greg schulte

greg schulte, 

I'm having a problem with my truck starting and I need a second opinion before I go buy a part. If you don't mind giving some advice, I'd appreciate it.

Last Saturday I woke, loaded up the dogs and took them to the park. An hour or so later I left the park and came home. 

No problem.

Shortly after that, maybe 20 minutes, I go to leave and my truck won't start. I put the key in, turn it ON, twist to crank the engine and I get a single click and nothing else. 

There is no starter crank, no nothing going on -- just a single click.

I checked the battery connection and the power connection to the starter which both seem firm. No apparently corrosion on the battery side, either. The starter side has some oil caked on it, but my truck has had a slow oil leak (like a few drops a day) for years. It's a 1997 5.7l v8 Tahoe.

From reading online I am under the impression the click I hear in the solenoid engaging (what the heck is a solenoid?) so I'm thinking the starter itself just stopped, but would it stop so suddenly like that, literally working one minute and not the next?

Anywho, before I go off and buy a new starter I want to make sure it's in fact the starter that's broken and not something else affecting the starter.

Below is a link to the same symptoms, but not the same resolution.

Thanks for any advice you can provide.
http://m.chevroletforum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=19914

Comments

Jason ON said…
I might have to get out there and pull it, then.
Jason ON said…
Battery and alternator aren't that old. I will go check the fuses here in a second. I didn't think about that earlier.
Jason ON said…
The only connection that's not-so-easy to get to is the connection from the battery to the starter. I have a hard time believing it would start fine twice in a row and then not start fine due to a dirty connection. There would be some degradation going on over time.

I just tried to find the damn multimeter  to check the battery but it appears my roommate hid it.
Hubby is mechanic, he said connection if there has been no issue before this
greg schulte said…
sorry for the slow  response  .  Most auto parts suppliers test parts  , remove the starter and have it tested  , in doing so  you will find IF there is a loose or dirty connection  , Also  , just because a battery terminal " appears clean "  does not guarantee there is not corrosion between the male and female parts of the battery post connection , a dark coating on lead is not a good connection , scrape away a small layer of the post and the terminal inside diameter , just until it shines, Always ,,, ALWAYS  , Disconnect Battery  BEFORE working on a vehicle electrical system components.
Jason ON said…
Pulled it and took it down to OReilly and had it tested. It tested good. Snapped the ignition cable (is that what its called?) In the processed. Spliced on a new end, reinstalled everything and the truck fired right up, no problems.
greg schulte said…
if its the heavy cable that goes  from battery to starter  , its the battery cable  , if its the 12 or 10 gauge wire ithe the spade end , that's from the ignition switch ,which tells the solenoid to engage the starter to start the vehicle
greg schulte said…
P.S.  glad you found the problem
( bad cable / wire connection )
Jason ON said…
It was the smaller ignition switch cable.
a connection.
Glad it is fixed

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