truck wont start....and its frekin freezin out!

[Blue90]

Alright fellas here is the issue. 1990 k5 350 TBI and its not starting. Ya turn the Key and it wont even crank. The battery is not the issue. I replaced it and nothing changed. I checked the fuses, and all is well there. So the next thing I'm ganna tackle is the starter ....any other suggestions or ideas?

 

[Jeremy_C]

Anything else work? Lights, radio, etc? If they dont check your cables.

 

[Blue90]

Anything else work? Lights, radio, etc? If they dont check your cables.

Yeah everything else works perfectly

 

[JeffsJeep04]

Grab your multimeter, no sense throwing money at it if you aren't sure where the problem is. What is your voltage at the battery with nothing on, with the headlights turned on, and with the key turned, attempting to start? Do the dome lights dim when you turn the key? Can you jump the starter solenoid terminals and get the starter to crank?

 

[Blue90]

Thanks for the help Guys! I got a call from chaddy and he told me to "wack the starter with a hammer" and sure as **** it started right up! Soooo I'm off to checker to a new starter! Woo hoo!

 

[diesel4me]

That is a good way to bust the permanent magnets in a GOOD starter,many newer vehicles use starters with permanent magnets instead of wound feild coils and they shatter like glass easily,rendering the motor junk!..not scolding you,just passing along the info so someone else might avoid trashing a starter..

Hitting it with a hammer "might" get it working,but it could be the whack simply make a loose connection tighter momentarily and got the current flowing too,or freed a sticky solenoid...usually when the brushes get worn down enough,the starter will refuse to crank at some point,and a jolt can get them to contact good enough to crank over again..

I once drove 65 miles to rescue my friends sister--she stopped on her way to his house from far away to get a soda,and her car wouldn't crank over when she went to leave..I brought jumper cables,tools,starting fluid,etc--but when I got to where she was "broken down",I discovered the shifter wasnt in PARK all the way!--holding the key to "start" while moving the shifter some got it to whip right over and start--the neutral safety switch was just doing its job!..