1986 Sierra Hard Start Intermittent

[spayne]

My 1986 350 SBC has a starting problem that seems to get worse when the engine is at operating temp. The starter will not turn the engine over. Like the battery is dead. New battery. New starter. New cables. It will do it even when the battery is freshly fully charged. Timing is good. Took the new starter off and took it to the parts store and had it tested and it's good.

 

[JeffK10America]

Been there before , found out my ac pump was hard to turn , also I’ve seen where an alternator was hard to turn when the belts were tight and engine was warm . Not saying that’s your problem, but worth checking . That can be a pain in the ass . Timing can do that to you as well .. just trying to offer some help !

 

[spayne]

Thank you. I know my A/C compressor is less than ideal. I will def check that.

 

[Turbo Dog]

What did they do at the parts store to check the starter? Did they just hook it up electrically and see that it spins freely? That doesn't prove much, you need a load on it like it has trying to turn over the engine to be sure it's good. Sounds like a bad starter to me, at least I would start by replacing it.

Do you know how to do a voltage drop test on a cable? Leave you multimeter on voltage put one lead on each end of the cable. Test the cable going to the starter. One lead on the solenoid terminal and the other on the starter terminal. Do this when it is acting up. If the cable is good you won't read any voltage. If you have a reading of several volts or more (doesn't matter if it is positive or negative that just depends on how you hooked up the leads) then the cable is bad. Do that also when the starter will not turn over the engine.

A voltage drop test is better than just checking the resistance in a wire. It checks the cable under a load.