Starter solenoid

[SteveRTennison]

Hi all, I have a problem with the starter solenoid on my series 1 OTS. occasionally , quite frequently!, when I press the button nothing happens although the ammeter shows a small current flow. I can start the car using the push button on the bottom of the solenoid. I am now on my third solenoid in three years. Has anyone else had similar problems. Any thoughts or solutions

SteveT

[cactusman]

The small current flow will be the current drain by the solenoid coil etc. If the engine cranks OK when manually pressing I'd suspect a dud solenoid that is not pulling the main contacts closed....either that or dirty solenoid contacts....the repro Lucas ones are sealed and can't easily be stripped down and cleaned...but do check that the main cables too and from the solenoid are secure and the engine earth is not loose!

[SteveRTennison]

The confusing thing is that it works fine perhaps 80% of the time and then , usually when the engine is hot, it refuses.

[cactusman]

If you can....next time it happens can you use a volt meter to measure the voltage at the lead that goes to the starter when you activate the solenoid with the dash board start button? If it remains at zero then the issue is with the solenoid. If it leaps to 12 volts but the starter doesn't move its the starter. If it moves to somewhere between zero and 12 it is probably the starter.....is it possible the starter sticks when hot?

[phil.dobson@mac.com]

It can be poor contacts in the dash push button.