All I get is a click on the starter.

[Craven]

Pity you did not mention the starter type before, use Search, pre-engaged starters.

[tvacc]

Tough to mention what type of starter I had when I didn't know what type it was. I have never been under the car till yesterday and I did not buy the starter. What is the issue ?

[mbell]

Youre missing a wire.

I have that starter on my car. You need a bridge wire from the main power feed to the solenoid feed on the starter, that should be a 1/4 spade connector from memory.

[tvacc]

Ok
There is a small spade connector on the starter. There is a wire going to it. It did appear to me to be very easily removed. Like the connection was not very good. Is that the "bridge" wire you are talking about? Is that "loose" connection the issue? Do I need to run another wire?

I don't know where that wire comes from. Is that the "main power feed" you mentioned? Where is that? On the solenoid? On the ignition switch? These pre-engaged starter issues are all new to me. I had never even heard of a pre-engaged starter till an hour ago.

[mbell]

Pre-engage start normally have two connections:
- Main feed
- Trigger

The trigger energize the internal solenoid in the starter that moves the pinion into contact with fly wheel and triggers power to the start motor to turn the engine.

On the Elan the easiest solution to fit these is to use original solenoid to power the starter, then bridge that to the Trigger. Then when you go to start it power is sent to main feed and trigger, causing the starter to work.

So in you case I suspect you only have power going to main feed. So you'll hear the Elan factory solenoid engage but starter will not do anything.

To fix you need to connect main feed to the power supply post on starter and then connect the bridge wire from spade to that power feed too.

[tvacc]

Thanks. I have a wire already connected to that spade on the starter. I don't know where it is coming from. I will look.

To make it simple.....Can I run a wire from the large cable feed that is connected to the starter, the few inches right to that spade?

[tonyabacus]

Tony
That does not look like the usual starter motor on an Elan, more of an aftermarket product. Suggest you have a chat and send an email with pictures to Ray at RD Enterprises, to ask if he can identify it and provide an answer to your original issue. Also check the number of teeth on the starter motor as there was an 8 and a 9 tooth available on the Lucas motors from memory.

However it sounds as though the starter was working before, so something has developed more recently, chace down the small spade wire on the motor, it most likely will be around the fuse box or control box.
Tony

[prezoom]

I had the same sort of problem with the Plus2 equipped with what looks like the same type of starter. Only a click, then nothing. Removed the starter, placed in my vise, connected a battery and the starter worked perfectly. Went back to the car triple checked the grounds and the cable from the solenoid. All was well. Reinstalled the starter, same problem. Starter back out, and it was rinse and repeat. A couple of more tries and the result was the same each time. Took the starter to a local starter/alternator rebuilder, figuring I would get it back in a couple of days, only to get a phone call that afternoon. The rebuilder had found the problem. There was a small rubber plug, that fit loosely in a hole near the rear of the starter. What was happening was the internal portion of the rubber plug was getting between the two contact discs that provide battery to the starter motor when the solenoid is activated. The rubber plug was preventing electrical contact from being made between the two discs. I seems the difference in how the starter was mounted in the car and how I was testing it in the vise, made the difference in the position of the loose rubber plug. The plug had an arrow shaped end that made inserting the plug in the starter housing easier and held the plug in place. Simply trimming back the point on the end of the plug and a little RTV kept the plug from moving around and solved the problem.

[mbell]

To make it simple.....Can I run a wire from the large cable feed that is connected to the starter, the few inches right to that spade?

Yes. The spade should be connected to the main feed.

[StressCraxx]

That's an 89 Toyota Corolla starter. They are built by Denso with an adapter plate and pinion to fit your Elan.

If your direct connection to the solenoid has no effect, check your grounds, particularly from the battery terminal to the chassis. Have your battery load tested. After a while in service, the contacts in the solenoid foul with arcing debris and won't energize the motor. The solenoid plunger can be removed, contacts cleaned and the plunger lightly lubricated.

Some auto parts stores can also test the starter for you. If the starter is bad, you can have them rebuilt for a reasonable cost at a local auto electric shop or starter rebuilder.

[tvacc]

Thanks all,
Spoke to Ray at RD. This is a starter they sell all the time. It does have a 9 tooth pinion which is correct.
When I get home tonight from work I will make a jumper from the main large wire connection to the spade wire connection on the starter. I will make sure there is nothing fouling the connections or what someone else said here. I have not had time to digest that response, I feel things do repeat themselves and his answer might be mine.

Will let you all know and thanks for the help. A new one of these is only $150 or so. Worse comes to worse I will buy it. After all I have spent, that is really nothing in regards to it all.

Tony

[tonyabacus]

Tony
Befopre you buy another, get yours checked out by a local company that refurbs starter motors, as there may not be anything wrong other than the external connection you described. Not much point in wasting money if the existing one is okay. Good that Ray was able to help, but as I am in the UK don't know how you far you are from Ray, but having sold many of them it seems like they must be generally okay once wired correctly.
Tony

[Andy8421]

Just as a FWIW, pre-engaged starters of the type used by the OP don't need a separate solenoid as they have their own.

As explained by Mbell above, all they need is a live main feed from the battery, and a 'trigger' wire (from the start position on the ignition switch) to energise the solenoid. When energised, the solenoid performs two tasks, it moves the pinion gear out of the front of the starter to engage in the ring gear on the flywheel, and when the gear is engaged, internal contacts connect the motor to the battery.

On the Elan, to save messing around with the wiring, it is common to leave the original solenoid in position on the firewall. In this arrangement, the ignition switch still controls the original solenoid which supplies power to the starter only when required. To energise the solenoid on the starter at the right time, a short jumper wire is run from the main terminal on the starter to the 'trigger' terminal on the solenoid.

The alternative approach is to do away with the solenoid on the firewall completely, run the battery cable direct to the starter, and connect the 'start' connection from the ignition switch to the 'trigger' terminal on the starter. This has the advantage of only having one solenoid in circuit, reducing voltage drop and the elimination another point of failure, at the expense of having to alter the wiring.

It sounds like the OP's installation had a belt and braces approach. Original solenoid still in place, and separate trigger cable run from the starter to the ignition switch. No problem with that, but absent a problem with the starter itself or the main cabling, a loose connection of the trigger wire onto the solenoid on the starter (as described by the OP) could have been the cause of the OP's problems.

[tvacc]

All,
Last night I ran a jumper wire from the "trigger" spade to the large connector on the starter. It was late when I got the starter back in place. I have to work today so I will hook the battery back up and give it a try this evening when I get home. The last post seems to cover it all. I will let you all know what transpires.

Thanks to all for the help. It was VERY helpful!
Tony V

[pharriso]

Tony, that's a Keith Gustafson starter - http://gustafsonspecialty.com/welcome1.html

In addition to what has been mentioned Check the ground strap battery to chassis & the ground strap chassis to engine on the LH engine mount for soundness (tightness / rust etc.)

p.s. Can you send me the engine number on this car as requested please...