Date: Fri, 17 Apr 2009 10:35:09 -0400
Reply-To: Ken Wilford <kenwilfy@COMCAST.NET>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Ken Wilford <kenwilfy@COMCAST.NET>
Subject: Re: Help! '87 Westy won't start...
In-Reply-To: <c2c43a7e0904170718t63ff2a5an99cc2424b5d0fc9e@mail.gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed
Marc, there is no starter relay except for the solenoid on the starter
itself. So check for power at the solenoid with a meter. There is a
terminal where two smaller red wires push into the solenoid. This is
where you want to see at least 11 volts when you turn the ignition key
to the start position. If you are getting power here but no start then
you probably have a bad solenoid on the starter (aka time for starter
rebuild). If you are not seeing power here then it could be that either
your neutral safety switch (that switch you cleaned up) or the ignition
switch is bad or you have a bad wire (rare). Check the neutral safety
switch for resistance with an ohm meter when the van is in park or
neutral. It should have zero to very low resistance. You can also put
the van is park or neutral and have someone turn the key and check for
voltage coming into and out of the switch. You will see red wires
attaching at both points. Test them. You should see around 12 volts
here. If see high resistance replace both parts of this switch. If it
tests fine but you are not getting power to the switch then it is your
ignition switch. This part is $9 from us and you can simply unplug your
old unit and plug in the new one and try it with a screw driver before
installing to be sure it is the culprit.
After saying all of that, most of the time it is the neutral safety
switch. Try holding the key in the crank position with one hand and
while the van is in park or neutral really jiggle the gear selector
lever with the other hand. Usually the van will start when you get the
lever in a particular position. If so replace your neutral safety
switch when you get a chance it is wearing out.
If you need any of these parts please feel free to contact me. We offer
all of them and I can get them to you quickly.
Ken Wilford
John 3:16
www.vanagain.com
Marc Perdue wrote:
> Hi all,
>
> I'm constantly amazed at how many ways my van can leave me stranded,
> in spite of all I do to try to keep it in top shape.
>
> I got in my van to leave my daughters' house last night, and when I
> turned the key, the fuel pump came on, but there was no click for the
> starter. This has actually happened on occasion before. When it has,
> I usually moved the shifter out of Park and back. If that didn't do
> it, trying another time or two always would.
>
> So, I'm thinking that there's a starter relay somewhere, but when it
> happened, it was 10 PM, my tools were in my other car, and my Bentley
> was on the kitchen counter back home, where I had been researching
> what I need to look at for the rough running problem that I had been
> having. Incidentally, it's running WAY smoother since I had the shop
> adjust the valve last to 0, cold, according to Bob Donalds' specs.
> And it hasn't been stalling.
>
> Asides aside, I pulled the cover off the gear selector (auto tranny,
> in case you hadn't gotten that yet) and cleaned the switch. In case
> anybody out there didn't realize it, the shifter needs to be either in
> Neutral or Park to start, and there's a switch in the gear selector
> enclosure. You can pry off the top cover of the enclosure to get to
> it. Cleaning the contacts didn't change my results. Thinking maybe
> the Park contact only was affected, I tried starting in Neutral to no
> avail.
>
> At this point, not knowing whether there was a starter relay or
> whether I could do anything about it if I found it, I had to seek out
> a ride home.
>
> Am I on the right track? Does this sound like a bad starter relay to
> you all? Oh, and before you all suggest I go start chasing ground
> connection gremlins, the shop that was trying to fix my van checked,
> cleaned, and in some cases put new connectors on, ALL of my ground
> connections that they could find. :^) Um, come to think of it, they
> wouldn't have cleaned the contacts on the gear selector switch . . .
>
> If this does sound like a bad starter relay, does anyone have a part
> number for it? I'd like to get my van back up and running sooner than
> later...
>
> Thanks all,
> Marc
>
>
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