Won't Start.

[biggles copilot]

Took my Stag out for a run yesterday having changed the coolant. It ran perfectly. Went to start her again today; turned the key and nothing. Can hear what sounds like a relay click when the key is turned and the dash lights dim. The battery is fully charged. In addition to not starting, when items such as lights and wipers are switched on they are dim or very slow. The Stag has an type 65 auto box so, if the problem is the starter motor pinion stuck, how can I release it. There has been a lot of head scratching today. Does any one have any suggestions?

[Lingen]

Biggles.
If the light are dim, and the wipers slow even without trying to start, I doubt if a stuck starter is the problem. Perhaps the battery is not actually fully charged. How have you tested it? I would suggest that you have a poor connection somewhere. It may be corrosion on the battery terminals, or a bad connection to the chassis or engine block from the negative battery cable.
Mike.

[Phil S]

Turning the crank a few degrees should release a stuck pinion. Try a drop tester on the battery that will rule that out, then it's connections.

[biggles copilot]

Thanks for your replies. I tested the battery with a meter and showed fully charged. The battery terminals are clean. I'll check again tomorrow.

[barkerwilliams]

As per Mike above,

Battery terminals corroded/loose, battery earth strap loose/corroded at chassis connection and the bolt near the alternator for the engine block thence starter motor earth return circuit.

If it had only been the starter I would also suggest starter motor bolts loose and not getting a good earth return.

Possible poor contacts in ignition switch but a few cycles of the key should produce some change in symptoms if that.

Does your car have an alarm circuit? Many alarms run the live feed from the ignition switch via an internal relay to the switched circuits those relay / connectors / wiring could be faulty / loose /corroded. This of course will not be shown on any wiring diagrams but simple to follow (and bypass) when you look at the unit - usually fitted under the dash near the ignition switch.

And lastly batteries do die eventually.

Alan

[Phil S]

a dead battery can still show 12 ish volts, connect the meter and turn the key, if volts drop to near 0 then its battery, colder weather sorts the duffers out, worked on battery powered plant and this time of year we would run out of batteries

[marshman]

Sounds like it could be a stuck starter pinion. Get a spanner onto the crank pulley bolt and turn it. Only needs to rotate the engine a fraction and the pinion should ping back, you will hear it when it goes. I would also say that the battery could be a bit tired, it is not possible to assess the condition of a battery by simply measuring its terminal voltage with no load. Even with the pinion still engaged a really good fully charged battery should still make it turn the engine, but then again it depends on the engine, state of the starter and wiring and also the ambient temperature, it has got a bit cooler the last few days - the oil is thicker making the engine harder to turn over and batteries don't work as well at low temperatures.

Roger

[bonnietiler750]

First thing I would do is connect a fully charged battery one off any modern car will do or just connect jump leads and see if the problem persists, just an easy way to ensure you don't just have a duff battery, I had a battery on a Rover75 that showed 12.7 volts charged but dipped to under 11 volts the instant the starter was turned

[biggles copilot]

Thanks guys for your suggestions. Just had jump leads on the battery from my daily driver and, lo and behold, a turn of the key and the Stag turned over. Can't believe it happened so quickly and without warning.

[022Dave]

Hello Biggles,

It happened to me a few years ago; my battery was 11 months old. I removed it from the car, and took it back to where I bought it, and asked them to test it. They gleefully pronounced that it was knackered, so I produced the receipt showing when I bought it. They were a little crestfallen, but honoured the warranty. I've now got a Bosch battery, and it's proved to be very reliable.

Dave

[ASL1956]

Had exactly the same thing on my 1971 with BW35 box. Thought battery was the problem, put on charge overnight, no good. Then for some reason decided to move the gear selector lever from P to N, started no problem. Stopped the engine, moved back to P, started. I think that the selector bar was not fully in P so the inhibit switch was open. Try moving the selector to N