Guy

Car was hit on passenger side necessitating front bumper cover and fender replacement. It was light front corner. No signs of anything more serious

Guy

Thanks! Its badged that way but its not an "S". Its the competition package. I will be assessing it more in depth this weekend. Need to undo some previous electrical mods to be able to start from a clean slate with diagnosis.

Guy

There is a lot to do and despite some previous comments, I don't think it will just buff out I started with replacing the negative ground strap with what appears to be a good used strap. The previous owner had a really poor looking strap grounded to the rear wiper moter mount. I cleaned the factory mount (it had been painted over at some point) and reinstalled. I don't want to juice it yet, too much wiring jacked up. I am going to address the front "jump" post and the connectors next. Slowly but surely....

AirtekHVAC

Ha! That is like showroom fresh compared to mine!

Welcome, and good luck. I love your "parts" collection!

Strat_928

Neato - this should be fun to watch you progress! Here we go!

Guy

I am trying to get this car to a good starting point before trying to diagnose all its issues and needs. Someone has really jacked up the wiring, probably in an attempt to diagnose the "no crank" condition. I have yet to even power it up for fear I will do more damage than good. So I corrected the ground at the battery box and have moved on to the next issue: The 14 pin connector or whats left of it!. Someone has previously attempted "repairs". I am actually considering pulling the engine harness to properly repair it.

While I am typically a stickler for originality, this car is a mess and until I know more about it, I don't want to throw money at it quite yet (that time will come, but not until I at least hear it run). I have sourced a Mercedes 14 pin connector (free) which is basically identical except that it is slightly more robust than the Porsche unit. Going to get this all sorted and move on from there....

dogleg

could be getting yourself into a lot of rewiring time for nothing.i say drop a battery in,connect it up cautiously and pull the trigger.were on the edge of our seats here!

docmirror

The large gauge yellow wire in that 14 pin group is the starter solenoid pick line. If you touch the jump post to the large yellow wire, it should crank the engine(of course, many changes have been made there, but that's the original starter crank wire).

Guy

The plug is nasty bad and most of it is gone. My preliminary check shows that the plugs are not even in the right locations. The 14 pin connector is currently only 12pins as it is so cracked up. Granted, I could jump the yellow and see it if cranks and that's probably not a bad idea. I will probably try that tomorrow. Can I do this with the 14 pin connector disconnected? Again, I have serious doubts about whether the pins are placed properly. The colors are not 100% accurate due to previous repairs.

Guy

I used a jump pack and touched the male end of the yellow starter wire to the jump pack. Nice strong "click" like the starter solenoid is engaging but the starter did not turn the engine over. I have not checked connections at starter itself. I am kinda jumping ahead of myself. Suggestions?? Any and all help appreciated!

docmirror

Weak batt, bad primary wiring to starter, or bad starter. Have you tried to turn the engine by the nut on the crank pulley? I hope it's not seized.

Guy

It manually turns over nice and easy. I actually think I may not have a good ground on the jump pack. I am powering direct to starter wire. Will find a good ground for the pack and go from there. Thanks

dogleg

what your getting is normal i think.the battery in the car is dead so you have no 12v feed to the heavy starter lead.all your doing is operating the starter solenoid with your boost pack.

Guy

Okay, that makes sense. So in theory, with a battery in place, ignition key on, touching the heavy yellow starter feed should crank the engine?

Guy

Okay, done deal. Cranks over nicely. I am back on my original course of rewiring the 14 pin plug!