Toyota won't start...again!

[brother chris]

1990 Toyota Corrolla, automatic tranny<br />Okay, last night, on my way home from work, I stopped at a gas station, and when I got back into my car, start it....nothing....just a faint click, click, click, click.<br />A jump start, started it no problem. <br />I drove home and parked it. <br />This morning, same thing. Just a faint click, click, click....then nothing. <br />I checked the battery and it is fully charged.<br />Nothing was left on, to put a drain on the battery.<br />A jump start started it no problem, once again. <br />I checked all the fuses...all are fine. <br />Since this car is a 1990, is it possible to take the positive cable off of the battery, while the car is running, to see if it is alternator that is the problem? <br />I know that, on newer cars, you cannot take the cables off of the battery, since it will cause electrical problems. <br /><br />Any help would be appreciated.<br />Thanks,<br />B.C.

 

[Haut Medoc]

Re: Toyota won't start...again!

Did you try cleaning the battery terminals?....JK

 

[Haut Medoc]

Re: Toyota won't start...again!

How about hooking a good battery to the cables with jumpers, to get around any disconnection issues & cleaning the terminals then....It sounds like a bad /dirty - terminal to me, and the draw from the starter can't overcome it.....JK

 

[LubeDude]

Re: Toyota won't start...again!

I agree, dirty or bad cables, bad ground connection, bad starter connection. Lose starter causing bad ground.

 

[one more cast]

Re: Toyota won't start...again!

B.C., Hook a jumper cable to the neg side of the bat and the other end to a good ground on the motor. if it starts now you have a bad ground. Sure sounds like a dirty or loose connection. Does your dome light dim when you try to start it?

 

[Drybo]

Re: Toyota won't start...again!

Had that problem once. Check cables to battery and starter for wear, mine was worn up next to a frame rail. Not visable, but sure enough it was worn and touching frame.

 

[fireship1]

Re: Toyota won't start...again!

Hello, I agree with the others. Dirty electrical connections will cause no starts every time. You can use an ohm meter to check the battery cables for high resistance. You want to get as close to a zero ohm reading as you can. The higher the number, the harder to flow juce to where it needs to go. Did you load test the battery? Just checking it with a meter on it isn't good enough. It will always show 12-13 volts on it with no load. You might have a bad cell in the battery. Sometimes only a load test will reveal it.

 

[petryshyn]

Re: Toyota won't start...again!

Hi<br /><br />Its either one of two things:<br /><br />-contacts in the starter solenoid are worn (jobber ones are available) Or replace solenoid or complete starter<br /><br />-accumulative resistances in the ignition switch and safety nuetral switch are dropping too much voltage to engage the solenoid fully. Adding a relay to power the "s" terminal on the solenoid will cure this...<br /><br /><br />Check the voltage to the "s" terminal while attempting to crank. If voltage is more than 1 volt lower than battery voltage, add in the relay...(battery voltage is also checked while attempting to crank)

 

[brother chris]

Re: Toyota won't start...again!

Thanks guys.<br />It was dirty connections after all. I guess I needed a coffee first, before I could regain my thinking this morning. <br />It starts just fine now....cool.<br /><br />Thanks again,<br />B.C.

 

[Scooch_2]

Re: Toyota won't start...again!

Just as a side note I have a 94 Geo Prizm (really a corolla). I had a similar problem that was not fixed by jumper cables or cleaning the battery. The starter went bad. Apparently it is a common problem. Not sure if the starters were the same in the 1990 version (my mechanic called the motor great, but the starter a cheap POS). Just a heads up....