I just got my neighbors engine rebuilt and installed. The battery was dead so I had to jump it off my car. The engine cranked over about 20-30 times, but wouldn't catch. It would act like it wanted to when I held the TB open, but as soon as I closed it, the cranking would slow down to a "normal" speed. Well, after a few tries, it wouldn't crank at all. Just click, and make the whinning noise like it does when the starter motor is tring to turn, but isn't. Well, after a while of checking I jumped the starter from the battery (after I had the batt. tested and charged), and the starter was turning so slow, I could hold the gear and it would stop. THis is with 13.89 volts goin to it. The neighbor baought a new starter, and I bought a new soliniod after I broke the old one. Everything installed, same problem persists. No start. I checked voltage at the soliniod, 13.8 volts. Get the paint off the engine at the grounding points, touched off the starter motor alone on the car from the batt., and it spins like no tomorrow. I can turn the engine over with a screw driver on the flexplate, so I know its not too tight. I even pulled 3 plugs out so there is only half the compression, and the thing still will not turn over at all, not even a little bit. I need help here. I did find 2 ground wires on the drivers side head that were loose. Could this have something to do with it? I had to get to work, so I didn't have a chance to try it. Any help would be most appriciated.

Thanks.

 

Tell us about the engine. Is it 2.8, 3.1, 4.3? MPFI or carb? When you took the plugs out, did you smell fuel?

 

My bad. It is a 2.8. It was just a stock rebuild, nothing fancy. Fuel injected. The plugs do/did have fuel on them when I pulled the 3 out. WHen it would crank the first time, I was getting spark on #1 cyl. I have taken the new starter and had it checked out, all is good. I tried bypassing the starter cable with jumper cables, and the problem persists. It does have 1/8" clearance between the starter pinion shaft, and the flexplate. I put a jumper button on, and checked under the car, the starter is engaging the flexplate correctly, it just won't turn over. I did check the voltage, which prompted me to have the starter checked. The batt. shows 12.20 volts, when I hit the starter button and hold it to get a reading, it drops to 9.3 volts. THis happens when I am jumping from another car also, only it reads about 14v when I have the Grand Prix going with it. I really need help here. Anything to look for. Today I checked the ground from the batt to the engine block, scraped everything off so only bare metal was touching. All 4 grounds to the back of the block are good also. the body ground to the firewall is secure and clean as well. I can still turn it over by hand, although I noticed today, I was turning it over backwards. I really can't get a good grip on it with a screwdriver from the drivers side. Any ideas, please let me know.


Thanks,

 

Can you turn the engine over manually?

 

Yeah. I turned it over twice with a screwdriver on the flexplate, one tooth at a time. It wasn't hard to turn in any one area over another during the revolutions. Unless there is something really wrong in the engine, I don't know why the starter woulddn't turn it over with 3 plugs out, unless something in the wiring was amis. Maybe corrosion in the positive cable, or even the ground cable. They look pretty new. I don't see any green anywhere. I scraped the paint off the block, where the ground is. I am runnign out of ideas.