engine and drivetrain Return of the M20 starter problems

[Guest Anonymous]

When we last left our heroes, back in early November, the M20 engine would not start. The starter would turn the engine and the solenoid would engage properly but there was no spark and the fuel injectors would not fire.

Now, the starter does nothing. I disconnected all wires to the starter and tried giving power to it manually. I have a red jumper cable going to #1 in the picture, and then I try putting +12v to 2 and 3. It just sparks. If I remember right, 3 would make the starter spin, and 2 would engage the solenoid, right? Both act like direct shorts. Should I take the starter motor out and rebuild it? It's crammed into the 02 engine bay so it is not easy to get out.

The engine will turn by hand so that is not the problem.

Thanks for the advice.

-Ben

"It's like, how much more black could this be? and the answer is none. None more black."

-This Is Spinal Tap

[Guest Anonymous]

(nt)

[Guest Anonymous]

it is not common, in my memories, all the starters on the planet gets grounded by themselves, on the body, and you mention that you send the b+ power from the alternator?? i hope the wire thsat goes from the bat to the alt is big enough, it should goes directly from the starter to the battery, because the biggest current on the car is going by this wire. The alternator should get its wire isolated to the battery. And for the prongs on the starter itself, the lower one gets energized when the starter is "on", used to power something else under cranking, like a cold start injector (common on tii and on VW cars), the other (top) used to energize the solenoid, and then this one energize the starting motor, sending power thru the big copper wire screwed with the 13mm nut, shown under "ground" on your picture. I do think that if the starter is like i know it, yours is fryed because you have shorted the output of the solenoid switch to the ground.

AGAIN, all this is only if the starter dont come from mars.

Pat Allen

[Guest Anonymous]

Sorry, you're right, the big red wire goes to the battery, not the alternator. Not sure what I was thinking... The alternator isn't even connected to the car right now.

If there are NO connections to the starter at all, I would do this, right?

Put + jumper cable to big red circle

Put +12v to #3 to start car

[Guest Anonymous]

(nt)