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TR2/3/3A TR3A Start Problem [Solenoid?]

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Skip_Shervington

Skip_Shervington

Freshman Member
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Need some advice, please.
New Battery and terminals installed. Starter Solenoid wire became very hot while trying to start the car. The 35amp fuse blew. I replaced the fuse, but now push button switch in the cockpit won't work. Push button on the back of the solenoid works fine and car started. I bridged the the the terminals on the push button switch in the cockpit and nothing which makes me believe the switch is fine. Do I need a new solenoid? Thanks!
Skip
'58 TR3A TS34885L
 
Take a meter and check the connection to the starter solenoid and see if power it making it there properly (not - in the + location, and so on). If everything seems fine to the solenoid then by all means, it needs replacing.
 
IMO first you need to sort out what is wrong with your wiring. There are no fuses in the circuit to the starter solenoid, so blowing the fuse means there is something wonky in the wiring.

The solenoid could easily be bad, but I would spend some quality time with the wiring first. To check the solenoid, temporarily jumper from the terminal with the battery cable attached, to the side terminal with the white/red wire. The engine should crank, just like pushing the button on the solenoid.

Also check that the body of the solenoid is securely grounded. One way is to connect a test light or voltmeter between the body of the solenoid and the battery ground terminal while doing the above jumper test. If the light glows even dimly, or the voltmeter reads more than a half volt, you have a bad ground.

BTW, don't forget that Lucas used a different rating system for fuses than the rest of the world. If you are using American fuses (eg AGC or SFE), use a 20 amp instead of the 35.
 
Thanks ya'll...all terminals clean and showing good power to the solenoid. Jumping the battery terminal to the white/red didn't do anything so it seems the solenoid is bad. Thanks for the tip about the fuses.
Thanks again!
Skip
'58 TR3A
TS34885L
 
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