my car sat for a month 82 gsl, went to get in it and the starter just clicks. I tried jumping it with my truck, still just a click. I cleaned the battery terminals, sanded down the body ground and engine ground. Cleaned the hot terminal and where it mounts to the starter, still just a click, battery reads 12.22V with a DMM. Im getting 12.22V at the starter. I then pulled out the starter and tested it on the ground it worked. I tested it with a different battery and jumper cables and a jumper wire. THe starter spun and the solenoid worked fine. I put it back in and hooked it up again and it still just clicks. I looked in the haynes manual and it said to try to jump the white/red wire and black/yellow wire on the ignition switch, still just clicks. When you have the headlights on and try to start it they do not dim, but the voltage gauge in the car goes from 12v to 8v and the warning lights dim. I gave up and am now asking you guys lol sorry for the long post! it almost has to be either a falty starter or a bad battery, right?

 

well, take the starter to autozone oreillys etc and have it tested. mine did exactly this. and after i had it tested it worked fine for no apparent reason. she just needed some encouragement.

if it worked with a different battery tho, i'd start with having the battery in the car tested. followed by new battery cables all around. those made an unbelievable difference on my car. especially with my starting issues. new terminal clamps. and avoid the colored ones.

 

i check voltages and continuity between all the grounds and cables. the battery im thinking is totally fine, as it reads 12.22 volts but it could be suspect, i dont have a load tester. I think im just going to swap a starter to make sure. sucks though, ill have to chage 2 starters now :/

 

i checked continuity and resistance on my cables as well and they all tested fine. it still made a world of difference tho.

keep us updated

-Nick

 

Will do. Thanks for your help.

 

New battery cables, if they haven't already been replaced at some point. Mazda used aluminum cables, bad idea...




.

 

If I'm under the car with a meter on the two starter posts I get 12.2 volts. When someone hits the key to start the voltage between the two posts goes to 0volts. Is this normal?

 

Kentensu you da man! Bad battery terminal. Worked enough to get the juice down there, just not enough. Car runs good, all is well! Thank you!

 

Voltage but no current = too high a resistance in-line. Yep.

E=IR; it's not just a good idea, it's Ohm's Law!

 

And to think, I went to school for electronics... I just never woulda thought! I really suspected a faulty starter... Oh well, all is good!