Heres the story. I come home from the library and about 10 minutes later me and a friend decided to go eat. So we got back into my car and I started it up. Immediately after starting I noticed the engine was running rough. I shut it down and I hear the starter still cranking! I then started the car back up thinking it needed a reboot or something. The engine still ran rough so I shut it down again. Starter still cranking. I pull out the key. Starter still cranking. At this point i’m paniced. My starter just keeps on cranking and it does not sound pretty. I ran in and got my tools and disconnected both leads to the battery. I’d estimate the starter was cranking continuously for at least 3-4 minutes.
It’s been 3 hours and when I reconnected the batteries the starter still cranks with no key in the car. When I reconnected I went red first and touched the black end. The starter cranked and the tip I used to touch the battery melted a incision into lead(WOW! thats a whole lot of current…)
Any ideas on what might be wrong? My only guess is that some switch(ignition switch?) got stuck somewhere in the on position.
Any ideas on if there was any permanant damage done to my car? my starter?
I think the starter was still cranking when I started the car. Any idea what that does to the engine? I assume it’s akin to overgunning the car on startup?
and GAH! I was supposed to drive my friend to COURT tommorow!
I’d guess it’s the solenoid. It’s an electromagnet that pushes the starter motor into the flywheel and also (I think) acts as a relay to send power to the starter. If it doesn’t disengage, I think you can see the behavior you’re experiencing.
As for damage – if you were driving with the starter engaged in the flywheel, it should have sounded horrible and you may easily have stripped gears on either the starter or the flywheel. Running the starter for several minutes wouldn’t do your wires or your battery any good – however at least the battery isn’t completely discharged as it had enough juice to produce the spark that you noticed.
You may be able to just bang on the starter to dislodge the solenoid, but it could be stuck or the contacts on the relay could be fused. Depending on the car, it’s not a hard replacement but it might be worth having a pro look at it.
A hearty whack by a 2x4 has fixed many a starter issue. I second the solenoid theory. Whack it first while unconnected, in the outside chance it’ll work. I doubt it though. They only seem to be congenial to mighty whacks when they are spinning merrily along.
Even if you do disengage it, keep that 2x4 handy. It will happen again, until it gets repaired/replaced.
Isn’t there a starter relay on those? look at the fuse block and see if there is a relay for the starter, it may just be stuck. Take it out ad hook up the battery again, if it doesn’t crank then get a ride to the auto parts store and replace it. < $20
Almost certainly it’s a faulty starter (which includes the solenoid). If it responds to thumping it, that confirms it. Alternatively, disconnect the small wire that plugs into the solenoid part of the starter, then briefly reconnect the battery. If it still tries to spin, that confirms it.
The older honda’s had the starter selenoid built into the starter. The connecting points may be welded together or it may be binding or the spring may have collapsed. As long as the gears were fully engaged the only damage should be to the starter.
Personally, I miss the older Fords that had the fender mount selenoid that was easy to replace (or whack with a 2x4).
My Mustang used to do this exact same thing. And every time it happened I would have to pop the hood and whack the starter solenoid using an ice scraper. I eventually changed out the solenoid, which turned out to be a 5 minute job…
Fixed. Sort of. I switched out the entire starter. Turned out to be an incredibly long job. My damn transmission and engine mount were in the way. I couldn’t get any of my tools in to get the 2nd bolt off. I finally figured out that I could disassemble the starter while it was still attached to my car and thereby giving me room to take off the 2nd bolt. I also had to do the same disassembly to get the damn thing back into my car!
Anyway, to the sort of part. On my third(it’s a charm right?) test drive I went to celebrate my victory. Man over fucked up machine right? Anyway, off I go to Baldos. 24/7 hole in the wall mexican food mecca for UCD students. I get there. I get my food. then I get back into my car. Car doesn’t start… DOH! I take a gander at my engine and I find that the signal wire has fallen off. Yes I think. easy fix. Then i realized how hard it was to get in when I had airbox, battery and starter power wires removed. Thus sadly I had to spend nearly 2 hours trying to plug it back in. In the rain. At 2 am in the morning. My kingdom for an ergonomic engine! Thankfully some racers came by with nimbler fingers then I. Hooray for racers. Always willing to help a fellow car in deed.
At this moment my car runs, but I haven’t had a chance to see if the signal wire is properly mounted this time.
I miss my '63 Chrysler Newport. I used to be able to sit inside the engine compartment. All parts could be easily removed and replaced by a trained team of elephants. Using their feet.
Completely unrelated, I managed to let my handbrake freeze up from the cold. I now know this is a typical beginner error :smack: I thought the handbrake was broken, but realised my mistake later. Still waiting for it to thaw.
Don’t use the handbrake when you expect frost (or in winter at all) and just park leaving the car in 1st.