Starter Issue - I Hope

[MrJim]

So I had the oil leak issue that the oil change place in Arlington caused and so I haven't been driving my Pathfinder much because I was waiting for it to get warmer before I fooled with it. So, I sat for a couple of months and I moved on the 1st to a new place and it just clicked when I went to start it. I charged the battery for couple of days on 2 amps and still nothing.

 

The weird part is when I held the key in the start position for a minute it shuttered once and I hear a clattering noise in engine compartment. I went up there and was listening, trying to figure out where the noise was coming from. It sounded like the distributor was the source of it and I put my hand it it. It jolted the crap out of me with a shock and I had to disconnect the battery to stop it from whatever it was doing internally. I was completely confused by this. I reseated all plug wires and did the same thing again and again it started some kind of electrical arcing ir or on the distributer. I pulled the battery cable again to stop it.

 

We used the clutch to start it on the hill and it started very easily doing it that way. That was just plain weird, but it looks like my starter may have kicked the bucket. Its the arcing thing that is so odd to me.

 

Anyone ever see anything like that?

 

MrJim

[morpheus]

needs new cap rotor and wires. when they get old,they will arc like that.

[nunya]

Gonna say you could use some new tune up parts... along with a starter

Edited March 14, 2010 by nunya

[jj big shoe]

Dunno about the alt shocking you, but this link solved my starter problem. Fully charged battery, new starter, new relay, etc. and it still would click ten or fifteen times before it would crank. Your problem could be that the old wiring isn't up to the job of getting enough juice to the starter. This adds a relay and throws 12v directly to the soleniod.

 

Linky

[adamzan]

Dunno about the alt shocking you, but this link solved my starter problem. Fully charged battery, new starter, new relay, etc. and it still would click ten or fifteen times before it would crank. Your problem could be that the old wiring isn't up to the job of getting enough juice to the starter. This adds a relay and throws 12v directly to the soleniod.

 

Linky

X2 I did this to 4x4pathy94's truck and now it starts everytime instead of click click click, wait a few mins, click click START.

[Precise1]

As for the arcing, I have had my first pathy run without a center electrode in the distributor cap. It arced from the spring down to the rotor, and I'm pretty sure it would have shocked me had I touched the cap...

 

B

[MrJim]

This was a great thread... Thanks for the info on the infamous click click click then maybe starting issue that we know we all have from time to time. I am going to buy a relay tomorrow and give it a try. I will let you know what happens.

 

Jim