Starter problems UPDATE..STILL PROBS

[daeron]

Only problem with the relay is that it still relies on the starter position of the ignition switch to be making good contact. If it makes poor contact it will be the point where the current load is too great. Which I believe is the root cause of 90% of these "CLICK" no start issues in old subies (and old Hondas and Toyotas too I might add)

 

Run a fused(important) wire of at least 12 gauge off of the positive battery post of the starter. Run to a button on dash, back to solenoid with a piggyback so you can put the original wire on the solenoid terminal as well. That way you only need the button if the no start happens. Running the 12v lead off the starter makes the distance as short as possible. And I hate wiring right off the battery even with a fused lead. I've used a 15 amp wire/swtich/fuse and have not blown a fuse or melted a wire. The most recent car I did this in had a relay setup wired in already when I got it. Didn't work cause the ignition switch is so crappy. The ignition switch works sometimes, but rarely, so the relay didn't do squat. I took it out. Button works with out fail.

 

yah, but the starter switch only fails to conduct the high amperage needed to operate the solenoid.. it obviously is making some contact, or we weould get no click at all. the problem arises with the switch being no longer able to fuse that kind of current.. putting the relay under the hood means that the amperage flow required through this switch is reduced a hundredfold...at least. If the ignition switch is totally FAILED, then it wouldnt fix the problem, and you can just rig a cheapo $5 pushbutton switch up to a relay the exact same way.. but if the ignition switch failed utterly, chances are the "accessories" and "run" aspects won't be too far behind.. the main initial problem lies in the overall buildup of resistance in the circuit.. I have felt specific solder joints get very hot while trying and clicking.. after relaying, they are ice cold.

[hatchsub]

Well yesterday i ran out to my car to check on the positive cable. To me it looks like its the original cable to the car. I think im going to replace the cable first and see how everything goes after that. If i still have the problem im going to wire in a relay or a relay and push button (just cause push button starters are cool )

[daeron]

Well yesterday i ran out to my car to check on the positive cable. To me it looks like its the original cable to the car. I think im going to replace the cable first and see how everything goes after that. If i still have the problem im going to wire in a relay or a relay and push button (just cause push button starters are cool )

 

Yah, I kinda felt like a putz, because I kept on posting and posting trying to con you into it, KNOWING it was probably a bad cable.. but this thread had hit all the bases to come up in a search, and I thought it would be nice to go through it all for posterity's sake.

 

Good luck, the cables are the first problem point, most likely to go wrong.

[hatchsub]

Well update on the situation..the positive cable was old so i replaced it and the problem is still persisting. Im pretty sure its not the starter cause i put a rebuilt starter in when it was still the old cable and the rebuilt didnt work either. So.....i think my ignition switch is messed up.

[Gloyale]

Well update on the situation..the positive cable was old so i replaced it and the problem is still persisting. Im pretty sure its not the starter cause i put a rebuilt starter in when it was still the old cable and the rebuilt didnt work either. So.....i think my ignition switch is messed up.

 

Push button. And it only need be 14g wire. Use an inline fuse and while your at it replace the spade connector at the starter solenoid.

[hatchsub]

Push button. And it only need be 14g wire. Use an inline fuse and while your at it replace the spade connector at the starter solenoid.

so im assuming that a push button would involve a wire from the battery to the button then a wire from the button to the spade connector on the starter? Also if i understand do i keep the current wire on the starter as well so that it wont start unless i turn the ignition key AND push the start button?

 

Or would the better thing be to wire a wire from the positive tab on the starter since its got 4 gauge wire off the battery..then wire that into the button and back to the spade.

[daeron]

so im assuming that a push button would involve a wire from the battery to the button then a wire from the button to the spade connector on the starter? Also if i understand do i keep the current wire on the starter as well so that it wont start unless i turn the ignition key AND push the start button?

 

Or would the better thing be to wire a wire from the positive tab on the starter since its got 4 gauge wire off the battery..then wire that into the button and back to the spade.

 

You could wire it off of the starter end of the battery cable... but in the end I avoided using that as my power pick-up point for my relay. I can't say why; I just felt better taking it from the terminal.

 

there is NO need to leave the original solenoid wire intact; it would do nothing anyhow. I opted to install the relay rather than a pushbutton, because the ECU gets a "cranking" signal from the ignition switch when it is in the "start" position.. and using the stock solenoid wire to activate a relay keeps this "Cranking" signal going to the ECU when it is supposed to. Really, this "cranking" signal is the best argument in favor of a relay over a pushbutton...but people use pushbuttons all the time with no apparent problems, so I do not know how vital it really is. To the best of my knowledge, once the car is started it makes absolutely no difference whether the ECU got its "Cranking" signal or not.