Bizarre Start-Up Phenomenon...

Hello, again, another problem...

I just parked my car for 15 min and returned to the car to find out it wouldn't start. Ran fine this morning, called CAA to give me a boost (figured I left the lights on or something) Checked the car for any exposed wires, then tried to start it again and it did, as if nothing was wrong.

This happened about a week ago when I was working on the car. Figuring I drained the battery, I got a boost to start the car, and then after only idling for 5 minutes the battery seemed fully charged.

I know this car doesn't start unless the shifter is in "P". I'm thinking maybe there's some electrical glitch in the shifter. Other than this, I can't seem to figure out what might be wrong.

Any ideas on what to check ?

I recently replaced my ignition coil. But when it won't start, there's no power at all, not even a slow turn. NOTHING, just dead.

Please Help.

Thanks,

AARON ROCHARD

1976 230.4 W115

[Benzmac]

When this happens, be sure to turn on the headlights and see if they are good or dim. IF they are good, you may have a faulty starter that is failing when it heat soaks.

Thanks, Benzmac. Actually, when this happened, I wasn't getting ANY power at all. The headlights did not work. However, I have (for a long time) had a slight dimming of the headlights when idling or using my turn signal. Had the charging system checked out a few months ago and no problems. Maybe a relay gone bad, or the battery terminal ?

I haven't had any problems since, so I'm hoping that maybe it was just a wire touching the body that shouldn't have been. I'll keep you posted.

AARON ROCHARD

1976 230.4 W115

[Kebowers]

When there is NO juice, look for bad battery cable connections. Check each end of each cable. Rarely, battery connections fail internally and 'die' suddenly

Have you had the battery checked?

Good luck,

Haven't had the battery checked recently, no. But I do remember that before I got it to start up, I checked the terminals sitting on the battery (they seemed fine) so I pulled them off and re-positioned them. I'll take my flashlight under the hood tonight.

Thanks,

AARON ROCHARD

1976 230.4 W115

Years ago I had a volkswagen that suddenly wouldn't start even with a jumper battery. The car had no electrical power whatsoever to lights, instrumentation, etc. In desperation, I thought I'd connect the jumper battery directly to the starter motor, and in the process noticed a small green wire connecting to the starter solenoid that had broken. I re-connected the small wire, and never had any more problems.

[Jim H]

I saw this happen once to a friend's car.

His car too would start just once in the morning. On the next start the starter would just click-click-click. He had replaced the solenoid but that didn't solve the problem.

I checked the battery connections, which were OK. I then looked again at the red (positive) cable and saw that the exposed wires were greenish. Bingo! With an evil grin (for dramatic effect) I stuck a thin screwdriver an inch down the wire and asked him to try cranking. Away it went!

He shut it off and I then peeled back the insulation to let him in on the act. Under the first inch was green corrosion and one thin strand of wire under the red insulation.

The overnight dew had let just enough moisture accumulate in the corrosion to supplement the thin strand of wire. The high starting current then evaporated the moisture, leaving the wire to its own fate. The screwdriver bypassed the corrosion and substituted for the wires.

Yes, it was a cheap screwdriver, and yes I got a good, cheap thrill from the look on his face...

We replaced the positive cable and had no further problems.

So, please look and DO touch!

BCingU, Jim