Clicking while cranking

[stinger222]

89 Mercruiser 7.4 batteries charged up, starter has 2 seasons on it. When I turn the key, engine cranks slowly, but I hear clicking coming from the starter area. I take a jumper wire and jump the big terminals on the slave solenoid....turns over the engine and still clicks. Then when I take the jumper wire and run it from + on the battery to the terminal with the yellow/red stripe wire, cranks normal and no clicking. What is the problem sound like?

 

[Don S]

Re: Clicking while cranking

Bad slave solenoid if I read your post right.

This is assuming your talking about jumping from Battery + to small terminal on the slave solenoid with the yellow/red wire.
There is a yellow/red wire on one of the large terminals and one of the small terminals.

 

[stonyloam]

Re: Clicking while cranking

. What is the problem sound like?

It sounds like you have a high resistance connection between the slave solenoid and the starter solenoid. The purpose of the slave is to provide full battery voltage and high amperage to activate the starter solenoid. In your case when you hit the key the slave closes and sends enough current to the starter solenoid, to activat it and the starter starts to turn. The starter draws a large current and drops the battery voltage and with this voltage drop and high resistance connection there is not enough current to keep the starter solenoid closed, and it opens (click), current stops, battery voltage jumps back up, current from the slave increases activates starter solenoid (click) and the whole process repeats over and over again (click click click). Probably the starter gets just enough current to keep it turning slowly. When you jumper to the battery the starter solenoid stays closed and everything works fine. Short story long, clean your connections, and make sure that you are getting a full 12V from the slave. Could also be bad contacts inside the slave too. IMHO LOL.

 

[stinger222]

Re: Clicking while cranking

no, I am jumping to the larger terminal on top with the larger gauge yellow/red stripe wire