Starter problems

Tiny
DEANO16
  • MEMBER
  • 1995 CHEVROLET SILVERADO
I have a 1995 Chevy silverado with a 350. I replaced my stater. When I connected the negative wire to the battery. The stater ingages and the truck tries to turn over. I have know idea what could be causing this. Any suggestions?
Sunday, October 21st, 2007 AT 10:34 PM

32 Replies

Tiny
RASMATAZ
  • MECHANIC
  • 75,992 POSTS
Either you have a bad solenoid or the starting circuit the purple wire is touching the positive battery cable/terminal at the starter.

Do this remove the small wire from the starter then hook the negative cable back up if it cranks over the solenoid is bad. If it doesn't then the purple wire is shorted to power could be at the ignition switch or somewhere in the wiring harness. This guide can help us fix it

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/starter-not-working-repair

Please run down this guide and report back.
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Tuesday, July 21st, 2020 AT 2:37 PM
Tiny
JOEGENE
  • MEMBER
  • 1 POST
  • 1995 CHEVROLET SILVERADO
  • V8
  • 2WD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 249,663 MILES
Turn the key on, radio works, turn signals work, wipers work, interor lights work. When I turn the key to start the radio goes off but won't engage the starter. Starter has been replaced, caan start the truck by crossing the hot wire (red) and the pink and white wire. Truck runs but the alarm for lights on buzzes
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Thursday, September 3rd, 2020 AT 5:17 PM (Merged)
Tiny
INTERNETMECHANIC
  • MECHANIC
  • 700 POSTS
I'd have to make sure the battery has a full charge and the battery connections are clean and tight on both ends. If you use a digital voltmeter leads across the battery posts, everything turned off, the generic spec for a full charge is 12.6 volts. With the leads still hooked up, have a helper turn the key to crank, while you watch the meter reading, it shouldn't drop below 9 volts, some specs say it should drop below 10 volts. A national brand autostore should be able to load test the battery for you and charge if necessary.

The starter solenoid S terminal, purple wire, should be hot with the key in the crank position? If it isn't, backtrack that circuit. It comes from the ignition switch to tranny range sensor to starter solenoid.
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Thursday, September 3rd, 2020 AT 5:17 PM (Merged)
Tiny
CONSAKA
  • MEMBER
  • 31 POSTS
Let me ask you this. If you hold the key in the start position for a while does smoke come out from under the hood? Please have the hood up for this test so if it does smoke you can turn it off right away.
If you get no smoke then the wire isnt shorted out at the starter. You may think this is funny but I have a no start '94 suburban sitting outside that I just bought for practically nothing that is doing that.

