Running out of hope... Starter.

[Sam Meade]

I have a 1990 vette, and for about a year now it has been having an issue where I would turn the key and the starter would make a single click. Sometimes it would crank after a few(10-15) tries, and if it didn't then I had to go under it and clean the connections on the starter. I get in yesterday and try to start it and it clicks, so I clean the terminals and it still clicks. So I replaced my positive cable from the battery to the starter and nothing. I replaced the whole starter today and it still just clicks. I have cleaned both terminals on the battery and even tried jumping it with the new starter, still nothing. Then I thought it might be the starters ground to the engine block, so I scrubbed that down, still just a click. All of my fuses are good and I'm running out of ideas. This is my daily driver so I really need her running. I will try anything at this point. Oh, the battery is a 2 year old duralast gold.

 

[GWinter]

are you sure your hearing the starter click or just the relay. The relay may be bad ,

 

[dougelam]

A voltmeter would have been quicker and cheaper

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[Sam Meade]

Its the starter. I had a buddy listen for it.

 

[bobmo]

In the oldie times you could jump the starter with a screw driver between the battery connection and the S terminal.
That would bypass the ignition and either rule out the solenoid or the ignition switch.
Make sure the car is not in gear please.
Bobmo

 

[ecss]

You need to measure the voltage on the Purple wire at the starter when the problem occurs.

You don't mention if you have a manual or automatic transmission.

For an automatic try starting in Neutral instead of Park.

When you insert the key and turn the ignition On, if the key pellet resistance is correct, the CCM grounds the control side of the Starter Enable Relay The load side of the relay closes. When you turn the ignition key to start 12 volts from the ignition switch goes thru the Clutch Safety switch for a vehicle with a manual trans or the Park Neutral Safety switch for a car with an automatic trans. The 12 volts then goes to the Starter Solenoid Purple wire.

For a car with a manual transmission, a very common problem is the contacts in the Clutch Safety switch pit and make poor contact.

The most common problem with the nippondenso starter are the copper disk and copper lugs pitting. Since you replaced the starter and still have the same problem that should rule out the stater..

Click on the video in this link which shows the copper disk and lug pitting problem.

Denso Starter Contacts, starter repair kits, starter solenoid parts, solenoid contacts, starter repair

Diagram below shows the location of the Starter Enable relay which is located along the front edge of the
dash driver side. You can swap it with the AC Clutch relay.

Here's the schematic of the starter circuit.

 

[Sam Meade]

So I assumed that the new starter was good but I just tested it and it's bad too. So I'm going to swap it out and see if that fixes it. Thanks autozone!

 

[dougelam]

You get what you pay for!

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