this car has taken over my life.
the 88 vert with 87 engine has been a pain for too long and now its time to see what anyone has to say about this car.
first off. it will not start. when i turn the key it just makes a "click" noise. so i replaced the starter. well that didnt do ****. so i replace the battery. that dint do ****. so i replace the ecu! didnt do ****

only sometimes when i turn the key to start position the tack goes to 2000 RPMs and the shift light is on.

dose anyone know whats up with this thing? its got to be wiring!
here is a bit more info tho. just to see it run, i turned the key to on. i hooked up the starter and fuel pump to the battery. it started perfect. ran vary smooth. idled perfect.
the car has 115 compression on both rotors.

 

check your key ignition switch sounds like it . If its starting when you jump it with key forward and hit the starter sounds like key switch .

 

your starter cut relay probably took a ****. you can wire up a new starter wire through the clutch switch then to your own relay to the starter. if you know a little about wiring then it is easy to cut out all the bullshit wiring that mazda put in for the starter and bypass it completely.

i have seen too many ignition switches burnt up and relays faulty in the system to spend more than 5 minutes before i start rewiring the systems now. it's too complicated and has too many possible places for a fault.

wire off the ignition switch> through clutch switch(optional, for safety)> to pin 86(a typical relay at any auto parts store)>ground wire off pin 85> run a wire off the battery lug on the starter solenoid to pin 30> run a wire from pin 87 to the old control circuit wire to the starter(spade connector), disregard the old starter control wire, it is no longer used.

voila, no more cranking issues, as long as your ignition switch is in good working order that is, even if it is marginal this will still likely cure it and make it unnoticable.

 

dude you have got to stop being a "parts-changer', it gets very expensive!! in general, you should try to diagnose the problem and then repair/replace accordingly rather than just switching out parts or you will go broke quick unless you have a parts car!

as for your problem, sounds like possibly the ignition switch? i mean normally its not even turning over, right? but you jump the starter and she vrooms right up? maybe someone more knowledgable with auto-electric can jump in on this to tell you how to confirm a bad ignition vs you just changing it out!

 

dammit, while i was writing my response karack and chino posted theirs up so now mine has no relevance....

 

It sounds more like corroded battery cables to me but could just as easily be a combination of the aforementioned issues. In fact, last July I picked up a 85 Rx7 that had a dirty ignition switch, corroded battery cables, and a bad starter.

Also, the ECU has nothing to do with your starter circuit.

 

i'd say ~70% of the second gens i work on have "click click vroom" syndrome, mine included because i don't have time to rewire it. some are much worse than others.

 

I once fixed a death click by replacing a burned up portion of the wire to the starter solenoid.

 

Having a similar issue, I replaced my ignition switch to no avail, so I installed my own starter switch. It's ghetto, but I don't even notice that I reach down to flick the switch anymore.

 

I've had this problem before on my 2nd gen. When I jumped it, she fired up fine. I removed the alternator and had it tested, turns out the alt. wasn't charging the battery properly. I then replaced the alt. and battery, now she starts up with no problem. Had the same battery for about 3+ yrs now, still starts even though she's just sittin in the garage.

hope this helps.

 

awesome info man. wiring is not my strength. when you say pin 86, 85, 30, 87, on what part of the wiring harness are these? again thank you this helps a lot.

 

These would be the pin labels on the relay you grab from Autozone or wherever. I used similar relay for reversing the polarity on my power antenna on an aftermarket stereo.

http://www.parts-express.com/pe/show...ource=googleps

 

all general purpose relays that you can buy just about anywhere use the same plug patterns.

the pin #'s correlate to the picture.

 

i got the same things going on with my car now

 

i did this exactly. it was perfect man! i cant thank you enough! props to you man!

 

i had an issue with it starting when i relocated the battery. the cable i was using wasn't big enough. so i overkilled with welder grounding wire. much better.

 

Everybody here seemed to lack the simplest answer. CHECK THE GROUNDS. If the mounting surface between the starter and bell housing is oxidized the starter will just click. You may also try taking a set of jumper cables, connect one to the starter and the other to a known good ground. If it doesn't work jiggle it around a bit and try to get the best connection. Your connection between the negative cable and the engine may also be oxidized clean that too. I believe the giant bolt for that goes through the starter too.

 

this is true but it isn't an issue nearly as often as the starter circuit is, as the example shows the OP's car is now fixed.

glad i could be of help. i tried installing one of the pettit wiring kits to boost the OE starter circuit on a customer's car, then the starter would stay engaged due to the starter cut relay hanging closed i decided that the orginal circuit wasn't worth a damn and have since stopped trying to troubleshoot it, there is about 5 possible points of failure in the original starter circuit and it's not worth the hassle to fix one issue and have another pop up next week in a different spot. this also puts less strain on the ignition switch as well, preventing it from burning up as quickly.

 

Wow GROUND It is very important too, In all cars when something electrical happens always start first with ground, But It sound like ignotion switch but a few guys mention it so and i see it was rigged already so you all good now,