starter wiring...

[COP-TZR]

Hey Guys,

I'm really frustrated...I just installed my new starter and thought I had it wired correctly. The positive is the one that "runs" into the actual starter motor through that braid right?

there is also a broke clip or something that well I think it might be important...



thanks for your help,

James

 

[dantheman68]

theres a bigger nut and a smaller nut IIRC, and the bigger one has the two bigger wires on it and the smaller one only has the one smaller wire

 

[Redskull]

the newer solenoids have that clip re-made into a nut, but they usually come with a pigtail to convert it. There ought to be three connections on the starter: One with a metallic braid already connected to it that you shouldn't touch that nothing gets attached to, another empty one that gets the positive cable, and a small tab that the clip plugs onto. The ground cable goes onto the larger starter bolt where it attaches to the frame (drivers side)As far as the ? in your pic goes, i have no idea, i've never seen one. where does the other end of it go to? (how many wires in the loom, etc)

alan

 

[COP-TZR]

Thanks Alan,
I had the positive on the post with the metallic braid, the negitive on the free one and the clip plugged into the tab. When I when to reconnect the battery I got a strong arc untill I stopped (1/2 second). I figured I had a short at the starter.

Thats when I wrote the post...

After I went back outside, and pulled the starter from the car again. I hooked up the main Positive and Negitive to the same posts and reconnected the battery without any of the drama. I figured I'd try to see if the starter would spin when I turned the key. The fuel pump would hum when I turned the key and I would have dash lights but no spinning also no clock or acc. functions when key was turned back?

My logic was that the starter would get it's ground from the case of the starter and needed the positve to be fed in when I must have wired it backwards.

Does the "body" get it's power from the secondary positve on the starter? that what I'm thinking anyways.

 

[Ishodu]

The Clip goes on the square male plug on the solenoid, now for the heavy wires, The two red wires one from battery and one going to power the car will both mount on the outer post on the solenoid, and the neg cable from the battery will mount on the post on the upper bolt holding the starter in.

 

[dantheman68]

Thanks Alan,
I had the positive on the post with the metallic braid, the negitive on the free one and the clip plugged into the tab. When I when to reconnect the battery I got a strong arc untill I stopped (1/2 second). I figured I had a short at the starter.

Thats when I wrote the post...

After I went back outside, and pulled the starter from the car again. I hooked up the main Positive and Negitive to the same posts and reconnected the battery without any of the drama. I figured I'd try to see if the starter would spin when I turned the key. The fuel pump would hum when I turned the key and I would have dash lights but no spinning also no clock or acc. functions when key was turned back?

My logic was that the starter would get it's ground from the case of the starter and needed the positve to be fed in when I must have wired it backwards.

Does the "body" get it's power from the secondary positve on the starter? that what I'm thinking anyways.

what you obsereved im pretty sure youre right, because i tried the same thing when i replaced my tranny, it was something like 3 months and i wanted to just listen to the radio, so i connected some stuff up, without the starter, and it wouldnt work, so i just waited til i was done also when i reinstalled the starter... my stupid ass had the battery still connected... oh.. dont touch the smaller wire to the bigger ones... its quite the spark... especialy when youre laying underneath the car

 

[Redskull]

the spot where the 'car' gets it's power from changes depending on whether you have an ATX on MTX. IIRC, the ATX's have another cable connected to the starter solenoid, and the MTX's are....elsewhere (can't recall).
The deal with the starter is that power from the battery goes into one post of the solenoid, which is basically like a big switch. It's normally open, so no juice flows anywhere except into the fuse box/ignition switch. The clip provides power from the ignition switch (when you turn the key) to operate the solenoid, the switch closes, and current flows to the second post. The 'metal braid' is the output wire that goes from the solenoid into the starter. From there it goes into the ground with the rest of the car.
If you connect the positive with the metal braid, then anytime you connect the ground, you bypass the solenoid and the starter will try and spin, which causes the tremendous sparking (starters use a helluva lot of current). If you connect the two wires together, then you've effectivly short circuited the battery, same deal as if you accidently lay a wrench across the posts. BEST CASE you drain your battery, worst case something explodes.

alan