Does not turn the starter

The reasons that does not turn the starter there may be a breakdown of the retractor relay, a weak battery charge, poor electrical contacts in the circuit, a mechanical breakdown of the starter, and so on. It will be useful for every car owner to know what to produce when starter does not turn engine. Indeed, in most cases, repairs can be done with your own hands.

A breakdown usually appears at the most unforeseen moment, when it is not possible to use the help of an auto repairman. Next, we will consider in detail the causes of the breakdown and methods for their elimination.

Signs of a broken starter

The reasons that the car does not start In reality, there are many. However, a starter failure can be identified by the appearance of one or more of the following symptoms:

• the starter does not turn on;
• the starter clicks, but does not turn the crankshaft of the internal combustion engine;
• when the starter is turned on, the crankshaft rotates very slowly, which is why the internal combustion engine does not start;
• a metallic grinding of the bendix gear is heard, which does not mesh with the crankshaft.

Next, we move on to discussing the possible causes of a probable breakdown. namely, we will analyze situations when the starter either does not turn at all, or does not rotate the ICE crankshaft.

Reasons why the starter does not turn

Often the reason that the car does not start and the starter does not respond to the ignition key is discharged battery. This reason is not directly related to the breakdown of the starter, however, before diagnosing this node, you need to check the charge of the battery, and recharge it if necessary. Most modern machine alarms blocks the starter circuit when the battery voltage level is 10V or less. Therefore, you will not be able to start the internal combustion engine under this condition. To ensure that this does not happen, monitor the battery charge level and, if necessary, periodically recharge it. also be aware of the density of the electrolyte. However, we will assume that everything is in order with the battery charge level.

Consider a particular one particular case ... Owners of a 2-2007 Ford Focus 2008 car may encounter a problem when the starter does not turn due to an error in the original immobilizer. Diagnosing this breakdown is very simple - for this, it is enough to start the battery power directly to the starter. However, it works without problems. usually, official dealers change the immobilizer under warranty.

Starter design

The reasons that the starter does not turn and “does not show signs of life” may be the following situations:

• Deterioration or disappearance contact in the starter circuit. This may be due to corrosion or deterioration of the wire bolting. We are talking about the main contact of the “mass”, fixed on the car body. you also need to check the “mass” of the main and solenoid starter relays. According to statistics, in 80% of cases, problems with a non-working starter come down to malfunctions in the car's electrical circuit. Therefore, in order to fix the problem, it is necessary to revise the wiring, that is, inspect the starter power supply circuit, tighten the bolted connections on the pads and terminals. Using a multimeter, check for voltage on the control wire going to the starter, it may be damaged. To check it, you can close the starter “directly”. How to do this is described below.
• breaking starter solenoid relay. This may be a break in its windings, a short circuit in them, mechanical damage to internal components, and so on. you need to diagnose the relay, find and fix the breakdown. You will find additional information on how to reproduce this in the corresponding material.
• Short circuit in the starter winding. This is a fairly rare, but critical problem. It appears most often in starters that are used for a long time. Over time, the insulation on their windings is destroyed, as a result of which an interturn short circuit may occur. it can also occur due to mechanical damage to the starter or when it is exposed to aggressive chemicals as well. Be that as it may, it is necessary to check for the presence of a short circuit, and if it occurs, then the solution will not be a repair, but a complete replacement of the starter.

Contact ignition group VAZ-2110

• Problems with contact group of the ignition switch, which may be the reason why the starter does not turn. If the contacts in the ignition lock are damaged, then no current passes through them to the electric internal combustion engine, respectively, it will not spin. You can check it with a multimeter. Check if voltage is applied to the ignition switch, and if it departs from it when the key is turned. it is also necessary to check the fuses of the contact group (usually located in the cabin, under the “torpedo” on the left or right side).
• Slippage of the freewheel of the starter drive. In this case, repair is not possible, it is necessary to replace the starter mechanical drive.
• The drive is tight on the threaded shaft. To eliminate it, you need to disassemble the starter, clean the threads of debris and lubricate it with engine oil.

further we will analyze the problems, the signs of which are the fact that the starter cranks the crankshaft very slowly, due to which the internal combustion engine does not start.

• Nonconformity engine oil viscosity temperature regime. Such a situation can arise when the oil in the internal combustion engine has become very thick in severe frost, and does not allow the crankshaft to rotate normally. The solution to the problem is to replace the oil with an analogue with the appropriate viscosity.
• Battery discharge. If it is not sufficiently charged, then there is not enough energy to turn the crankshaft at normal speed through the starter. The way out is to charge the battery or replace it if it does not hold a charge well. Especially this situation relevant for winter.
• Violation brush contact and/or loose wire lugsgoing to the starter. To eliminate this breakdown, it is necessary to revise the brush assembly, change the brushes if necessary, clean the collector, adjust the tension of the springs in the brushes or change the springs.

In some modern machines (for example, VAZ 2110), the electrical circuit is designed so that with significant wear on the starter brushes, voltage is not supplied to the solenoid relay at all. Therefore, when the ignition is turned on, it will not click.

