Hey guys I have a problem with my starter that I cant get straightened out. For whatever reason when i relocated my battery to the rear of the car, my starter started acting up. It did not do it at first, but now it constantly runs while the negative cable is on the battery. If the Neg is removed, the car will remain running and the starter will stop. if the Neg is left on the battery after the key is turned to the start possition, you can let go of the key and it will continue to crank itself. When it fires up, the starter still runs, reach around and disconect the Neg, the starter shuts down but not the car.
I have the Neg for the battery grounded to the chasis right next to the battery. and regrounded the old batery Neg connection. I also regrounded the motor to the Chasis just for an extra ground. The Pos runs from battery to the starter. The old Pos batery terminal connects to the starter there also. Is there a problem with running the power this way. I did not think so, but please tell me what could be wrong. is this a "symptom" of another problem? Or is this a problem with how the battery relocation was done/routed/wired or whatever you want to say...

Thanks in advance for any help.

 

perhaps the bendix is sticking under a power load

 

I had a problem like this a few years ago. I bought a new, rebuilt starter from NAPA and had the same problem. Finally, after about 2 months of crap I bought a NEW MAZDA starter. It was freakin expensive, but the problem went away.

Never figured out exactly what it was...

 

hmmmm.... that didnt answer anything Lotus. thanks anyway.
mazdaverx713b: i dont even know what you just said. care to break that down to my level?

 

sure, there is basically a gear riding on a shaft. that gear kicks out when power is applied and it meshes with the teeth on the flywheel. when it kicks out fully, it spins, thus when meshing properly with the flywheel, turns the engine to start it. power is then diverted away from the starter when you release the key once the engine is started. well, over time, clutch dust collects on the shaft as well as moisture, equalling rust and it then is not properly greased. when this happens the gear does not return fully and stays meshed with the flywheel. sometimes, when you stop holding the key, because of a faulty connection or ignition switch, the starter stays engaged. how is your ignition switch? basically, the bendix is the unit that kicks out the gear to turn the flywheel. does this make sense to you?

 

pull out your starter and examine/clean it. and by the way, dont buy a new starter, thats a huge waste of money, bring it to a n automotive electrical shop and they can break it down and clean/replace whatever needs to be done. Save $$$$$$$$$

 

I'm not sure that this will help or not, but I had a starter on a boat engine (a Chevy 454) that did something similar. It was due to a bad solenoid, which kept the juice to the starter motor going full-time, instead of only when the start switch was depressed.

 

Per the FSM,

1. sticking contact plate of magnetic switch
2. Layer shorting of coil of magnetic switch
3. ignition switch does not return

The handling for any of those is to replace the defective part.

http://www.wankel.net/~krwright/file...Electrical.pdf

(page 4)

good luck

 

I had a this problem and it was the ignition switch. When I let off the key after the car was started the ignition did not return all the way.

 

yeah, most likely the starter solenoid.

Actually, when the starter is engaged (key turned on) the ignition switch energizes the pull-in and hold-in windings on the solenoid switch (the magnetic switch the FSM is talking about). When you release the key, it's supposed to allow the hold-in winding to de-energize and allow spring force to push the bendix gear back. It sounds like the contacts in the solenoid are sticking, and when you disconnect the negative battery terminal, it's cutting the power to the windings that hold the bendix gear out.


mazdaverx713b - you're thinking of a centrifugal bendix system in which the shaft is spiralled and the gear spins out by the centrifugal force generated by the shaft turning. This system is no longer used on newer vehicles (post-70's cars), and is replaced by the solenoid system. The gear on the end of the output shaft on the starter motor is actually held out into the flywheel the whole time the key is turned to the start position, regardless of whether the engine is runnning or not. The gear simply spins once the flywheel is turning faster than the starter motor, by means of an "overrunning clutch" mechanism, which allows the gear to spin freely if it's not being driven by the starter motor....