If the above smoke doesn't appear then you probably have a bad ignition switch. Except in your case you said the radio would go off. This makes me suspicous that the start solenoid wire is shorted to ground. Check the volt gauge for signs of current draw. When you just turn the key on the voltages should be 11 or 12. If the circuit is open then the volt meter wont move when you go to the start position. If it does move then the wire is shorted out somewhere. Likely the short is near the starter someplace where the wire has rubbed on some metal or been stretched. Or where the smoke comes from if you hold it on. :)
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Thursday, September 3rd, 2020 AT 5:17 PM (Merged)
Tiny
BRIAN 87
  • MEMBER
  • 5 POSTS
  • 1994 CHEVROLET SILVERADO
  • 5.7L
  • V8
  • 4WD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 185,000 MILES
This is a 350ci. Starter engages but will not turn flywheel. Started out when I got the truck the starter acted like it was going out. The common dragging. Going to replace soon. Drove it ten miles today shut it off ten minutes then tried to start it and it turned over three times then click. Thought well its out now. Put a used one on that I new worked. Came off my father in laws 1994 350 truck. Nothing happened. Even had new battery on it. Pulled to his house tested both starters with jump cables and battery both worked great. So I am thinking no power to starter. Ground wire (little red wire) looked like it got hot, it was very close to manifold. So I cut it and sliced with same Gauge wire. Now I got that one click back. But will not turn over. Pulled starter off and left wires connected and bumped key. It engaged like it should (tried both starters like this and both worked) so thought it was in a bind. We shimmed it and tightened bolts side to side evenly. Still one click like in a bind. Just could not figure it out. Pulled dust shield off of bell housing thought could be that still same thing. Check grounds and harness behind engine and found nothing. Now I found the ground strap from fire wall and back of block bolted together and from there bolted to frame. Looked rusted and rough going to look at that more in morning since I give up tonight. Checked fuses turned fly wheel with screw driver and turned alternator with breaker bar and engine turned over like it should and checked oil and coolant and all great. Oil only has one hundred miles on it. All I keep getting is one click please help bout to push truck in the river. Any help please.
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Thursday, September 3rd, 2020 AT 5:17 PM (Merged)
Tiny
HMAC300
  • MECHANIC
  • 48,601 POSTS
Chevrolet starters have to be shimmed a lot of times if it works on one vehicle but not another then you may need shims available at auto parts it can take one or two. See pictures. If starter makes a lot of noise after one shim it may need another. Lower fusible link runs off of battery in picture.
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Thursday, September 3rd, 2020 AT 5:17 PM (Merged)
Tiny
BRIAN 87
  • MEMBER
  • 5 POSTS
Okay, tried to but still same. Acts like its not getting all power according to gauge in the truck.
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Thursday, September 3rd, 2020 AT 5:17 PM (Merged)
Tiny
BRIAN 87
  • MEMBER
  • 5 POSTS
Starter will turn over fine if not bolted in place but when bolted in place it goes in but acts like not enough juice to turn over the engine and will not disengage from fly wheel.
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Thursday, September 3rd, 2020 AT 5:17 PM (Merged)
Tiny
HMAC300
  • MECHANIC
  • 48,601 POSTS
This may need shims if there are not any. Has starter been tested at auto parts? It may be a bad starter or does engine turn over easy or at all?
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Thursday, September 3rd, 2020 AT 5:17 PM (Merged)
Tiny
BRIAN 87
  • MEMBER
  • 5 POSTS
Well fixed the problem an truck starts better than ever with the starter that came off truck. It was not grounded good. Who ever put motor in truck had negative battery cable connected to air conditioning pump. Figured this because we took negative sides of jumper cables one to battery and one to frame and truck turned over. So we moved battery ground to cleaned frame and still turned over slow so we add a same gage wire to the same frame ground and from there to intake. Fired right up. Thanks for your help.
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Thursday, September 3rd, 2020 AT 5:17 PM (Merged)
Tiny
HMAC300
  • MECHANIC
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Glad it's fixed but do two more things, make sure there is a ground from engine to body, 10 gauge wire or the copper clad wire is good for this and one from battery to body as well as battery to ground point on frame. The engine one is important because if not connected it will melt the shift cable and truck will start in drive. As well as other grounds to make body stuff like switchs/lights work better. Normally on small blocks ground wire goes from back of cylinder head to firewall on pass side.
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Thursday, September 3rd, 2020 AT 5:17 PM (Merged)
Tiny
RECOVER
  • MEMBER
  • 1 POST
  • 1995 CHEVROLET SILVERADO
  • 5.7L
  • V8
  • 2WD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 200,000 MILES
New battery, new starter, and all connections clean. Only clicks once and draws way down. No relay on this. Starter need shimmed? Would it do this if neutral sensor relay were bad? Ignition? Do not want to keep putting new parts into it. Thank you.
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Thursday, September 3rd, 2020 AT 5:17 PM (Merged)
Tiny
CARADIODOC
  • MECHANIC
  • 33,869 POSTS
Drawing battery voltage down very low indicates the starter motor and all its circuitry are okay and the motor is trying to rotate. System voltage would jump back up a lot once the starter motor got up to speed. Try rotating the crankshaft by hand. If you cannot, try rotating it backward, then forward again. If it turns backward then there is a hard clunk when going forward, something is broken inside the engine. If it gets steadily harder to turn going forward, remove the spark plugs, then try again. Watch for gas or coolant coming out of one spark plug hole. That would indicate that cylinder was hydro-locked. Once the liquid is expelled, the starter will spin the engine real fast. Put the spark plugs back in and the engine should start.
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Thursday, September 3rd, 2020 AT 5:17 PM (Merged)
Tiny
SDRBNK
  • MEMBER
  • 1 POST
  • 1995 CHEVROLET SILVERADO
  • 5.3L
  • V8
  • 4WD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 227,000 MILES
For about a month now, I've had trouble starting my truck. You could turn the key and all the normal dash lights come on, but when you turn the key to start it all the dash light go out and nothing, it does not crank. So I would move the shifter back and forth and it would turn over, but now even that doesn't work. Could it be the neutral safety switch or the starter or is it the ignition switch. I'm really stumped on this one if you have any ideas I really would like to hear them. Thank You for all you can tell me
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Thursday, September 3rd, 2020 AT 5:17 PM (Merged)
Tiny
HMAC300
  • MECHANIC
  • 48,601 POSTS
You will have to test to see if neutral switch is getting and sending power. If not it's probably the ignition switch then test to see if starter is doing the same it's the yellow wire on neutral switch for input and purple for output. Starter is purple wire on "S" terminal. If neutral switch doesn't get power then it's the iginition switch.
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Thursday, September 3rd, 2020 AT 5:17 PM (Merged)
Tiny
CLAYTONSCOTT
  • MEMBER
  • 1 POST
  • 1994 CHEVROLET SILVERADO
  • 184,700 MILES
My truck wont start. I got a good charge from the battery but it wont even try to turn over. What things can I do?
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Thursday, September 3rd, 2020 AT 5:17 PM (Merged)
Tiny
JDL
  • MECHANIC
  • 16,098 POSTS
What is litre size of engine? Your saying the starter motor won't crank?

