Starter motor only "clicking"

H

HUGHESY108

Hi there, I am new to this Forum so please go easy on me:grinning:
Got in the 1997 1L MICRA this morning and only got a "clicking" from the starter solenoid and no engagement. Had to jump start my way to work, glad I live on a hill!
Because it seemed easy enough to take off (after moving the clutch cable bracket) me and my old man got it off in about 15 mins.
This is where I cant make any sense of it...
With it out of the housing it seems to be working perfectly. It spins and moves up as it would when it should engage the flywheel. TEETH are slightly worn but not the worse I have seen but if it was this I would of expected some "grinding".So we thought we had freed it off...no!:(
This is where I cant make any sense of it..
As soon as we put it back.... we only get the click
Put the multimeter across the battery and we have about 12.2v, turn the key and it only drops to about 11.54v. Is this enough voltage drop? Is the solenoid drawing enough current? Is the battery knackered?
Any help greatly appreciated
 
try jump startin it off another car with jump leads, if it starts it a battery problem, keep us posted mate and welcome :grinning:
 
mine does that sometimes. i think it happens when the starter pinion and flywheel teeth are aligned such that when the solenoid tries to engage the pinion, it just hits a narrow flat section of the flywheel teeth. since the pinion can't fully engage due to this obsticle, no connection is made to the starter hence no motor sound.

the solution is to shift the flywheel very slightly so that the pinion will have more chance of either hitting the chamfered edge of the flywheel teeth to guide it in place or slot straight into the other side of the teeth and i resolve it by either

*repeatedly engaging the starter solenoid (each time i disengage would nudge the flywheel over abit till it engages) or
*move the gearstick between 3rd/4th then neutral without the clutch (the slight engagement difference between gears is enough to nudge the input shaft/flywheel to align with the starter pinion while the driveshaft side of the gearbox remains static) then try starting and it works
 
Hi, thanks for the replies everybody. Tried to start from another battery, no change so battery OK. I have had the motor off again and the pinion seems to be working OK, I.E. moving freely as it would when going to engage and then returning back to its original position. Back in position again and I am back to just the "click". I have "jumped" the car off the drive a few times now so I doubt it is simply a case of teeth not aligning as I am sure they would of mated by now with the flywheel being in several different positions.
I am beginning to think it can only be the solenoid on the starter as it works when I take the motor off (no load so the pinion spins OK) and then doesnt when in postion in line with the flywheel , i.e. under load. One other thing when I have got the car going by jumping I have briefly turned the ignition and got the crunch I would usually expect , so when I am running it IS trying to engage!
Hence why I am only left with the Solonoid, any further ideas before I splash the cash on a new motor?
Thanks again, a confused Hughesy
 
give the starter a good overhaul n clean?

so when its out, the solenoid moves the pinion ok and the motor spins up?
 
this used to happen in the 93 1.o lx and like pollyp said puting it in third fourth used to align , that used to start after jigling gears
 
R-REG-SR said:
this used to happen in the 93 1.o lx and like pollyp said puting it in third fourth used to align , that used to start after jigling gears
Click to expand...

Thanks R-REG-SR and polyp, I have tried it with the gears, no luck. I have jumped it off the drive a few times so I am sure I would not of been unlucky enough to hit the same spot on the flywheel by now?

With the motor off
turn key, solonoid fires pinion and moves like it would engage, seems OK and moving freely but it is NOT UNDER LOAD doing this
With motor bolted back onto the flywheel housing
turn key, but only get "click" but motor is now under the load am I right?
With motor in place I am getting only a little dimming of the lights and only a half volt reduction in voltage, 12.2-11.54v when I turn the key, should there not be more drain than this under starting? does this indicate a problem with the solonoid as I have checked the battery and jumped it from another car?
When it works when not bolted in place is really confusing me

Thanks again for any help
 
Thanks R-REG-SR

A recon is only 35 pound so it might be worth just getting one and saving the hassle. I am convinced the voltage should drop more than half a volt when starting, thats why I am thinking its the solonoid. I cant think of anything else having done all the above
 
have you checked your earth contact? a loose earth or damaged earth can cause this, i get it a lot with my cars that have been in storage.
 
NeX said:
have you checked your earth contact? a loose earth or damaged earth can cause this, i get it a lot with my cars that have been in storage.
Click to expand...

It seems OK, with the starter off the housing it is firing OK, as soon as it is back in place, the "click"...
 
Hi Hughesey108, did the 20 quid starter do the trick. My wifes car doing the exact same thing yesterday. It starts straight away on jump leads and after running it for 15 mins I turned if off and when I tried to turn on again I just get the loud clicking noises! Replaced battery in August but will get it checked.
 
basically it is clicking when it doesn't get enough power, that is down to two things, a dead battery or a dodgy connection, the fact that it does something at all means that it is all connected right, but it still could not have a decent enough connection to actually function, so you need to check things like the battery terminal surfaces, the wires for any corrosion etc.

the only other thing it could be is that the starter motor has been not working for a while and carbon deposites have built up on the contacts inside the starter motor. that is easy to fix, just open it up and put it in a drill and hold the contacts with sand paper and give it a spin and it should work fine after that.
 

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