draggy starter when cold

jvandyke

jvandyke

True Classic
I'm having cranking issues again. When stone cold it barely turns over. So far it fires pretty quickly and off I go, subsequent starts are rapid turn over (normal) even if everything is still cold.
I had the starter "rebuilt" about a year ago, new brushes and bushing but the solenoid was overhauled by me 5 years ago. My guess is the solenoid is grumpy again. I do have a relay on the starter solenoid, FWIW. Battery check just a few weeks ago was a passing grade. Thoughts?
 
You have a black X right?

See if there is a diesel in there, they can be tough to start when cold. :devil:
X_with_28hp_CAT_diesel_swap.jpg
 
The usual suspects are a battery that is not as young as it used to be, marginal connections, dirty contacts in the solenoid. What's this relay of which you speak? That's the solenoid's job and adding another relay n series will only make it worse. Try measuring the voltage drop from battery terminal to starter terminal when it's cranking slowly. Don't overlook the current return path (negative cable on the battery and that copper braid connection to the transmission).
In case you don't know, it is not at all unusual for a battery to appear fine until it gets cold. Internal resistance of a battery goes up significantly when cold. IMHO starters rarely go bad - unless it's a Lucas in which case I give up.
 
By "cold" I'm betting you mean first start of the day not 0 degrees. That is most likely the starter motor. Wouldn't hurt to test the battery to be sure but probably not the culprit. Don't bother rebuilding the starter. Just get one of the new gear reduction units. They pull less power and spin the engine over faster than the original ones for these cars.
 
I would check all of the usual stuff (battery etc) but one thing you might want to think about (if you have not done it already) is adding a starter relay mod. I was having problems with mine engaging if the car sat more than a few days, spent 45 min and no cutting of the harness with a $5 relay and presto - problem fixed. Now that being said, it could be something else and this will not help a thing but it can't hurt.

John
 
Solenoid is not the issue here.

jvandyke said:
I do have a relay on the starter solenoid
Click to expand...

Despite what I have seen written here and on other forums, adding a "hard start" solenoid won't increase the cranking speed. The solenoid itself is what controls the flow of power to the starter (it is, in itself, a "relay" for the starter motor).

The reason for adding a "hard start" relay is to provide sufficient power to the starter solenoid (despite being similar to a relay, the primary winding requires a non trivial amount of power) and to "unload" the ignition switch (which, again, is "only" powering the solenoid itself, which then "switches" the power to the starter).

Don't get me wrong, I'm not against adding a "hard start" relay, but it certainly won't cure a slow cranking issue. As soon as the solenoid "clicks", it has sufficient power to do its job. For the slow cranking, you need to look at the quality of the power being switched by the solenoid and the grounds. If there is no issue there then the issue is with the battery or starter motor itself.

Cheers,
Dom.
 
:mallet::mallet:
Sorry guys, guess it has been a long long week... I would agree, bad connection at the battery cable (either end) or at the starter, bad battery or your starter is due for a upgrade and as others have said the gear reduction seems like the way to go..

John
 
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