Lawrence71 Posted August 30, 2023 Share Posted August 30, 2023 Hey, so I've been scratching my head over this one and could use some ideas for things to check. My '71 has occasional starting issues after running for a while. The general pattern is car starts ok, go somewhere for a while (30-60 minutes), then come back and nothing: no click, no turning over at all. Leave it overnight and the next day everything is fine, starts without issue. Battery and alternator are tested and verified good. I replaced the starter already and that didn't help. The common thread I'm seeing is that it's on pretty hot days, so not sure if something is expanding and losing contact with a ground or anything. There is a voltage drop when trying to start according to the gauge, so ignition switch seems to be working. I've tried switching into neutral in case it's NSS but in this case it still won't start. Any ideas on what to look for at this point? I'm considering replacing the battery cables just on principle. Thanks, David Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dtret Posted August 30, 2023 Share Posted August 30, 2023 Check the wiring going to the starter it may be too close to the manifold. Look for burn marks. Its a thought Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackhawk Posted August 30, 2023 Share Posted August 30, 2023 This may be a pain, but try getting everything warmed up before parking at home and check that you're actually getting voltage at the starter solenoid. You could test at the solenoid or where the purple wire comes out of the firewall bulkhead. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cny first gen 71 Posted August 30, 2023 Share Posted August 30, 2023 I'll assume you've checked everything to make sure its all tight? Including ALL the grounds. And made sure there is no corrosion on anything? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MC1of80 Posted August 30, 2023 Share Posted August 30, 2023 Since you stated you changed the starter already. Still could be bad though. Check the fuseable link by the starter. I have had many over the years go bad internally. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott S. Posted August 30, 2023 Share Posted August 30, 2023 Battery cable ends/ worn battery posts ? Montelishi had cheap loose clamps that lost contact when warm.... Found that if I twisted them they would re connect and I could get power. Replaced them fairly quickly after that. And the battery as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1970mcss Posted August 30, 2023 Share Posted August 30, 2023 I also had the same problem. The battery was weak although it tested ok. Changed the starter twice and the battery cables were cheap. I also replaced the wires to the starter so all is new and no problem since. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
71MonteCarloMD Posted August 31, 2023 Share Posted August 31, 2023 I had same issue and per a suggestion from one FGMC member, I replaced the purple wire (from starter to close where wiper is) which resolved my issue. i found that the original purple wire was brittle that couldn’t stand the heat. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lawrence71 Posted September 1, 2023 Author Share Posted September 1, 2023 On 8/30/2023 at 7:43 PM, 71MonteCarloMD said: I had same issue and per a suggestion from one FGMC member, I replaced the purple wire (from starter to close where wiper is) which resolved my issue. i found that the original purple wire was brittle that couldn’t stand the heat. This is certainly what it /seems/ like, behavior-wise. I guess I'll visually inspect and see what I can tell on this wire. (If it's not to hard, might just proactively replace, if I can figure out what it's called.) On 8/30/2023 at 1:55 PM, 1970mcss said: I also had the same problem. The battery was weak although it tested ok. Changed the starter twice and the battery cables were cheap. I also replaced the wires to the starter so all is new and no problem since. I tested the battery using something like this: https://www.amazon.com/Performance-Tool-W2998-Portable-Analyzer/dp/B073VCB6P2 On the car itself, with the positive wire on the post and the negative on ground, it said the battery was bad and to replace, though it still picked up 12.79 V. I pulled the battery and bench-tested, and it said the battery was good, same voltage. I'd assume this means there might be some sort of load that it was picking up, could it be a short or something? It could also be a crap tool, was an O'Reilly in-store special. On 8/30/2023 at 1:27 PM, Scott S. said: Battery cable ends/ worn battery posts ? Montelishi had cheap loose clamps that lost contact when warm.... Found that if I twisted them they would re connect and I could get power. Replaced them fairly quickly after that. And the battery as well. Tested the battery, which said good off the car, but it came with it and has seen better days so open to just replacing proactively; this is 650/800CA top-post, so not even sure it's the original one that came with. Don't mind throwing a little money at the problem to see if it goes away... 🙂 that and the battery cables. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott S. Posted September 2, 2023 Share Posted September 2, 2023 Yeah, batteries can be like that..... One day all's fine, and then poof.... no amps. They'll still read 12 volts, but the actual cranking amps won't even engage the starter and still all the light work. I'm not sure if those testers are built to test amp load all that well. I'm sure there are high end ones that do, but they ain't cheap. There is a whole conversation on the site as to which battery is the best...... I personally like the Interstate one I got this spring. Noticed a big improvement over the one it replaced. (it was at least 4 years old) Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whons Posted September 4, 2023 Share Posted September 4, 2023 Do you have headers that are very close to the starter motor? I had a 67 Impala with that. ounce the engine cooled down, no problem. Ended up putting a small high torque starter motor in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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