I have an intermitant problem with my starter motor 1.6td JX and any advice or
troubleshooting steps would be welcome.
Sometimes it starts fine but mostly i just get the dreaded solenoid click. it will turn over and start if i keep trying but sometimes this can take 20mins.
i have only just bought the van but the starter and solenoid were replaced last year and looks like new. I have cleaned/replaced/tightened all connections and earth straps (including gearbox earth) and drop tested the battery.
The problem is proving tricky to fix as sometimes it starts fine and when it does turn it sounds fast and healthy. When i get the click the headlights also dim greatly.
Any ideas?
1989 Brown/Cream 1.6td T25 Hightop
1989 White Mk2 Golf GTI 2.0 8v
1981 Mars Red Mk1 Golf GTI 1.8 8v
If your battery and the cables to the starter definately good I'd be looking out the guarantee for the 'new' starter. There's 'New' brand new in a box from an auto-electrical retailer or VW and there's 'New' reconditioned exchange unit, which may just have been tested and painted to look pretty.
Ian.
The Hulley's Bus 1989 2.1DJ Trampspotter LPG courtesy of Steve @ Gasure
cheers for the replies. The fact that i always get the click made me assume the switch and feed wire are ok... Any thoughts?
I just went through the paperwork and the starter was replaced last March so i guess no warrenty and the garage that replaced it are 200 miles away anyway.
As i said before when it does turn over it spins lovely. Any ideas on the most likely problem and how to confirm if starters faulty (i guess its tricky because its intermittent)?
1989 Brown/Cream 1.6td T25 Hightop
1989 White Mk2 Golf GTI 2.0 8v
1981 Mars Red Mk1 Golf GTI 1.8 8v
2 weeks ago I swapped my Mother's starter motor (on a '92 Jetta), that was 'new' ~2 years ago but was intermittently missing and running the battery down. I swapped it for a known good 2nd hand one off our Scirocco et voila, all problems were gone.
To me (miles away and not having seen or heard the starter) it sounds like it's knackered.
Ian
The Hulley's Bus 1989 2.1DJ Trampspotter LPG courtesy of Steve @ Gasure
I had the same problem for a while. It turned out the main wire between the battery and the starter (the big thick one) was in very poor condition (only two of the cores were still connected).
Worth taking the lead off and checking it before shelling out for a new starter...
I thought that could be the problem also so I have already tried a new cable (the original seemed ok but the battery clamp was damaged). It started fine but the next day 'Click'......dam intermittent problems!
Am I right in thinking that the power is getting to the starter becausethe headlights do dim if I hold the ignition in the start postion?
I guess I will take it out and have a better look. Its only done 500 miles since being replaced (200 by me bringing it home!). Are these starters easy to strip and any ideas what I should be checking to cause an intermittent problem?
The reciept is for £110 and all connectors, metal braid wire and casings look brand new. I know this means nothing but I would hate to fork out for a new starter if it was something simple. I guess if I take it out and if its still intermittant during bench testing that will rule out installation problems and van wiring issues.
1989 Brown/Cream 1.6td T25 Hightop
1989 White Mk2 Golf GTI 2.0 8v
1981 Mars Red Mk1 Golf GTI 1.8 8v
i have had the same problem this past year and one day it would not start 10 mls from home i was stuck and thought i would change to the ancillary battery that was 3 weeks ago and no problems since the aux battery is a 60 ah so maybe the original was just not heavy enough
main thing on the recon list that was missing is new cap - if the contacts in the cap are pooh then no conduction, caps are not always replaced because ours is different (certainly the petrol one is) to most so people don't stock them.
yes they can be stripped and done by anyone
I've never done it myself, prefer to go to my local refurbisher and get him to do them, mind the core I took in last week for refurbing was beyond it, and that was a supposed refurb unit like yours that just expired after the warranty, so I'm down to my last starter motor core
cheers for all the replies guys, I'll get it sorted soon!
I'm ruling out battery problems due to the fact that I have drop tested the battery and also get the same problem when using jump leads. I am also assuming the ignition switch is ok as I consistently get a click from the solenoid.
Before I remove the starter and start crying about having to replace the cleanest part on the van I am going to wire a relay into the igntion circuit so that the feed wire to the solenoid comes straight from the battery (with the original feed wire being used to switch the relay).
The original feed wire is providing 12v but maybe it just doesn't have enough juice to fully activate the solenoid due to power going all the way from the engine to the ignition switch and back again. If this doesnt work then its coming out
1989 Brown/Cream 1.6td T25 Hightop
1989 White Mk2 Golf GTI 2.0 8v
1981 Mars Red Mk1 Golf GTI 1.8 8v
Mmmm sticky solly.
I disasembled my solly and greased the bore, it cured the problem for a couple of months.. but came back, so I said eff it and bought a new one (£45 refurb).... happy days for the last two years!
I'll add this (since its not been mentioned) and may prove useful to someone in the future.
Theres also a wire on the starter that runs from solenoid to motor itself. These can become brittle. Chickenkoop's refused to start one night (had to tow him home) and it turned out to be this wire - held on by just one tiny fragment but which at first glance looked normal. Sometimes pays to get starter off and have a good look.
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