We also list a few atypical situations due to which the starter does not turn both cold and hot. So:

• Control wire problemthat fits the starter. In case of damage to its insulation or contact, it will be impossible to start the internal combustion engine using the key. We recommend that you review it. To do this, you will need the help of another person. One of you should use the ignition key to try to start the internal combustion engine, while the other at this time pulls the wire, trying to “catch” the position in which the necessary contact occurs. also one option is to apply a direct “+” from the battery to the mentioned control wire. If the internal combustion engine starts, you need to look for the cause in the ignition switch, if not, in the insulation or integrity of the wire. If the problem is a damaged wire, then the best option is to replace it.
• Sometimes in the starter stator they peel off from the housing permanent magnets. To eliminate the breakdown, you need to disassemble the starter and re-glue them to their designated places.
• Fuse failure. This is not a common, but likely reason that the starter does not work and does not turn the internal combustion engine. First of all, we are talking about fuses for the contact group of the ignition system.
• Falling return spring on the starter relay. To eliminate the breakdown, it is enough to remove the indicated relay and install the spring in place.

Starter clicks, but does not turn

Revision of the starter brushes on the VAZ-2110

Very often, in case of starter malfunctions, it is not this mechanism itself that is to blame, but its retractor relay. It is important to understand that when the ignition is turned on, it is not the starter that clicks, but the said relay. breakdowns are due to one of the following reasons:

• Failure of the power wire that connects the starter windings and the traction relay. To solve the problem, you need to replace it.
• Significant wear on bushings and/or starter brushes. In this case, you need to replace them.
• Short circuit on the armature winding. You can check this with a multimeter. usually, the winding is not repaired, but another starter is bought and installed.
• Short circuit or break in one of the starter windings. The situation is similar to the previous one. you need to replace the device.
• The fork in the bendix is ​​broken or deformed. This is a mechanical failure that is difficult to fix. The best solution in this situation would be to replace the bendix or a separate plug (if possible).

Starter does not turn when hot

Starting the internal combustion engine directly

Sometimes car owners have problems when the starter does not turn “hot”. That is, with a cold internal combustion engine, after a long stop, the car starts up without problems, and with significant heating, problems appear. In this case, the most common problem is incorrectly selected starter bushings, that is, having a smaller diameter than necessary. When heated, a natural process of increasing the size of parts occurs, due to which the starter shaft wedges and does not rotate. Therefore, choose bushings and bearings in accordance with the manual for your car.

also in extreme heat, deterioration of contacts in the electrical system of the car is possible. And this applies to all contacts - on the battery terminals, the retractor and the main starter relay, on the "mass" and so on. Therefore, we recommend that you revise them, clean and degrease them.

Closing the starter directly with a screwdriver

ICE emergency start methods

When the starter does not click and does not make any sounds at all, the internal combustion engine can be started if it is closed “directly”. This is not the best solution, but in cases where you need to go urgently and there is no other way out, you can use it.

Consider the situation of how to start the internal combustion engine directly using the example of a VAZ-2110 car. So, the sequence of actions will be as follows:

• turn on the neutral gear and set the car on the handbrake;
• turn on the ignition by turning the key in the lock and open the hood, as we will carry out further actions in the engine compartment;
• remove the air filter from its seat and take it aside in order to get to the starter contacts;
• disconnect the chip going to the contact group;
• use a metal object (for example, a screwdriver with a wide flat tip or a piece of wire) to close the starter terminals;
• as a result of this, provided that the other components listed above are in good condition and the battery is charged, the car will start.

After that, reinstall the chip and air filter. An interesting fact is that in most cases the internal combustion engine will continue to be started using the ignition key. However, it should be remembered that the breakdown still remains, so you need to look for it yourself or go to a car service for help in order to fix it.

Emergency start of internal combustion engine

We also offer you one method that will come in handy if you need an emergency start of the internal combustion engine. It only fits for front wheel drive cars with manual transmission! The algorithm of actions is as follows:

• you need to jack up the car by hanging any of the front wheels;
• turn the suspended wheel all the way out (if the left wheel is to the left, the right one is to the right);
• wind a towing cable or a strong rope around the surface of the tire 3-4 times, leaving 1-2 meters free;
• turn on THIRD transfer;
• turn the key in the ignition lock;
• pull strongly on the end of the cable, trying to spin the wheel (it is better to do this not on the spot, but with a slight takeoff);
• when the car has started, first of all put the gear in neutral (you can do this without pressing the clutch pedal) and wait until the wheel completely stop;
• lower the lifted wheel to the ground.

When carrying out the described procedure, be extremely careful and observe the necessary safety measures in order not to injure yourself and damage the machine.

The described method with spinning the wheel of front-wheel drive cars resembles the method of starting a crooked starter (with the help of a crank) used in old rear-wheel drive cars (for example, VAZ “classic”). If in the latter case the starter is spun with the help of a handle, then in front-wheel drive it is spun from the axle shaft on which the raised wheel is located.

Hack and predictor Aviator

The starter is a simple but extremely important mechanism in a car. Therefore, its breakdown is critical, as it does not allow the engine to start. In most cases, problems are related to the car's electrical wiring, poor contacts, broken wires, and so on. Therefore, in the case when the starter does not turn and does not start the internal combustion engine, the first thing we recommend is that you revise the contacts (base “ground”, relay contacts, ignition switch, etc.).