1950-1966 [Subscribe to Daily Digest] |
If you live in Kansas, Nebraska or Iowa, this problem could be HUGE!!!
Starters with age do tend to not start after warmed up. This is a regular occourance. In most cases it is the starter. The starter takes the most current of any unit of the electrical system. early non gear reduced starters take aprox 12 to 15 Amps to engage the solenoid. Examining the electrical flow, the solenoid grounds through the motor. The completed electrical circut makes the solenoid latch in. It grounds through the motor brushes, comm end, field windings and eventually to ground. Electrical components when warn always draw more current when cold. The starter is located under the exhaust manifold and is subject to heat. Turbos are especially prone to this. First, make sure you have a heat shield on the starter. The usual problem is when power is applied from the ign switch, the current passes through contacts connectors, relays, gang plugs and then to the yellow wire at tne starter. Then it goes through the solenoid windings, starter brushes, comm end of drive, through the fields and then to ground. With age all contacts and connections get worn and eventually all the power from the ign switch gets duleted by the time the ground is needed and there is not enough left to make things work correctly.
Rebuilt starters do not have new solenoids on them. It would not be cost effective and rebuilt starters are also prone to failure. Try taking apart your starter, emmory cloth the brushes, comm end of the windings, clean all grounds. The ideal thing to do is to locate a new solenoid. If not, dissassamble your end cap on your solenoid by un soldering the end cap, clean all contacts and end cap, re assamble and re solder the leads to the cap. This should work.
Power supply is also a problem. Most of the time you can short a screwdriver across the battery cable on the starter to the solenoid and it startes. If it startes this way and not with the key it is a power supply problem. The expensive way to do it is replace ign switch, start lock relay with new and this should take care of this problem. The other way is to install a 60A relay (Saabs from 1981 to 1993 900's have this relay in the fuse box. This relay has 2 big lugs and two small lugs) and wire it into the starter system. This relay only takes less than 1/2A to latch in. The relay will take the load. Wire this relay into a direct power supply (IE battery or the lug on the starter directly from the battery) to make sure there is enough power. Wire the load side of the relay to the latch in lug on the starter (where the yellow wire that supplies power from the car circut). These are the two large lugs. The small lugs are the latch in power & ground supply for the relay. Ground one small lug to a good ground. Use the yellow wire that normally latches in the starter and send the signal to the relay. What you are doing here is bipassing the worn contacts from the car and appling power to the starter directly from the battery. We have created many of these relays for older cars and they work great. Attach the relay and make the installation look clean.
This works for 99's & 900's. If you do this cure to 900's from 81 to 84 (which the starters are the same as 99's 75 to 80) there is a extrra diode needed to be wired in otherwise the relay stays latched in and the starter runs continously once engaged. For 900 owners with this problem this is whats needed. Under the brake master cylendar you will find a three wire gang plud of which you will find a 2.0 gague yellow wire along with a 1.0G wellow wire ganged together. The small yellow wire goes to the start valve and this is where you need to wire the doide into other wise you get power feed back to keep the relay latched in. Wire in diode so power goes from the three wire connector to the start valve and not to let any power go the other way. This is very important.
Obviously this is is a suggested repair but it has been proven. It works. I wired this relay into my 1991 Saab 9000T for the same reason three years ago and it works flawless. We have also wired this set up into more than 40 Saabs (early models) over the years.
Regards,
Jerry
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