Have a 77 scout ii(stock). Had an issue with it not wanting to start so I removed the dash and completely rewired the dash and engine so I could delete the bulk head connectors and eventually the ammeter.(ended up drilling the bulkhead connector terminals out and ran the wires straight through) I have lights and power everywhere until I go to start the vehicle then I find I only have 6vcoming out of the ignition to the starter. I did replace the ignition switch as well as the solenoid(old one was cracked). Any help would be greatly appreciated thanks
77 scout ii stock losing voltage
- Thread starter Pierce91
- Start date
Hondo
Member
I take it you mean on the wire going to the S terminal on the starter solenoid? "Not wanting to start"- turned over but didn't want to start, or didn't turn over at all? I would disconnect this wire from the starter solenoid and see if you get the 12VDC on the wire when you turn the ignition to the start position. Sounds like your starter may be kaput.
Scoutboy74
Moderator
Lights and power everywhere, but how much? If the battery isn't fully charged, then you're setting yourself up for failure before you even begin. You can't diagnose electrical problems with a depleted battery.
Idk what was going on. when I rewired it I left the ammeter in just so I would know that everything was wired correctly before I deleted it. Once I removed the ammeter and installed the ford solenoid everything worked great, fires up right away everytime. I could possibly have had something hooked up wrong initially. I did end up re-replacing the solenoid on the starter as well as the ignition switch before the Ford solenoid was installed as well. Thank you for the help and advice on this it was much appreciated!
Scoutboy74
Moderator
The main thing is you got it. No way to isolate the true culprit in this case, so it shall remain an unsolved mystery. What's Robert Stack up to these days?
Hahaha had it running ran great for about a day then out of nowhere started dying at stop lights unless I gave it has then out of nowhere it started cranking while I was driving then died and took about an hour to start back up(did find the gold box and coil hot where I could hold it but not long). Let it sit overnight and it wouldn't start unless I jumped the Ford solenoid. Suspect possible ignition switch misaligned(was currently replaced) now I don't get anything when the Ford solenoid is jumped with screwdriver
Scoutboy74
Moderator
Starter cranking with a running engine is no bueno. Did you install the Ford relay or a prior owner? I'm wondering if that modification was done properly. Was it a new part at the time of install? Those relays have several failure modes. One is to stick in the "ON" position during starter cranking. When the engine lights off and you release the key, the starter continues to crank while the engine is running. I've had that happen. It sucks. Another mode is where you get no switching function at all. Power is present at the battery side, but won't cross over to the starter side, unless jumped with a temporary jumper.
I would first verify that you have 12.X volts getting from the battery to the battery side of the relay. If yes to that, then I'd want to verify the switched wire from the ignition switch is feeding voltage when you turn the key to START position. If yes to that, but no voltage getting through the relay to the starter, it would then be safe to assume your relay has failed and needs to be replaced. If no to any of those, you need to back up and figure out why not.
I would first verify that you have 12.X volts getting from the battery to the battery side of the relay. If yes to that, then I'd want to verify the switched wire from the ignition switch is feeding voltage when you turn the key to START position. If yes to that, but no voltage getting through the relay to the starter, it would then be safe to assume your relay has failed and needs to be replaced. If no to any of those, you need to back up and figure out why not.
I installed the solenoid(incorrect one I believe). The one I installed was a 4 post all on top not along the side. Something just have arced and shorted that out causing the starter to get a sudden volt spike. Ended up replacing the solenoid with a better one. Replaced the starter as well. I know I could have just replaced the solenoid again but idk if my grandpa ever replaced the starter assembly I think he just rebuilt it multiple times and since I want to restore it I want it all new. Then I went to start it and found it had no spark. Sadly it took me a while to figure out that I had accidently swapped the two identical plugs on the gold box, once I put those in the proper spots it fired right up....thinking about getting the pertronix ii or if I can maybe get the P iii just so I have it when/if the gold box does crap out. Thanks again.