Electrical woes

Gene-C · Post by **Gene-C** » Tue Jul 17, 2007 3:25 am

Is it possible that there is a problem in the wiring in the starter circuit? That maybe there is a continous flow to the solinoid and getting it hot. Key switch always hot or wrong terminal?[/

L0084MC · Post by **L0084MC** » Tue Jul 17, 2007 9:24 am

I'm not sure if this info amounts to much, But I had a 68 olds one time that done the same thing. I could not drive it over a couple of miles or so and the starter would drag when I tried to restart the car. I pretty much went through the same thing in trying to figure it out. As it turned out, There was a heat deflector that was not put back on the car when the new exhaust was installed. It was explained to me that the heat from the exhaust manifold would cause the armature in the starter to expand and the starter would drag. When the car cooled off it would start fine. A heat deflector was put back on the car and the problem was over.

Lee · Post by **Lee** » Tue Jul 17, 2007 4:17 pm

"Results on timing check, it appears somewhere around 25 degrees advance of TDC. I'm assuming that's within tolerance?" That's out of tolerance. Timing should be between 28 and 32 degrees BTDC at 3,500 RPM, all vacuum lines disconnected and plugged. Running too far advanced will cause pinging, running with too little advance will cause the engine to run hot. Did you check to see what your timing is at idle? That's important too, because if the timing does not fall down to between 5 and 8 degrees (or thereabouts), it means your distributor is not curved correctly and it could be too far advanced at low RPMs or when you are trying to start the engine. I have seen this happen on some of the crappy 009s, where there is so little advance you end up with something like 15 degrees or more at idle!

fubar · Post by **fubar** » Wed Jul 18, 2007 12:25 am

You could have a crappy starter too, the lifetime warranty Bosch starters give me few problems on my pinto buggy, and when the sand destroys them, they chearfully replace them...And allways replace the shaft bushing in the bell housing. You could also try retarding the distributor when the problem occurs and see if it cranks better.

CairoManx · Post by **CairoManx** » Wed Jul 18, 2007 1:55 pm

[QUOTE="63Fiberbuggy"] replaced starter & it has a new bushing with probably less than 10 hours on it. I'm sure it's something simple, just gotta find it....[/QUOTE] Bill, In your last post you said, "replaced starter & it has a new bushing with probably less than 10 hours on it". That makes me unsure whether you were talking about a bushing (bearing) in the starter. Were you talking about the bushing that's pressed into the transmission bell housing? Also, are you sure the bushing in the bell housing is the correct size for your starter? They come in two different inner diameters. If you have one with a large I.D. and need one with the small I.D. then it will behave just like a worn bushing and cause the starter to drag.

63Fiberbuggy · Post by **63Fiberbuggy** » Fri Jul 20, 2007 10:51 pm

Hey guys, sorry it's taking me so long to respond between post(s). Been traveling a lot lately. I'll try to cover all the follow-on questions/suggestions below & where I'm at with checking them out.

after driving it today for 40 miles, I immediately placed hand on starter/solinoid - - - both are cool, can leave hand in place
bushing replaced is the one pressed into bell housing; converted from 6V to 12V, so used the "conversion" size (purchased from Larry's Off Road)
Plan to hook up & check timing at idle later today/early Saturday (if kids will cut me some slack while wife's at work); I'm starting to warm up to the idea that the root problem is with the timing...stay tuned for findings...
I don't have vacuum lines, at least I don't think so. I'm running dual Weber IDF 40s
I hope my luck isn't that bad with the starter itself; since I've put (2) remanufactured ones from NAPA in during this exercise; you never know though...

Thanks for everyone's help. If ony I lived a little closer, I'm sure plenty of folks would've stopped in for an attempt to find this 'bug' in the buggy.

fubar · Post by **fubar** » Wed Jul 25, 2007 6:41 am

Personally I have had bad luck with quality of rebuilt parts in general, but pretty much stay away from Napa as a rule unless I have no other choice. They may sell the lifetime Bosch there though, next time it fails they may ( and should ) upgrade for the difference in cost. Rebuilt starters and alternators use junk parts and I have had better luck with OEM parts from a wrecking yard, specificly Ford alternators and regulators will last years vs minutes in the sand. I had a new Napa regulator rattle apart before I even got my pinto buggy on the trailer, all the diode thingys fell out. The OEM ones are coated in Ford goo of some kind.

63Fiberbuggy · Post by **63Fiberbuggy** » Sat Aug 18, 2007 7:11 pm

Problem solved....timing was off. Thanks to all who chimed in with tips, that's a real benefit of this club, people will help you through the rough spots.