Brushes on the starter motor could be worn. An old trick is to bang on the starter motor with a hammer. That could move the commutator far enough to give contact. Otherwise, try hitting it again.
The starter is at the end of the starter solenoid cable. It can be buried under the engine and hard to reach. Do not get under the car using the tire jack to lift the car. Use a jackstand.
Measure the voltage after the starter solenoid when it is activated. You should be able to find it by following the heavy cable from the battery. It may be under the engine, and part of the starter motor.
Another common problem is corroded battery terminals. Clean them until they are shiny, then apply a liberal layer of vaseline before you reassemble.
I brought a wooden block and a hammer to try that. Couldn't find the starter.
There's lots of ground clearance under the jeep to crawl around. It's awful, but it sure does blast through snow.
The cable from the battery disappears into a maze of stuff on top. Below, I think I could see something that might be the end of a starter, but there's no clear view and certainly no way to reach it to whack it.
Remember old inline 6's, where there was a big air gap on both sides and everything was in clear sight and easy reach? My Audi V6 is a solid maze of tubes and wires and boxes. There's not even room up front for the battery, which is bolted into a steel box in the back.
Lights didn't dim when trying to crank (I had her try that first).
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John Larkin Highland Technology, Inc
lunatic fringe electronics
I've often wondered about this advice and been of the view that nothing should be used on terminals that could impede current flow. Even a couple of ohms can result in heating and voltage drop at the motor. But I'm no mechanic so anything I say should be considered total nonsense. ;-)
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Bad sign. Battery connections may be good. Starter commutator may be bad.
I wouldn't be surprised if it starts after towing it to the garage. Bumps and jolts on the road could move the commutator enough to make contact. That doesn't mean it is fixed.
Does she have a service manual (preferably on a flash drive)?
Maybe. There's a high current solenoid mounted on the starter that closes with a loud clunk. You can't miss it. There's also a not so loud starter relay which is usually located in the relay/fuse box under the hood. Something like this for the Jeep Patriot: If it went "click", then it's this starter relay. If it went "clunk", then it was the starter solenoid.
Incidentally, the usual problem is a dirty push on connector between the starter relay and the starter solenoid. Wiggle the nearby connectors. If that fixes it, some contact cleaner should do the trick.
You didn't supply a year, model, or engine number, but it doesn't matter. All the Jeep starters look approximately the same. I would guess(tm) it's a fairly recent Jeep: Once the year and model are established, it should be possible to provide an exploded view showing the location of the starter, and a possibly a wiring diagram. Email these to her and tell he to get back to work on the Jeep.
May I suggest that automobile repair is a modern survival skill that every driver should learn. I did my first engine rebuild when I was
17(?). My parents said that if I want a car, it would be a junk car, which I am expected to fix. In the end, I destroyed the engine, but much was learned in the exercise that was very useful later in life. I also heard my father mention that it was fun to watch the kid swimming in dirty grease.
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Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558
Yeah, I saw the end of something that looked like that. Impossible to reach. Let AAA tow it.
I used to do ring jobs and rebuild carbs and replace clutches and stuff. I wouldn't dream of opening up the 6-speed dual-clutch mechatronics-actuated tranny on my Audi.
Many things, like cars, are just too complex now for most people to repair. If one of our TVs broke, we'd get rid of it and buy another one. But they don't break.
She can change tires and check fluids and stuff like that. Or call Daddy, who can do slightly more.
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John Larkin Highland Technology, Inc
lunatic fringe electronics
I agree completely. I stopped doing valve jobs and fixing leaking head gaskets years ago. Anything more complicated than a new battery or ignition coil goes to the garage. I even stopped doing oil changes. The oil filters are now buried up inside the engine and too hard to reach.
Fortunately, cars are much more reliable these days. But the garages are still booked solid!
Or it could be solenoid contacts. They wear unevenly in the T100. I repla ced than around 120 kmiles ago, likely time for new ones. It's a $5 part, a piece of copper the size of a penny, but when it wears too much you aren' t going anywhere unless you park on a kill. I found tapping it with a hamm er would jar the contacts just enough to make a connection until the proble m got worse.
