Battery Electrical

[wthalin]

I have a fully charged new battery in the trunk. Just tried to crank it and got nothing. Tried testing the battery and is fully charged. Any suggestions on a starting point to check? Seems like there is an issue with the battery cables bringing because interior lights are not turning on either. If I use a voltmeter what should I be checking for and where? Maybe a connection loose at the starter or something. Should be a good starter though.

Any thoughts are appreciated.

 

[Don Frelier]

How is your ground connected
Do you have power on the large stud at the starter relay?

 

[Cranky]

Make sure the engine is grounded well and the ground strap for the battery isn't bolted to paint....also check the relay. Might even cross across it's terminals to see if the starter will engage.

 

[Ranger16]

If I use a voltmeter what should I be checking for and where?

Never rule out a battery just because it is new and shows a full charge.

Put your multimeter on the battery posts and have someone try to crank it. If the DC volts drop to 9v or so, you have a dead cell, but it could still show a "full" static charge.

 

[wthalin]

Never rule out a battery just because it is new and shows a full charge.

Put your multimeter on the battery posts and have someone try to crank it. If the DC volts drop to 9v or so, you have a dead cell, but it could still show a "full" static charge.

Wouldn't the cabin lights be working even if it did not have full capacity? Battery is like 2 months old and has been on battery tender.

 

[wthalin]

Ground is passing through one of the trunk pan gaskets and mounted to the frame. Pretty sure I sanded down to bare metal before installing but may be worth checking. Don't mind the overspray. Is this not a good location?

 

[Ranger16]

Wouldn't the cabin lights be working even if it did not have full capacity?

Yes

 

[wthalin]

Make sure the engine is grounded well and the ground strap for the battery isn't bolted to paint....also check the relay. Might even cross across it's terminals to see if the starter will engage.

What do you mean by the engine being grounded? Where is the relay and what am I looking for? Sorry for all the newbie questions. Definitely not an expert on electrical stuff.

 

[wthalin]

How is your ground connected
Do you have power on the large stud at the starter relay?

How much power should there be? 12V?

 

[Don Frelier]

12.75V roughly
That's potential not power you need current for that.

 

[R413]

You need a #4 or larger ground from the engine to the chassis. Remember when battery is underhood the negative cable goes to the engine. Your starter draws approximately 200 amps. You need a ground cable to flow this many amps. Clean your battery terminals the battery posts.

 

[wthalin]

Hmm right now I have a positive cable running from the starter all the way back along with probably a #12 cable running from ignition. Negative is grounded on the frame in the trunk. It was working without any issues so setup can’t be all wrong. I am thinking I just have to have a loose connection somewhere.

 

[wthalin]

So, even weirder. Just tried the headlights and everything turns on fine. Brake lights, blinkers, etc. No cabin light still and no crank. Is it something with my ignition?

 

[wthalin]

Putting the voltmeter straight on the battery terminals I appear to have 12.8 volts.

 

[70chall440]

Did it work previously? If so then your connections are probably corroded and/or loose. You need to start checking everything from the ignition to the battery.

 

[funknut]

Sounds like you may have more than one issue, so let's take them one at a time.

What year and is it auto or manual? If auto, is it in park or neutral?

1) You are getting power to the bulkhead connector, so that's good.
2) Cabin light is on constant power, so it should work all the time. Not a lot going on with that circuit, it could be a bad bulb, door switch or maybe bad lamp socket.

What happens when you key on? Do you get dash lights or gauges?

With the key on, you could bridge the positive and negative posts on the starter solenoid and see if it will turn over. If it does, then you need to work backwards from the solenoid to ignition.

Post a good pic of the solenoid and bulkhead connector.

 

[wthalin]

Yeah, was just working a couple weeks ago. Just changed out the water pump and went to start it up and got nothing.

 

[wthalin]

Sounds like you may have more than one issue, so let's take them one at a time.

What year and is it auto or manual? If auto, is it in park or neutral?

1) You are getting power to the bulkhead connector, so that's good.
2) Cabin light is on constant power, so it should work all the time. Not a lot going on with that circuit, it could be a bad bulb, door switch or maybe bad lamp socket.

What happens when you key on? Do you get dash lights or gauges?

With the key on, you could bridge the positive and negative posts on the starter solenoid and see if it will turn over. If it does, then you need to work backwards from the solenoid to ignition.

Post a good pic of the solenoid and bulkhead connector.

LOL feel like an idiot. Car was in reverse! Kids were playing around in the car and must have moved it into reverse. Thank you!

On another note. I am getting some machine gun fire from the starter when I first start it up. I think I’m on my third starter over the last 10 years. Project car so it sits a lot, but is that normal? Seems like it may be going out again.

 

[Don Frelier]

No machine gun fire is not normal and it's a bad thing.
You are apparently losing voltage (dropping voltage) when the starter engages to the point where the bendix drops out.
I think your wiring arrangement is suspect.

 

[wthalin]

No machine gun fire is not normal and it's a bad thing.
You are apparently losing voltage (dropping voltage) when the starter engages to the point where the bendix drops out.
I think your wiring arrangement is suspect.

How do I uncover where the issue is stemming from or where should I start?