to pull the solenoid in, try the hotwire direct from the battery to the spade terminal on the starter if it cranks that'll be the problem
cam

[kwren]

Originally Posted by legacyau

you could have a bad ignition switch it may only be putting low voltage through which is not enough to pull the solenoid in, try the hotwire direct from the battery to the spade terminal on the starter if it cranks that'll be the problem
cam

that'll possibly be the problem !
Keith

[Suby Fan]

you need to have your battery tested to make sure it isn't the source of the issue other then that it sounds like the hold in coil that holds the starter solenoid on to the contacts that allow the starter to turn could be worn not allowing continuous contact hence that clicking sound your hearing... this could also be a power or ground issue but start with the battery.

[kwren]

Originally Posted by kwren

Try making a small wire 10-12 gage) with a spade conector on one end with a 20 amp fuse in the lin, long enough to reach from the starter to the battery.. Push the spade connector on the starter and touch the other end, striped enough to make contest to the + (positive battery cable). Just touch the striped wire and see if the starter turnes over.

If it does, with the ignition switch turned to "run" doing that will start the car.
if this works, tape the stripped end so it won't short out while you are driving and go home. If you have to kill the engine, you can follow the directions and start it any time!

You seriously have a shot at this working!

Merry Christmas,
Keith

This could also be a good way to bypass everything else and test the starter itself... You could even put your digital volt meter on the battery and see if there is a voltage drop when trying-starting it up! Those 2 things combined will at least get you the information and could even eliminate a couple of things. And you could do your own battery test!

Keith

[kwren]

The best place to "keep" a can of wd40 is about 100 yards away from your SVX