Turn on the headlamps, turn key to crank, Is there any reaction from headlamps? If the lamps go out or almost then usually, suspect the battery or cables. If the lamps stay bright, maybe an open circuit to starter? If this is an automatic tranny, could be an issue with neutral switch. Could be an issue with starter itself? Some of the national brand autostores will test the starter for you.

Have you done any voltage testing at the starter, itself? Battery voltage at the starter is hot all the time. Crank voltage at the starter goes hot with key in the crank position. Any testing at the starter, make sure tranny is in park or neutral and the parking brake is set.
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Thursday, September 3rd, 2020 AT 5:17 PM (Merged)
Tiny
CMCCLURG
  • MEMBER
  • 1 POST
  • 1994 CHEVROLET SILVERADO
Electrical problem
1994 Chevy Silverado V8 Four Wheel Drive Automatic

All the lights are bright and do not dim when the key is turned. I have checked the neutral switch OK. The starter was replaced 3 years ago and the battery less than 2 years. This happened once, but started after a few tries.
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Thursday, September 3rd, 2020 AT 5:18 PM (Merged)
Tiny
PEAR69
  • MECHANIC
  • 1,482 POSTS
It could be the ignition switch. Remove the ignition relay located in the under the hood relay fuse box. Jump out the terminals that control the starter. If the starter turns over then it is probably the ignition switch -- if not then it is probably the starter solonoid.
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Thursday, September 3rd, 2020 AT 5:18 PM (Merged)
Tiny
KENM56
  • MEMBER
  • 1 POST
  • 1994 CHEVROLET SILVERADO
  • V8
  • 4WD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 144,000 MILES
I have a '94 Chevy Silverado, 5.7 V8, and for some time now it will not turn over. When it does this, there is no sound at all, no clicking, no growling, no sound at all. This happens at any time, warm or cold. Then maybe 1 hour later or 2 days later, it starts right back up as if there was no problem at all. It could happen today or tomorrow or 6 weeks from now. I am clueless why this is happening. Any thoughts?
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Thursday, September 3rd, 2020 AT 5:18 PM (Merged)

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