Kawayanan
Member
Hello,
I will jump right in, but if you want the full background its at the bottom of the post. I have my starter removed and here is my troubleshooting/testing results:
I found this post about replacing the braided wire. I could do this, but I am not sure if the solenoid is also shot (no click with 12V applied).
My questions:
1. Is the starter motor probably okay? (is it normal not to spin freely?)
2. Is the solenoid shot (no reaction to 12V on terminal 50), or is the lack of reaction due to the braided wire being bad?
I hope that all makes sense. Thank you all for you help. I found the "Car won't start troubleshooting" and "How to re & re the starter" threads very useful (as will as this post on another forum).
Background.
I have a 2000 Jetta TDI that recently failed to start. It has always started, but did have a noticeably harder time in the cold (slower to start). The battery is 3-4 years old (replaced the original with an OEM from the VW dealership). It got pretty cold recently, and I had a day when it tried to start but didn't make it (cranked, but slow). I assumed it was a battery issue, and jump started it (jump start worked fine).
The next morning (cold again), it again cranked but failed to start. After a couple tries, nothing (no crank, no solenoid sound either I think). Now, I figured for sure it was a battery problem. Hoping to use the car to go get a new a new battery, I tried to jump it again. Nothing this time when trying to jumpstart (no crank, no solenoid click).
I took the battery out and took it to a parts store to be tested. Their test claimed the battery was fine. I put it on a charger for a bit and it reads 12.4V or so.
After more reading here, I started further trouble shooting. I pulled the starter terminal 50 wire (signal wire to solenoid) and had my wife try to start the car. I was getting ~12V to terminal 50. Seemed to be down to a bad solenoid or stater motor. After a bit more fiddling with no luck, I decided it was best to pull the starter. The results of testing free from the car are above.
I will jump right in, but if you want the full background its at the bottom of the post. I have my starter removed and here is my troubleshooting/testing results:
After pulling the starter, it became clear that the braided wire that carries the power from the solenoid to the motor was fried (looks melted in the middle, but that was almost impossible to see while the starter was still in the car).
I can turn the starter motor with my hand, but it doesn't spin freely (take a little force, but not too much). Not sure if that is normal or not.
12V to terminal 50 - nothing (did not expect motor to run with the braided wire bad, but also no solenoid click). Should I be expecting a click even with the braided wire bad? Does this mean the solenoid is bad?
12V directly to starter motor - motor spins (don't have any reference for speed since I haven't done this with a known good starter).
I can turn the starter motor with my hand, but it doesn't spin freely (take a little force, but not too much). Not sure if that is normal or not.
12V to terminal 50 - nothing (did not expect motor to run with the braided wire bad, but also no solenoid click). Should I be expecting a click even with the braided wire bad? Does this mean the solenoid is bad?
12V directly to starter motor - motor spins (don't have any reference for speed since I haven't done this with a known good starter).
I found this post about replacing the braided wire. I could do this, but I am not sure if the solenoid is also shot (no click with 12V applied).
My questions:
1. Is the starter motor probably okay? (is it normal not to spin freely?)
2. Is the solenoid shot (no reaction to 12V on terminal 50), or is the lack of reaction due to the braided wire being bad?
I hope that all makes sense. Thank you all for you help. I found the "Car won't start troubleshooting" and "How to re & re the starter" threads very useful (as will as this post on another forum).
Background.
I have a 2000 Jetta TDI that recently failed to start. It has always started, but did have a noticeably harder time in the cold (slower to start). The battery is 3-4 years old (replaced the original with an OEM from the VW dealership). It got pretty cold recently, and I had a day when it tried to start but didn't make it (cranked, but slow). I assumed it was a battery issue, and jump started it (jump start worked fine).
The next morning (cold again), it again cranked but failed to start. After a couple tries, nothing (no crank, no solenoid sound either I think). Now, I figured for sure it was a battery problem. Hoping to use the car to go get a new a new battery, I tried to jump it again. Nothing this time when trying to jumpstart (no crank, no solenoid click).
I took the battery out and took it to a parts store to be tested. Their test claimed the battery was fine. I put it on a charger for a bit and it reads 12.4V or so.
After more reading here, I started further trouble shooting. I pulled the starter terminal 50 wire (signal wire to solenoid) and had my wife try to start the car. I was getting ~12V to terminal 50. Seemed to be down to a bad solenoid or stater motor. After a bit more fiddling with no luck, I decided it was best to pull the starter. The results of testing free from the car are above.