I thought my friend's Honda van had the same problem since tapping it with a hammer would make it work. I couldn't find a solenoid or parts, so it wa s going to be a whole starter one way or the other. Eventually it no longe r started without a pounding on the starter and he took it to a shop and to ld them the symptoms. They replaced the damn battery! Of course that didn 't fix anything and it failed to start again a few days later. He asked me to take a look again saying the wire was loose. I found the wire was atta ched tightly, but the whole starter was loose!!! Seems the bolts attaching the starter were backing out and the ground connection was the problem. N ow why wouldn't a shop have found that???
Well, then don't dream. Just do it. That's one of the basic requirements for being in todays repair biz; No fear of tearing apart the box and diving into the guts. If I understand how it works, how the various parts and pieces interact, and what the sub-systems are suppose to do, I can fix most anything. For example, this APC UPS was apparently designed to be difficult to disassemble and repair. No problem:
You've either been very good at selecting your cars and appliances, or very lucky. One of the joys of being in the repair biz is that I'm surrounded by repair problems. From my perspective, everything is broken, everything eventually breaks, and much of the stuff is designed by morons.
What I'm asking you to ask her to do is:
Find the starter relay in the fuse and relay box. There may also be a starter fuse. They should be labeled on the cover of the fuse and relay box.
Pull the relay and look at the contacts. Any damage? Look at the fuse. Continuity?
Find the connector from the fuse and relay box and wiggle it. Better yet, unlock the connector, pull it out, spray with contact cleaner, dry, and put it all back together.
If my guess(tm) is right, it should work when done. That's all because there was no evidence of a deteriorating situation. If it had been the starter solenoid contacts, it would have started sometimes, not started other times, and generally acted erratically. However, this is a total failure without and warning. So, something blew (the fuse), or died (the relay). Also, you mentioned that it went "click" not "clunk" which sounds to me like the starter relay. If I'm right, this will save her a tow truck ride and probably some downtime.
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Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558
Ok, I'm wrong. You initially stated it was a click. Click is quite different from a clack or a clunk: "Her battery is OK. The presumed starter solenoid clicks, and the battery voltage drops to 11, but nothing spins." It's the starter solenoid. Might was well have it towed.
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Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558
Den mandag den 26. marts 2018 kl. 03.58.22 UTC+2 skrev John Larkin:
a common fault on Toyota starters is that the solenoid pull the start gear into engagement but the switch for the motor has eroded so it doesn't get powered
Try whacking it with a hammer. If it doesn't work, hit it again.
Brutal, but if it gets you home, why not.
The problem is a lot of starters are buried so deep under the car, you can't see them let alone hit them. JL had that problem. I also had it with my Ford Taurus. Get AAA (CAA in Canada)
The next problem will probably be the fuel pump. It is buried in the fuel tank. That not a place to go fooling around. I replaced the pump in my Taurus. A wet, dangerous, messy job. I was waiting for an explosion any minute. Never again. Let the garage do it.
Sounds like starter brushes, hit the side of the starter with a hammer (or the jack handle) that usually makes it work again for a bit. then drive it to an auto electrician, or get a refurb starter.
You'll find the starter on the other end of the fattest cable that comes of the positive battery terminal. usually low down beside the engine block near the gearbox bell housing.
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I couldn't reach the starter to whack it, so The Brat called AAA for a tow. The tow truck driver did know how to reach the starter and he did whack it, and it started. Those guys know a lot of tricks.
When my VW ate a gear tooth and locked up, on the downslope of a hill, I called a tow truck. He backed it up, the tooth fell out, and it was OK.
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John Larkin Highland Technology, Inc
picosecond timing precision measurement
jlarkin att highlandtechnology dott com
http://www.highlandtechnology.com
I got out of my car once, and without realizing it, I pulled the steering wheel hard to one side. Next time I got in the car, it wouldn't start. The key wouldn't turn in the ignition.
I called CAA. The tow truck driver reached in and pulled the steering wheel hard. The key turned and the engine started.
I wouldn't expect Classic Shell to be doing stuff that's particularly exotic - it's just a menu system and program launcher. I wonder how MS are managing to break it.
I don't know any specifics, but a casual skim of the version history shows something rather interesting. The first item on almost every new release starts with "Improved support for Windoze 10". I use Classic Shell on Win 7 and Win 8.1, but most of the change seem to be Win 10 related.
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Jeff Liebermann jeffl@cruzio.com
150 Felker St #D http://www.LearnByDestroying.com
Santa Cruz CA 95060 http://802.11junk.com
Skype: JeffLiebermann AE6KS 831-336-2558
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