Sluggish start...new battery?

[65reissue]

Hey all...I've been having issues with I think possibly my starter. I put a new battery in. What happens is it will typically start pretty strong initially. I typically pump the gas pedal once and it will start...let it idle a while and I'm good to go. My problem comes typically after I drive it a while...turn it off...and then restart it in a relatively short period of time. It is real sluggish...barely turns over. Acts like the battery but like I say the battery is new. Its not necessarily consistent. Sometimes worse than others. If I let it sit for a period of time it will start up. Any thoughts? Appreciate your feed back. Thanks.

 

[TroyaCantrell]

You will need a multi-meter but check the voltage on the battery at the posts. It should be 12.5 or higher with the motor off, could be your alternator is not putting out enough voltage to charge the battery while driving. The voltage coming off the alternator should be 14.4ish, if not have it tested, most auto parts stores can do that.

Check that the cables connecting the battery are clean and free of corrosion, check the negative cable where it grounds to the block that those connections are also clean. Use a little sandpaper or scotch bright bad to scuff them up if you don't have a battery terminal cleaner. I think I must have 10 of them laying around and in every toolbox I own, very handy.

Main thing is eliminate the electrical issues before you go after the starter.




Troy--
CJ Build thread- http://www.jeep-cj.com/forums/f98/1966-cj-6-build-15075/

 

[65reissue]

OK...thanks. battery cables are real clean. Will do some tests. I appreciate it.

 

[csuengr]

You have a bad ground from the battery to the engine block. Take it off the engine, put a toothed lock washer under it and tighten it back down.

When one thinks there is a problem with the battery, the last thing to look at is the battery.

 

[coldair]

Are you running headers??

 

[65reissue]

I checked the battery today...it is showing 12.8 so good there. Not running headers. I looked at where the ground was at the block and looked pretty clean but i didn't take it off. I may do that and see if i can clean it up a little more. I don't have headers. I am not real electrical saavy...could someone give me details how to check the alternator? thanks.

 

[hdgapeach]

Heat magnifies unknown electrical problems. As stated by others, electical grounds are notorious for causing the problems you are experiencing. Battery cable conditions are the first place to start. Disconnect and wire brush all cable ends and what they're attached to. Get rid of any paint where cables attach to grounds to assure metal to metal contact. If there is any corrosion on the wire (green looking wire) going under the protective sheath, consider replacing the cable. Depending on how old the cables are, the terminal ends may look fine but the wire may be corroded under its insulation covering. After that little bit of maintenance, if you still have the same problem, you could posibbly have a heat sink issue with the starter. I've had it before. One trick you can do to determine if heat in the starter is the problem is run it until it gets good and hot. Shut it down near a water source (hose pipe). Try to restart. If it's sluggish starting, cool the starter down with the hose and try to start the vehicle again. If it starts full speed as normal, the starter is probably having internal heat issues that are basically the same problem as with the corroded battery cable solution mentioned above. Fix for that is a new starter. Good luck!

 

[Ghostship]

This sounds like an issue with the coil. When they begin to wear out, they produce less of a spark when hot, which is why cold starts are fine but hot starts take much longer cranking. If the coil is not installed vertically it will wear out even quicker. I use a MSD Blaster High Vibration coil because they take the abuse better and last longer.

 

[jdarg]

This sounds like an issue with the coil. When they begin to wear out, they produce less of a spark when hot, which is why cold starts are fine but hot starts take much longer cranking. If the coil is not installed vertically it will wear out even quicker. I use a MSD Blaster High Vibration coil because they take the abuse better and last longer.

The coil wouldn't affect how fast the starter turns, assuming the OP means the starter itself is turning slowly, vs. the starter turning the normal rate and just taking longer than normal to actually start. In that second case, the coil could be related.

 

[Torxhead]

I made sure there would be no ground issue by connecting the ground wire directly to the starter mounting bolt. I am still using the original starter for my CJ.

 

[CJim7]

Heat shield. If you notice, the starter is ridiculously close to the exhaust manifold. I've ran into this problem before.