The Amperage draw is so high it locks the starter solenoid. This can be because of a bad starter bushing, low voltage in the battery, timing, etc. It is a major engineering defect in the design. All Fords prior to 1992 have this flaw. It can result in a fire, dead battery, etc. The good news is Ford redesigned their starters in 1992. The new starters will fit the old engines and Ford sells a retrofit kit to rewire the Solenoid for the new starter. The way it corrects the problem is the old solenoid becomes a starter relay, with the output wire now going to a solenoid mounted on the new starter. (This gives you less of a voltage drop at the new solenoid vs the old solenoid, that solves the problem in most cases) You need to buy the kit from Ford (Under $20.00) but you can buy the starter anywhere. Just give them your vehicle information as if you owned a 1993 Ford when buying the starter. You can also get a rebuilt starter from Ford. You could make your own kit, but the Ford Kit is everything you need and comes with instructions (priceless). Warprunner
Well, .. for a 1994 Lumina APV - here's what I did: I replaced the starter in my 1994 Lumina APV (3.8 L V6) after about 120,000 miles. Symptom was that the starter would turn over very slowly when the engine was hot. Nice gentleman @ Autozone told me that the coils tend to deteriorate and heat conducted from the engine causes the starter to heat up and then draw high current when hot. Cold starts were fine - hot starts caused the starter to turn very slowly (like the battery was drained). He tested the starter and it tripped the breaker on the tester two (2) times. Got a remanufactured one for ~$65. Here's what I did. 1) Disconnect cable from negative battery terminal 2) Raise vehicle front and suitably and safely support. 3) Remove cover from starter wiring (small right angle-like black plastic cover). 3) Loosen large wiring harness (underneath starter) so that it can be moved out of the way. 4) Remove outer nut and wires from solenoid. 5) Remove outer nut and wires wires from starter. 6) Remove two (2) screws retaining plastic flywheel cover and cover. You will need to do this - otherwise you will be unable to remove the front bolt holding the starter to the engine block. This cover is a small black plstic piece located where starter penertates the flywheel cover. 7) Remove (2) bolts retaining starter to the engine block. One is accessable towards the front of the starter/vehicile and the other (long one) is towards the rear of the vehicle - just behind the frame cross member. 8) Position starter so that if can be dropped down (flywheel gear part first). 9) Reverse the above instructions to install the new starter/solenoid. Palmboy (6/25/05)
Get a new starter. It's gone bad and is trying to draw too much power and can cause a fire.
Remove it and bring to an auto parts store that is capable of checking it for opens, drag, and load draw
Either connecvt 12V directly to starter to make sure it rotates - Safely secure (a lot of torque) or bring to an auto parts store that has the ability to fully check for drag amperage draw etc. - most will do this free Yes, it is called 'bench testing' and requires that the starter be removed from the vehicle. Many repair shops and some parts shops can do a bench test cheaply, sometimes free, if the removed starter is brought to them. Firstly, after removing the starter, check the bendix gear (small gear inside the starter on a shaft) for excessive wear, cracks, or breakage. If any exists, replace the gear or entire starter as necessary. The bendix can often, but not always, be replaced by itself cheaply. Bench testing is done by securing the starter in some fashion, usually in a vise, but it can be strapped to something solid or held down with your foot (carefully, when voltage is applied the starter will want to jump, roll and twist with sometimes huge torque). Once the starter is secure, positive electricity is applied to the correct solenoid wiring stud, sometimes marked with 'S', (usually from a vehicle battery with jumper cables), and then the negative cable is touched to the starter housing. What should happen is that the bendix (small gear on the starter shaft) should fly down to the tip of the starter shaft and spin. If the bendix spins, but doesn't shoot down the shaft, the starter solenoid is bad. Replace the solenoid. This is usually cheaper than replacing the entire starter, but check both prices and judge the best action. If nothing happens at all, try a different wiring stud (if more than one is present). If still no response, the starter probably needs to be replaced. When obtaining a new starter, take the old one along for reference and possibly a confirmation bench test to determine the correct parts required.
Yes, but eventually your started will cease to work?
decribe two causes of higher than normal starter current draw
It may be the starter solenoid that is clicking. If the battery is very low when you try to start the car, the solenoid will engage but the starter will not turn. Because the battery is so low, there is not enough power to hold the solenoid closed (in the start position) and try to turn the started so as the starter draws power, the solenoid clicks open, The starter doesn't draw any power with the solenoid open so the solenoid has power to close again, the starter tries to draw power and the cycle repeats. The sound seems to come from behind the glovebox because the solenoid is probably mounted on the passenger side of the engine compartment.
Remove starter and bench test it for operation and current draw
The solenoid is on the starter itself. Usually only two bolts and the wire connections need t be removed. First disconnect your battery. Then remove the wires from the solenoid. ( you might want to draw a pic of how they were connected) Then just reverse! pretty easy! Don't forget to re-connect your battery.
Over load in circuit? Remove starter and have it checked at auto parts for excessive current draw Dead short to ground in circuit? Over load in circuit? Remove starter and have it checked at auto parts for excessive current draw Dead short to ground in circuit?
Generally, you need a new one when the old one doesn't work properly. Oftentimes, a starter current draw test can be used to check for a bad starter.
The Amperage draw is so high it locks the starter solenoid. This can be because of a bad starter bushing, low voltage in the battery, timing, etc. It is a major engineering defect in the design. All Fords prior to 1992 have this flaw. It can result in a fire, dead battery, etc. The good news is Ford redesigned their starters in 1992. The new starters will fit the old engines and Ford sells a retrofit kit to rewire the Solenoid for the new starter. The way it corrects the problem is the old solenoid becomes a starter relay, with the output wire now going to a solenoid mounted on the new starter. (This gives you less of a voltage drop at the new solenoid vs the old solenoid, that solves the problem in most cases) You need to buy the kit from Ford (Under $20.00) but you can buy the starter anywhere. Just give them your vehicle information as if you owned a 1993 Ford when buying the starter. You can also get a rebuilt starter from Ford. You could make your own kit, but the Ford Kit is everything you need and comes with instructions (priceless). Warprunner
A typical starter motor draws around 50 to 150 amps while cranking an engine. If the current draw is significantly higher or lower, it may indicate a problem with the starter motor or the electrical system.
First things first. make sure the battery is good because that clicking is a dead giveaway for either a weak battery, or corroded or loose connections and wires. The battery connections must be clean dry and have an excellent connection to the terminal and the main red wire to the starter must be free of corrosion and its connections need to be tight if not you will have enough power to run everything but a large current draw like starting will not happen. If all that is good look at the starter itself ( not many parts stores will sell you just a solenoid for a new model starter and replacing it can be a project sometimes. )
dead battery..not enough chargeAnswerA loose connection can also cause the clicking, check the cables. If the battery is years or older, replace it. The alternater may not be charging the battery or there may be a parasitic draw draining the battery. AnswerIt could be anything electrical. Most likely, if the battery is charged, and the cables are tight, it could be the starter. More commonly the solenoid. Try tapping the solenoid with the car off, and try starting it. If after this, the car starts.. then you need to check into replacing the solenoid, or the entire starter motor, if the solenoid is connected to the starter.
Probably the starter, have someone turn the key to the crank position while you gently tap the starter with a hammer or bar. If it starts change the starter. If not try shorting the starter solenoid to see if that works.