85 big red starter clicks

[wade r]

my 85 big red is just clicking when i try to start it .. i tested the battery its at 12.9 .. with boost it almost 16 vt .. still clicking
not sure what to try next .. and yes i tried connection the 2 terminals on the solenoid
i have ordered a new solenoid as this is where the clicking seems to be coming from

[350for350]

Maybe the starter itself is bad. What does it do when you hook battery power directly to the starter positive. Using jumper cables of course.

[gimmeamidget]

Are you using a good battery or an old battery with battery charger hooked up? I don’t understand the 16 volt boost?

[gimmeamidget]

A battery charger may read 12 or 16 volts. It does not put out enough amps to crank over the starter motor.

[wade r]

A battery charger may read 12 or 16 volts. It does not put out enough amps to crank over the starter motor.

just ordered new battery .. we see what happens tks

[wade r]

not sure how to do that as im not a mechanic

[350for350]

not sure how to do that as im not a mechanic

If you were talking about what I said, it's easy. Using a pair of jumper cables, hook one red clamp to your positive battery post. Then touch the other red clamp to the lug on your starter where the battery cable attaches. If it still just clicks, either your battery is bad or your starter is.

[AbsoluteZer0]

on my 200m i would only get a clicking sound. i ended up tapping around the starter and periodically hitting the button. whatever was stuck ended up coming free and the starter works everytime no problem. I put a brand new battery in mine and just had the clicking like you have.

Have you tried tapping on the starter with a while hitting the button? Don't whale on it but just give it some good taps.

dont hold the button just hit it while tapping and see if maybe its stuck. If it doesnt end up working like others have said maybe the starter it bad.

[HoldMyBeer]

My 87 did the same. I replaced the seemingly good starter and problem solved.

[ps2fixer]

You can load test the battery, check the voltage (no charger), then press and hold the starter button while reading the voltage. If the voltage drops a LOT, the battery is junk. If it barely drops then you have to determin if the starter solenoid is bad or the starter. The simple way is to jump the positive to the starter cable like suggested above, if it works that way, starter solenoid which is basically just a heavy switch. There's a bench test method for the starter solenoid too, the two wires you provide power to (green is ground). It should click then you use a multi meter to test the ohms between the two big lug, connection = good, no connection = bad.

The starter can also be bench tested in a similar way. With it on the machine, jump your car to the machine grounding the neg and jumping the pos directly to the battery cable on the starter. If it goes, then starter is working, if not then you know the starter has problems.

For the starter issues, you can buy a "rebuild" kit from Honda still for like $20-30. Assuming the bearings are good, normally the brushes wear out. The commutator (the copper section the brushes ride on - pic below) should be cleaned up with fine sand paper, something like 220-400 grid and clean between each groove with a pick if needed. I'm pretty sure the service manual gives more details on the starter rebuild, but that's the basics. FYI, the method is generally successful because the brushes lost connection where the starter stopped last, just small taps can bring it to life until it hits that spot again. Also sometimes the brushes bind up and the tap can free them. I fixed a chop saw recently that just had a brush that was bound up.



Also, careful with just throwing parts at the problem, you can introduce new problems with out even knowing it. It's always best to know a part is bad before replacing it. Good OEM > new aftermarket in 99% of cases with Honda. I've read some of the Chinese starter solenoids are hit and miss, they tend to get stuck "on" which leads me to think the contacts inside it are poorly made.

The starter solenoid is still in production, but price is way up so I'm thinking it's about to go out of production -> https://www.partzilla.com/product/ho...53355cfe0d19a9

If you want to "rebuild" the starter, you need new brushes which is two part numbers linked below.

https://www.partzilla.com/product/ho...bf5291b186e4a4
https://www.partzilla.com/product/ho...bf5291b186e4a4

You could always buy a new starter on ebay, but you'll have a china knock off, who knows how good/bad they are.

Before buying parts, I'd say to validate if it's the starter or not, and if it is the starter, pull it apart at the opposite side as the gear. Check if the brushes are worn out or not, if not, clean it up and try to reassemble. It's a bit of a fight but it's not impossible. Also it isn't a bad idea to mark the housing where the end caps line up. Also don't get the middle section reversed, it might reverse the direction of the starter if installed backwards (based on what I've read, never tested it).

Also, you can take the battery to any parts store and have it load tested with a proper tester. They can tell if it's a junk battery or not, then likely try to sell you a battery =).

Note the starter for 85 is different than 86-87. It's been a while, but pretty sure the 85 atc250sx starter will work for the 250es too, just black vs silver. I have a spreadsheet of starter part numbers (actual numbers on the starter label) I started to build a while back.