91 Grand Caravan won't start in morning...

...but it starts just fine after I get home from work. I try every morning and every evening just to make sure. It has started once in the morning. It's a dry desert air, so it's not condensation. Problem just showed up about 3 weeks ago, no obvious loose wires, battery is fine, good lights in the morning, nothing more than a slight click from under the hood, right side it sounds like.

5am, nothing, 5pm starts like a champ. 3.3 liter, auto trans. Temperature sensitive relay somewhere? And where? I just bought it from my girlfriend to replace a smoking 88 Caravan (3 liter) so I know it's history pretty well.

Why don't chicks steam clean their engines once in a while?

Reply to
Dave
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How's the battery?

Reply to
David

If all you get is a click from under the hood I would check your battery with a load tester. If you are judging the condition of your battery by the fact that the lights work it is not a valid test. A failed battery can have voltage but very little amps. You also need to make sure your battery cables are clean and tight. My guess would be a bad battery.

Reply to
Mike

Starter solenoid contacts.

Steam cleaning an engine is asking for problems.

Reply to
aarcuda69062

The starter relay is on the driver's side, inner fender sidewall, with the other relays. The starter relay has 4 wires - Brown/yellow, a yellow, a black & a brown. When you find the correct relay have someone try to start the van and see if the relay clicks. This will verify whether the relay coil is being energized and pulling in the contacts. If it does click, disconnect the relay, use a jumper wire from the black to the brown wire on the connector socket. This completes the circuit to the starter solenoid, bypassing the contacts, and will tell you if the relay contacts are bad, or if the solenoid itself causing the problem.

Reply to
SN

Thanks for all the replies. I suspected the battery at first too. Cables didn't look that clean so I did them first. Then I swapped batteries with the same results. I should have mentioned that at dark-thirty with the lights on when I try to crank it over, the lights don't dim. So the power isn't getting to the starter. it's being stopped somewhere short of it. It's hard to find someone to come over and help at the time I go to work. But i have a plan...

Reply to
Dave

I am having a similar problem with a Intrepid. When it is cold, or first start in the morning, it just clicks and eventually I can get it to start. Had to replace the starter. Can't replace just the solenoid on my car, had to do the kit.

Good luck. Dan

Reply to
Dan

The relay that clicks is on the passenger side wheelwell, and there are no relays under the hood with the color code you described. I have 3 in a row on the drivers side, and 2 sets of 2 on the passenger side. And it's still doing the same, but since we're warming up down here in Arizona, it does start earlier in the morning... Any other ideas? Besides just throwing money at it in a shop, that is.

Reply to
Dave

It starts now. Just had to find and jiggle the right relay it seems.

Reply to
Dave

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