Hi Guys, Needing some help here. i have a no crank no start*sigh*...ive done some testing on the car...found the issue out to be the starter... i have tested with a multimetre, i am receiving battery voltage between the two large terminals and battery voltage at the solenoid wire but this is where the problem starts, when turning the key on the on position, it drops down to 11 volts or so which is acceptable im sure, but as soon as i try and start the car, i have a huge voltage drop, it drops down to 3 volts. Which is worrying me because just the day before she started up, had a flat tyre, drove to the gas station to get the tyre plugged, and she wouldnt start, the engine sounded like it wanted to take but just would not. she started cranking healthy at first but as i tried again and again, the starter became slower and slower with every try until all i got was a click noise. battery is perfect, 12.60volts and i have changed the battery in the car with a brand new one. did not help...has anyone else had this issue...
Sounds like a bad starter motor. With a heavy cable short across the big wire from the battery that attaches to the solenoid and the big wire on solenoid that goes to the starter motor. If you get big spark and no action from the starter or if just no action, you have a bad starter.
Check the ground cable connecting the oil pan to the frame/unibody rail on the driverside of the motor below the airflow meter.
I've tried jumping the starter with the screwdriver method...I dont even get alot of spark or any action from the starter....and with the grounding cable, I cleaned the contacts on where it bolts on...even bolted it up to a new section...and still no luck....what I have noticed is, when the car was working perfectly, I would switch the headlights on and they would come on...but if I had to do that now, only one park light lights up...the rest are dead
The next place to check would be the main power distribution terminal at the firewall just above the exhaust manifolds
And, just for the heck of it, add another ground or two.
No e30s again.
will test the distribution terminal, and see what i get... and for the grounds, think im just going to replace all of em.
Just remember that having 12 volts at a connection does not guarantee that the connection will handle the amp/current load if there is corrosion or loose somehow. This is basically what you are experiencing at the beginning of this post. It’s like having water flowing from your garden hose (voltage), but then when you attempt to spray the water (load) the hose leaks/sprays somewhere else before it does what you need it to do at your end.
Last edited by msservices; 05-16-2019 at 08:02 AM.
I'm leaning more towards a bad solenoid, as I have somebody experiencing the exact same issue and hes mac has said it was his starter/solenoid
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