Excellent thanks for the info, I think that is my next step is to put in the interposing relay.

 

It hard failed for me this morning, trying to leave for work while it is raining out of course. It would not crank no matter what I did. I held the key in the start position and moved the shifter through all the gears just to test, and it did not crank at all. I wasn't getting the strong solenoid click either.

 

So I pulled out my handy jumper wire, put it on the starter (awesome how that is so easily accessible on the starter right from under the hood). I touched the battery + and it cranked away.

 

I hadn't started a soob like that before so I had a little trouble getting it going. I cycled the key acc to run a few times to make sure fuel press was up. When I'd touch +12 it would crank great, sputter a bit, but not start. So I held the throttle open a little bit and that did the trick. It ran great the whole way in.

 

I am tempted to use a good quality pushbutton right from a fused lead on the batt, into the pass compartment, then to the starter solenoid. Those automotive relays, those black ones, I don't trust those things. I had one fail closed on me before. Granted it was probably a cheap relay, maybe just need to buy something higher quality.

the push button inside is handy, but it ends up being more work and a longer wire run to the starter. just buy a decent relay. i used a generic headlight relay from advance for a few $. it has not failed in 5 years.

 

the only other thing you might do before adding stuff, is to check to see if electricity is actually getting to the solenoid when you turn the key. adding a relay will not help if there is no juice from the ignition circuit to trip it.

 

the relay is easy to install and easy to remove if you ever need to.

 

regardless of what you do, make sure it is fused coming off the battery.

Thanks. That's true, I don't know for sure it is applying voltage to the solenoid at all when I turn the key. Something in that circuit has been going intermittent for the last few years, maybe the park/neutral switch part, I think it finally died completely now. I will have to give it a check.

Make sure 12 volts is getting to the solenoid wire of the starter when the starter fails to turn. You may have gotten defective starter since you stated it didn't work on the first attempt to start the engine. If voltage is getting to the solenoid wire then the solenoid contacts aren't making connection to the starter motor windings.

Thanks, I will check it out. This morning it had a complete no crank no matter what I did with the key and shifter, but it worked fine when I jumped the solenoid with +12V, so I think something may be messed up in the key/neutral park switch stuff.

 

For now I have the jumper wire just left hooked up under the hood, I'll have to pop the hood and jump the solenoid to start it until I get that relay mod or pushbutton put in.

Ok...I feel a bit stupid about the no crank at all this morning. For some reason I didn't even think about this before. This car has something called 'Locktronics' installed on it; it was on there when I got it. It's basically this red 'key' with a PC board end on it. I believe it is simply in series with the wire to the starter solenoid. When the 'key' is removed, it will not crank. Well....I didn't have the 'key' installed this morning. So I went out at lunch and put it in, and it cranked.

 

Now this Loctronics thing might be causing the intermittent no crank problem too, since other times when it has acted funny, the red 'key' was in. These aftermarket gadgets I know sometimes cause problems.

Your thinking on both of those areas is correct. You could just bypass that added circuit with a jumper wire if you want to see if that is the cause of the trouble.

WHo wants to steal a car this old. It's like having weird lug nuts.

 

See if you can remove it and throw it out safely.

 

No good can come of it being installed. If you live in a high crime area just buy extra ammo, or move.

Thanks. I need to look under the dash to see where this Locktronics thing hooks up. It has two what appear to be 10 ga. red wires coming off of it. I assume it's just in series with the starter solenoid, probably after the key before it heads out the firewall.

 

haha I don't know who would steal a car this old....it might be tempting to a joy rider because it would be pretty easy to steal. The Locktronics isn't going to really make any difference anyway, the thing is so simple, just sticking a wire where the red 'key' goes would bypass it anyway. Get extra ammo.... ah here in the PR of NY in a case like this the victim goes to jail, the perpetrator of the crime lives comfortably off the proceeds of his civil suit against the victim.

Nobody said to let him live.

Those security "key" things can work, when they work. But when they break and leave you stranded in a parking lot on the wrong side of the tracks...