1990 Cherokee Starting Issue

I have a 1990 Jeep Cherokee 4.0L that will not start. The battery is at

12.5V and there is no "click" from the starter when the ignition switch is turned to the "start" position. I tested the voltage at the ignition wire at the fuse panel inside and there was no change when switched from "on" to "start" position. The only thing that happens when the ignition switch is turned to the "start" position is the temp. gauge goes from cold to hot. This just started and I have never had this problem before. Any ideas?
Reply to
erich.moeller
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Reply to
Shep

I have not checked. I will check tomorrow. What should I do/check if I am not getting 12V at the solenoid?

Reply to
erich.moeller

The body ground goes bad on those easily. It is a wire mesh strap from the rear of the head up to the firewall.

The negative connection at the battery and block or fender also can fail as well as the positive contacts on the starter solenoid just behind the battery on the fender. The small pins on the starter solenoid also can just be corroded.

I would go for the possible dirty connections first before tearing anything apart.

Mike

86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail >
Reply to
Mike Romain

I checked the braided ground and it is fine. The pins on the solenoid and they were a little corroded, so I cleaned them up and still nothing. Could it just be a bad solenoid? How would I check it? The starter switch is okay. Any other ideas? I don't have any diagrams or repair manuals available to me here, so I'm at a loss at the moment.

Reply to
erich.moeller

The easy way is to put your hand on it while someone hits the key. If it clicks, the key is sending the solenoid/relay power.

You said you have have a multimeter or a way to check voltage?

If so, the dark green wire comes from the keyswitch. When the key goes to run, this wire should have 12.2+ volts in it. It is the trigger for the solenoid.

There are several green wires there, depending on your setup, but only one will go hot when the key goes to run, it fires up the others...

Then if the relay clicks, you should see power on the cable going to the starter with the key in run. If you have power there, then suspect a bad starter or connection at the starter.

If no output from the relay, suspect the main cables on the relay dirty or a dead relay.

You can bypass the starter relay with a booster cable. The battery cable goes to one side and the starter cable comes out the other side. If you put a booster on the starter side and carefully touch it to the positive battery cable, the starter should spin up. If the key is freshly in run it should start then. (that will get you to the store to get a new one)

If you do all this and still have no joy, then I would take a booster cable and run it from the battery negative to the engine block. That connection on the main negative cable at the block can go bad too.

When all else fails, you can take a booster cable and put it on the starter power bolt, then put the other end on the battery positive. This will spin the starter up and with the key freshly in run it should fire up.

Hope some of this helps,

Mike

86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00 88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's Canadian Off Road Trips Photos: Non members can still view! Jan/06
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Reply to
Mike Romain

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