I was told by previous owner of my Sportwagon that the starter solenoid was going out. I inpected it and found the wire (ignition I think) going to the main terminal on the solenoid was spliced, burnt and falling off. There was also another wire in addition to the battery cable connected to this terminal. According to the service manual the two wires are supposed to have a fusable link which connects to the terminal. I am not electically inclined and my question is should I replace the burnt spliced wire with the same 10g wire which would be leaving it like it was? What problems would that cause not to have a fuseable link? Or should I make a fuseable link? These starter motors are a bear to work on I should add but small price to pay to own another buick! Chris
Don't skip the fusable link! It acts as a fuse. If there is a short, or the wire is elsewise drawing more power than it should, the link melts, cutting off the electricity. Otherwise, the wire, or some component, could overheat and cause a fire or all sorts of other problems. You can go to any parts store, like NAPA, and purchase a new fusable link. You can then crimp it on (after preping the old wire). The difficult part is trying to find out why the link is in the condition it is. Could be age and heat from the engine/starter, or it could be a deeper problem. When I redid some wiring, instead of a fusable link, I ran the wires to the fender and mounted a small fuse block. However, the idea is the same. If something goes wrong, the fuse will blow, preventing more serious problems.
fuseable link My guess is the starter overheated the badly spliced wire which had no fuseable link. The rest of the wire was fine. There is a red 10g and a red 12g which hook to the big terminal in front of the battery cable. I am going to get the fuseable link and run the two red wires through it and then connect it to the big hookup. There is the small yellow coil wire and then a small purple wire connected to the other small hookup on the solenoid. Do you know what that purple wire goes to? I am wondering myself what caused the sliced red 10g wire to melt...I presume the starter solenoid is acting up. I am glad there was no fire or worse since there was no fuseable link. Thanks! Chris
Hopefully someone else will chime in, as I don't remember exactly what those wires are for. I'm going on memory here and have only done this once. So make sure you confirm my information. Fusable Link When you get new fusable links, make sure they are the right ones. I forget how many amps, but a good parts store clerk will be able to set you up. The "badly spliced" wire probably was the fusable link. When you buy a link, it will look like a piece of wire with a crimp connector on one end and an eyelet on the other. One problem with these things is some people (don't know who )tend to let the starter hang on the wires when removing it. That doesn't help a crimped connection. Yellow If I remember correctly, the yellow wire to the coil gives a full 12 volts when starting. It is a "bypass," and only has voltage when the soliniod is engaged. When the car is running, a separate "resistor" wire gives something like 10 volts to the coil. [I no longer have the yellow wire after converting to HEI b/c the HEI uses a full 12 volts all the time. Of course the resistor wire had to be replaced with a regular wire.] Positive Battery Cable The big cable going directly to the positive terminal on the battery should NOT have a fuseable link. The big metal piece that clamps to the battery terminal is the fusable link in this case. I actually had one work; the positive cable hit the exhaust manifold, the insulation melted - short circuit. The clamp melted off as it should. Red Wires The two red wires on the soliniod (on the same big threaded terminal as the postive battery cable) power the rest of the car. I think one is for the engine compartment (or maybe just the lights), and the other is for the passenger compartment. Each should have its own fusable link. Running both through one link could melt it even though each circuit is within its range. Using a fuseable link with twice the capicity is a bad idea also, as it won't melt if only one circuit is exceeding its range. Purple I believe the purple wire goes to the ignition switch, and engages the starter/solinoid when you turn the key. Sorry, this message is already a bit verbose, but I just want to tell you what made my fuseable link go out. After a lot of looking around, I discovered that the plastic connector for the fan relay had become brittle and cracked. Two of the connectors inside it had touched, creating a short circuit that melted the link. In your case, it might have been the soliniod, but check the wiring very well before reconnecting the everything.
thanks!! Thanks a lot for your post it is really helpful. You are right the "badly spliced" wire was a fuseable link although it looked to me the they used the same size wire to create the link. The other fuseable link looks like it is still good. A "professional mechanic" will be coming over tomorrow to help walk me through this to make sure I don't do a car-b-que or something similiar and help change the starter motor if need be. I will try and post a picture once we get it set up correctly. Time to get that Haynes Auto Electrical manual off the shelf.. .the one I have been ignoring for a long time! Chris
Sure, no problem. Its nice to be on the answering side of a question for a change. :grin: The link should look like a normal wire. Its just made of a material that will melt more easily. Also, the starter isn't really that heavy - until you are on your back and have your arms at odd angles. Since you are going to be under there, and if money isn't a problem, it might be a good idea to replace the starter and solenoid if they are old. It may not be necessary. On the other hand, it may mean a longer time before you have to deal with it again. Its also a good time to change the oil and filter, lube the joints, and anything else that can be done when the front is in the air. Might as well tackle it all at once.
