Need help Identifying my problem

[Dragonfly]

It wasn't the battery cables. I replaced them, and it still just clicks. I'm guessing that it is the relay? I'm back to where I started. It's the relay or starter I'm guessing. I guess it could just be faulty wiring somewhere. I have no idea.

 

Any thoughts or ideas?

 

Since you were able to start the car by putting a screw driver across the bolts on the starter seliniod I would say that it is not your starter or the seliniod/relay. Did you try checking for the difference in voltage between the battery pos and neg then between the battery pos and where the neg wire connects to the engine? That difference is a valuble piece of information. Since you replaced the cables and it is still having the same problem the next thing to check is the chasis ground, it is a screw that goes into the fender under the hood just forward of the battery and almost straight across from the starter. You should see a large black wire screwed down to the inner fender, check that wire and junction to make sure it is clean and makes good contact. Also make sure you have a good ground wire running from the block to the firewall or fender.

 

After all that if you still can not correct the problem it is time to follow the links provided by COZY Z COLE, use a meter and start wringing out your wiring. Since you have virtualy no experiance at that you may want to find someone local who has a little more experiance and get them to help you out.

 

Dragonfly

[het976]

You need to get a meter and check the battery voltage, but in place of that... Are you able to turn the engine over by using the screwdriver on the starter? Do the lights shine bright? If so, then the battery should be good, then the issue comes down to where is the open. It could be in the ignition switch or a loose wire. You can make jumper wires and try working around the circuits until you get it to work. It is a lot of work and hunt and peck, but in place of a meter... Best way is to get a meter and start to work your way back from the battery, using the wire diagrams.

[240Zed]

Problem might be in the starting switch on the back of the ignition key lock.

 

My 240 would only start when the key was turned slowly to the on position.

 

When it started cranking you stopped turning the key. of you kept turning it all the way to on, it would stop again. If you turned it fast all the way to on, it would just click, like you'd flicked the key on and off really quickly.

 

Now that I think of it I think I had a loose/ broken solder connection on the back of the switch. I seem to remember having to resolder the red/white wire back onto the key switch.

[Mauisnow13]

The wires all seem to be fine in the ignition. I cleaned the fender ground today, but haven't had a chance to test it out.

 

I found out that some of the wires down by the fuse box were very poorly put together. Three wires were held together, not by a splice, but with tape, behind the dash. Then another two were held together by tape. I''m splicing the two tomorrow, but I don't know what to do with the three. Maybe all of the wiring is just poorly done. It's about now that I'm starting to wonder if it would be easier to put in a new wiring harness than to fix the previous owners wiring. haha

 

I guess it's about time to take out the dash and start trying to straighten it all out.

 

I'm fairly new to wiring so if there is anyone that lives in my area, I'd LOVE some help with all of this. haha

 

Thanks everyone.

Mauisnow13

[ArnZ]

If only a few wires are astray you will be better off trying to repair them. Have you tried to "Hotwire" the car? Bypass the ignition switch as if you were starting without the key, as mentioned earlier the problem may be in the ignition switch. If the car will start with a screwdriver, it's not that bad.

If you do not know how to bypass the key, we (me /somebody) can post a schematic.

[280Z Turbo]

My car did the old click-click thing until recently.

 

I replaced the ignition switch (~$30 part) replaced the connector on the the solenoid signal wire, and I replaced the connector on the back of the switch. Any dirty wires or connectors you can replace will help, but the new switch helped the most for me.

 

My car hasn't clicked since I put the switch in (knock on wood).

[GLSHLE]

I had that problem and it was the tab that turns the switch was twisted and wouldn't turn it far enough. If you can get to the switch and turn it with a screw driver, that will tell you if that's the problem.

[Guest Mitchka]

I just had this problem on my 74 Datsun. It was just a single click when we turned the key. We tore the entire wiring harness apart pretty much and as it turns out, we had lost a primary ground wire in a fusible link coming through the firewall. Power was getting up to all the fuses and switches, but the primary ground wire (12g) was not connecting, and not letting the starter even turn.