as of late my 83 wont even turn over, there is a click under the dash when i turn the key but i dont hear the starter click like on other vehicles. i just charged the battery to try and rule that out. last time i was driving it regularly it would take a second to start turing the motor over after i had the key in the start position. and help or advice on diagnosing this issue would be a tremendous help. in the mean time ill keep searching for ideas

thanks in advance

 

Have you checked the wiring? I would look at the positive and ground leads coming off of the battery if they are the originals on the car they could be very corroded and the starter won't fire without full voltage.

 

Could be the ignition control module or the starter itself.

 

check the connections at the starter.

 

Tomorrow i will have time to get under it and check wires/pull and test starter. i hear a click from under the dash when i turn the key...is that good/bad or irrelevant?

 

(Disclaimer: I can be totally wrong)

My VW did a click sound and no turnover when the starter died. I think that if it clicks, current is sent. I'd put my money on the starter.

 

I'd try jumping it first. Battery might not be good, so charging might not work like you think.

 

starter is good, i tired jumping it a while ago but ill give that another whirl just to double positive. i have a gut feeling that it's the ignition switch because right before it started not turning over 2 1/2 months ago, it would hesitate after turning the key and sometimes i would have to jostle the key for it to engage.

 

is there any way to test the switch other than ripping the column apart? like jumping wires at the fuse box? if that thing is bad i think it would be fun to do a push button start, any thoughts for or against that?

 

The click you hear under the dash is just some relays turning on. That is normal. Sounds like the ignition switch to me. It's cheap to buy, but a bit of a pain to replace. There is a connector which plugs onto the end of the switch, but I don't think you can pull it off without doing the whole disassembly.

See Clark's Garage for the procedure.

 

Have you tried turning the engine over by hand?
Have you put a volt meter on the battery to see what you have?
Does the voltage drop when you get your click?

 

alright so it turned out to be the battery, i assumed that when i put a voltmeter on a 8 month old battery and it read over 12 that it was good, a hydrometer test tells another story though...2 cells 0%, 3 cells 25% last one never got open. turns over just fine with the new battery. now im just back to the not firing issue....joy

 

could my alternator be ruining the batterys? this is my third in 3 years

 

When you get the engine running check the voltage at the battery terminals, should be near 13.5 vdc if the alternator is charging the battery.

 

Alright, with the key in the run position i have 12.5V at the green wire and the black wire on the ignition coil but i dont get any power going to the distrib cap when i turn it over. does this mean i have a bad DME or is there another sensor input that tells the DME when to have the coil fire?