Quote:
Originally Posted by 86 Cavalcade
BT-111, When you turn the ignition to the start position this sends 12 volts to a start solenoid and this start solenoid then supplies 12 volts to the starter solenoid terminal that sets on top of the starter. If you ran a wire from the ignition switch straight back to the start terminal on the starter solenoid you will have a voltage loss and your ignition switch is not built to handle this kind of amp load. Do not do what this young guy wants to do! You need to connect your test light to the start terminal of your starter solenoid itself. If it lights everytime you try to start your coach then either your starter solenoid or the starter itself is defective. I would test these things before I started putting new wiring and replacing parts. George 2001 Diplomat
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I think what BT111 is referring to is running a wire from ignition switch to solenoid replacing the wire which currently is sending the 12v to the solenoid. But that is only one of the possible failure scenarios.
elaborating on my earleier post this AM (before I had my coffee
) ...
- There may be a poor ground or corroded connection...either of the solenoid coil or the starter itself.
- The heavy 12vDC cable from battery to solenoid or from solenoid to starter motor may be bad, or these connections may have corrosion.
In any of the above cases a test light connected to the IGN terminal of the ignition switch to a good nearby ground will always light nicely even though one or more of the connections back at the solenoid or starter are bad.
I agree that the next step is to do more diagnoses, however before going through any more tests the next likely step would be (after disconecting the chassis battery) unbolting each electrical connection, including the power and coil terminals on the solenoid, checking for and removing any corrosion... Following this, proceed with tests. Rather than a test light even a cheap volt-ohm-meter would help. Better still (but more costly) a meter that can measure DC current. Even a cheap VOM can do some of the tests below.
Here's a link to a page by Prestolite-Lance-Neville which should help diagnose possible problems in solenoid, starter wiring, etc...
Prestolite - Leece Neville