Intermittent starting

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Bt08231

New member
So my 98 will start sometimes and then sometimes it will just click. Battery tested good, alternator tested good. We found a 75% broken ground at the battery and knew that probably had something to do with it. Had that fixed and it started fine when I picked it up, drove 20 miles and now it's just clicking again. Starter was rebuilt professionally with Toyota parts 2 years ago as well.

Where do I look next??
 
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Perhaps pull the starter and see what the contacts look like. Unlikely that they have worn out in only two years but a good place to start


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Battery can test good even if it is bad, we have that happen in the shop from time to time. Starter rebuilt. Does that mean they just put starter contacts on it? I almost bet that that is the under lying cause if they rebuilt it by putting brushes and the other guts in it then you shouldnt have an issue but the labor they would have charged would have almost made it cheaper to put the reman toyota in it. Next time it doesn't start tap your starter with a hammer and see if it starts up right after you do it.
 
I was going to rebuild it myself so I bought all the parts from Toyota to do it and didn't have time to screw with it, so a shop did it. I can't remember exactly what I bought but it was everything that all the threads talk about getting to rebuild it.
 
Bt08231 said:
I was going to rebuild it myself so I bought all the parts from Toyota to do it and didn't have time to screw with it, so a shop did it. I can't remember exactly what I bought but it was everything that all the threads talk about getting to rebuild it.
Click to expand...

Usually most people replace just the starter contacts. Fewer people replace brushes and internal parts on it.

The battery can easily be 3+ years old unless the P.O. showed a receipt where it was just bought. We have batteries go bad all the time that are a year or 2 old
 
I had the same problem. Battery starter and alternator good. Had a broken ground. Fixed it. Then after 1 or 2 week it came back. The new ground wasnt tight enough. Take out the terminals on battery clean everything with proper tool. Like 5 bucks. Put back everytjing and make sure it is tight. Good tight. But not over torqued baboon tight.
 
What is the voltage at the battery just sitting off? What is the voltage dropping to when trying to crank?
 
Bt08231 said:
Everything is nice and tight. It tested 12 Volts yesterday, not sure while cranking...
Click to expand...

Are the lights going dim when you're trying to crank it?

If they're not dimming at all it's probably the starter contacts. If they're getting really dim it's probably something else. The later would indicate that the starter contacts are pulling in, but there's not enough voltage to turn the engine over. That could be anything from a bad ground connection to a bad battery.
 
Ok guys, just went out there I crank it and it started immediately...twice, on third try it clicked and the dome light went completely dim almost as if it was off. Turned the key again, it clicked really fast for a few seconds and as I let of the key the motor started to turn over ever so slightly, on the third try it clicked a few more times and started
 
In case you decide to pull the starter and check the contacts, here's a video I made recently when I found my starter wouldn't disengage. I started my truck and the starter kept going. I turned the ignition off and it still kept going. Lucky I was home and I jammed into the garage, grabbed a pair of channel locks and twisted the negative cable off the battery to stop it. Replacing the contacts and plunger fixed the problem.

I did have a couple occasions over the past 6 months where my truck wouldn't start, but I thought maybe the gear selector wasn't all the way in park and that caused it. I never got the usual tell-tale clicking letting me the know the starter was going out. And, I never knew a starter could engage and not disengage. I'm never going to be without a pair of channel locks in my truck now that I know that could happen. Lots of nevers in that paragraph.

Here's the video:

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/WV1t5-wcoOI" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
 
61HeJDEfP0L._SL1200_.jpg


Worth every penny. I bought this to check the batteries for my bass rig.
 
I forgot to mention O'Reilly Auto Parts will test your battery for free. I had a 72 month battery I bought from the dealer and it died in 2 years. O'Reilly will go right out into the parking lot and do a test of your battery and charging system. No need to pull the battery out.

I was technically over the time period that the dealer would replace it for free but the parts person I dealt with was very cool and let it slide. I was only over by 2 weeks for the warranty so it was the right thing to do anyway.
 
Bt08231 said:
Ok guys, just went out there I crank it and it started immediately...twice, on third try it clicked and the dome light went completely dim almost as if it was off. Turned the key again, it clicked really fast for a few seconds and as I let of the key the motor started to turn over ever so slightly, on the third try it clicked a few more times and started
Click to expand...

I'd suspect a bad connection somewhere first. Generally if the battery is weak it isn't going to turn over. With a bad connection sometimes the arcing will eventually make a good enough conductor for it to work.

I wouldn't completely rule out the battery, but I'm betting the problem is elsewhere.
 
for $60 I can get a 6 year interstate delivered to me. Im going to try that as this battery has to be a minimum of 3 years old.

We checked the battery and it checked out good...internet searches reveal that a battery can still be bad and pass the tests...I suck at electrical stuff lol
 
did you do a voltage drop between your negative battery terminal and a ground? If you read something over 1volt... their is your problem ^^ that happend to me. intermittend starting... du to a negative voltage drop, caused by a loose connection
 
WarpzoneQc said:
did you do a voltage drop between your negative battery terminal and a ground? If you read something over 1volt... their is your problem ^^ that happend to me. intermittend starting... du to a negative voltage drop, caused by a loose connection
Click to expand...

Could you please elaborate on how to do this?
 
Take a multimeter, put to in the Volt bracket (20volt)
Hook it up + on + - on -
Put one end on the negative terminal
Second end on a ground (chassis ground bolt next to fuse block)
You should read 0 or 1, if it is over that sir you've got a problem!

Btw, if you don't know how to use a multimeter, !!!WARNING!!! Dont EVER! NEVER! SUPANEVA! EVER! put it in OHM (resistance) or Amp! Because let's take Ohm, it sends a voltage to read the resistance, if you don't know how it works don't touch it! You can blow up a computer with that ^^ yay I have to buy a computer because I used OhmMeter and I didn't know what it was doing, so even If I had a reading I didn't know what it meant!

Just please.... save your electronics, stick with Volt Meter and nothing else! :D
 
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