[WakBordr7387]

Alright, Me and my dad have been chasing down wiring problems on a 85' corvette. We have narrowed it down to the battery cable that goes to the starter. It goes right between the engine and firewall, and then goes into a smaller gauge wire that connects to the starter. The connector at the starter is a ring connector with 3 wires that connect to the starter terminal. We are trying to just cut out that battery cable, and have the other 2 wires connected to the starter terminal on that ring connector, then run a brand new battery cable to that starter terminal. What I need to know, which of those 3 wires is the one that comes from the battery?
Thanks


Brad

[Siggy_Freud]

Do an OHMS test. Only 1 of the three wires should have any continuity.

[docvette]

Doc here,

Your description is less than stellar for wire ID.. So let me ask a few questions...

Are you Talking about the wire that comes from the LARGE BOLT on the starter and branches out to 3 smaller wires before it gets into the harness?

IF so DON"T cut it...you lose all your electrical protection and connections...It's the main fuse link!!

The Battery Power comes from the BIG RED main cable down to that bolt..not the other way around. Those wire there are carrying 12 volts OUT to the rest of the car..

The Only other two wires that should be down there are the energize wire to the "S" terminal and possibly the secondary Ignition wire going to the "I" terminal of the solenoid. Other possibilities could be duplicate wires for the BCM (body control module for the vehicle alarm) and any secondary aftermarket equipment installed...

AT ANY RATE...do not cut or remove ANY of these wires...(you think you got problems now...)

If you are getting power down to the big bolt on the starter from the MAIN, but the rest of the car is dead...than that fuse link is open.

That's that wire that goes from the big bolt and branches out into 3 smaller wires..to test put meter on the big wire end and measure to ground..it should be 12 volts..then scuff the insulation off the 3 branch circuit wires (the smaller 3 wires ) and measure..If the link is open it / they will read zero..replace with a proper link .



Doc

[WakBordr7387]

Yeah sorry about the bad description, I was in a bit of a hurry and Im not the best electrician in the world
But yeah I was talking about the big starter terminal. The problem Ive been having with the whole thing is kinda odd, I don't think its any of the fusible links your talking about doc. The problem was that the car sat in a barn for about 10 years, and rats and squirrels got up into the engine and chewed some of the wires up. We are repairing/replacing the wires that were messed up. What was goin on was when we would try to start the engine, the starter would continue to crank over. The engine was having trouble starting becuase of a few other things but we fixed that. But the starter would continue cranking the engine after you turned the key, even after you pulled the key out! Weve since put a new starter on, and changed out the ignition switch. We have also chased down all the other problems, were pretty sure it is the battery cable that goes betwen the block and firewall, becuase when we go to hook up the battery cable it sparks really bad, and sparks come from the battery and from behind the firewall We don't know if the starter still cranks over when its not supposed to since we dont have the cble connected for more than a few seconds.


Brad

[docvette]

Doc here

Hummmmm...OK, lets just take a look at that ...

First of all WB..Please...Think "Paragraph Breaks.." LOL really helps on the read...when you have to diagnose stuff..

Next..Ya think, maybe if the starter was stuck in crank, or Start, that just maybe...when you reconnected the positive cable it would spark like an arc welder in heat??

Disconnect the wires from the solenoid on the starter, that go to the "I" and especially the "S" terminals...leave the big bolt alone..Then try to hook up the main battery cable again..Does it throw off major sparks now?

If not you have 12 volts somehow getting on the "S" wire going to the solenoid just sitting static. you need to track that wire back to the ignition and find out where it's getting constant power..

A good common trouble spot is the adjustable column on the Corvette..they oft wear quickly because of the up / down ..In/out..adjustment going on..

You can isolate that if you find the first part true by unhooking the battery, re-hooking the "S" wire up to the solenoid and pulling the column plug...when you reconnect the battery, If it doesn't spark heavy then the short exists within the column. If not , then its between the column and the solenoid.

Doc

[WakBordr7387]

Ok Thank you for all the help doc, I really appreciate it. But I found the problem today and it fixed it.
This may sound really stupid, but Im really embarassed to even say on here what the problem was.... But lets just say it was something stupid I forgot to do....something so simple you would hit your head on the wall just because you didn't think of it.
But thank you again for your help doc.



Brad

[schnitz]

Originally Posted by WakBordr7387

Ok Thank you for all the help doc, I really appreciate it. But I found the problem today and it fixed it.
This may sound really stupid, but Im really embarassed to even say on here what the problem was.... But lets just say it was something stupid I forgot to do....something so simple you would hit your head on the wall just because you didn't think of it.
But thank you again for your help doc.



Brad

Didn't make the connection at the battery, huh?? LOL! I just had to razz ya a bit. Remember my plow truck? Fusible links cooked on both ends. Check for ohms in the battery cable. Any resistance in a battery cable is bad, right Doc?

In a while, Chet.

[WakBordr7387]

Originally Posted by schnitz

Didn't make the connection at the battery, huh??

In a while, Chet.

Are psychic or something? You read me like a book!


Brad

[docvette]

Doc here,

Now just how do you think WE got old and experienced...??

Just wait until you tune your engine, then work on it for a week trying to start it..and find the rotor in the left fender-well...Now then you can be embarrassed..

Doc

[WakBordr7387]

Yeah its just one of those things, happens to the best of us.

Just a learning experience for us younger guys around here.


Brad