powrserj

Ok I have a 1992 SC300 the car is acting pretty odd. It has been starting up fine the past couple of days then I jump in it today and when I turn the key I hear a Click but dont hear the starter so I turn it back and try again same click and i tried about 4 times and then boom starter goes on.

Now the weird part about a month ago for some reason I turn the car on and the starter doesnt stop trying to start I pull the battery terminal and just left the car there for about a day. Go back in and started fine and then that same Click but no start happens but 2 days later it goes fine.

Anyone know if this is the starter or something else? Just wanna make sure before I go purchasing parts and its not that.

Thanks in advance.

aliga

iTrader: (147)

do you have an aftermarket alarm?

starters are pretty cheap as well, i have one locally 50 bucks.

O. L. T.

iTrader: (17)

moved to the correct forum.

powrserj

Noticed today my battery terminal was loose. Gonna tighten it up in the morning and see if that helps. Otherwise Aliga looks like I might have to see you if it doesnt help.

over40driv

Dont forget to charge the battery up with a battery charger.

powrserj

I actually screwed the battery terminal a little tighter and so far turning over in 1 try. Noticed the Ground Wires look crappy guess I will have to order a set. Thanks everyone looks like its working fine.

maddis85

im having the EXACT same problem with my lexus sc400 97. i thought it was the battery terminal as well and changed those things altogether as well as a new batter. then thought it might be my grounder wires but they are old but seem fine...and i also asked the local garages about how much it would cost...

and of course it costs around 800...any other ideas of what it might be powerserj? are you still having the same problem or once you replaced those grounder wires everything worked fine?

SGrundy

The single click sounds like a starter problem. I had the exact same issue, the car would take a random number of tries to start up. Whenever I turned the key I'd get a single click(no matter how long I held the key in start position) or the car would start. I lived with it for a while and it kept taking longer and longer to start.
Search for "starter contacts", it's a pretty simple repair.

The multi-click is a dead battery. Leaving it unhooked for a day allowed the battery to recharge a bit.

SC30096

Starter contacts, just had mine changed last month. over time they'll start to wear out. when they took my starter apart one was as thin as a knife... so the reason why it starts sometimes is if by chance the plunger is pulled hard enough to make contact with both contacts to complete the current. wish i took some pictures to show you what I meant... but it cost about an hour of labour and like 80 in parts I think

CyBorG

I am having the same issue, but with multiple clicks, like turn key: (very fast)tick-tick-tick-tick-tick-tick-tick-tick-tick-tick-tick (engine revs slowly...tick-tick....engine on). This happened after I accidently touched the amp and ground gauge wires together when rewiring my trunk 2 days ago and a huge spark happened on the wires. I don't know much about electronics but I got a new starter 2 months ago so it probably can't be that. Battery is a few years old...I could try replacing it. Ticking happens when the engine has been off for over ~a few hours. If its less than that, it will usually start back up pretty quick.

When I had starter issues a few months ago, the ticking was different.. it was tick-tick-tick (then dead).

Any suggestions? Is my electronics messed up? Another clue is my radio will shut off and reboot periodically... is my battery not holding a charge? I am running an aftermarket audio system that's moderately powerful (~600W total). Also have an aftermarket alarm.

The ticking will also happen even if I turn off my radio and try and start up.

EDIT: It was the battery... it didnt survive the spark the 12V and the ground cable made. Instant $65 gone...beautiful. At first, I had the battery tested at autozone for free, and it came back bad..like, real bad. I'm not sure how it ever even held a charge for my car to start.

flash92sc

iTrader: (20)

hey i need some some help with same issue. i just rebuilt my 1992 sc 400 for my wife ,i first noticed it would crank a few times then fire up and it got a little weaker so i replaced battery . seemed to work fine for a few weeks then i noticed it cranking weaker again but still start fine .yesterday my wife went out to start after work and nothing just a single click ,towed it home after wouldnt jump and still just loud single click. is the starter really located under the intake manifold ? that sounds like major job replacing it . also can it just go out all at once like that i never had any multiple clicking or anything before thanks for any help tom

CyBorG

yeah, if you havent replaced the starter on your 15 year old car yet, it probably is about time anyways. It is alot of work, (5.5 hrs of labor) but once done, thats it. I had starter issues just like you and I replaced it, then everyone was up and running again (until I blew my battery out as you saw in the above post, lol)