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Old 11-12-2018, 06:35 PM   #215 (permalink)
MetroMPG
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Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: 1000 Islands, Ontario, Canada
Posts: 22,527

Blackfly - '98 Geo Metro
Team Metro
Last 3: 70.09 mpg (US)

MPGiata - '90 Mazda Miata
90 day: 54.46 mpg (US)

Even Fancier Metro - '14 Mitsubishi Mirage top spec
90 day: 70.75 mpg (US)

Appliance car Mirage - '14 Mitsubishi Mirage ES (base)
90 day: 62.14 mpg (US)
Thanks: 4,078
Thanked 6,976 Times in 3,612 Posts
Metro back on duty - with ANOTHER problem fixed

I pulled the Metro out of storage yesterday. It started right up... the first time.

Then, SNAFU: no more start. No click, no whir, no crank.

I checked the battery voltage (low after sitting, so I put it on the charger). Checked the terminals, and while not pristine, they were OK. I cleaned & re-tightened them anyway.

Still nada.

So I pulled the starter off & immediately found the problem... the flexible braided wire going from the solenoid to the starter motor was badly corroded and falling apart:



The wire even had evidence of high resistance -- blobs of metal on the ends of some broken strands!

This had obviously been in poor shape ever since I got the car, and it had been affecting starter performance from day 1: there was often a very slight but noticeable delay between turning the key and the starter activating. And now we know why!

A call to Crappy Tire revealed a new/remanufactured starter here in frozen Canuckistan is $180 taxes in, thus I was motivated to attempt a fix.

I pulled the end cap off the motor, cut the corroded wire back to good metal, and soldered this extension wire on it:





(No way was I going to be able to reproduce a 2" wire with the connector in exactly the right spot, so I went overboard. An extra long loop so as not to stress the solder job.

And now it works like a charm! It has never sprung to life so convincingly in the 2 years I've had the car.
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Project MPGiata! Mods for getting 50+ MPG from a 1990 Miata
Honda mods: Ecomodding my $800 Honda Fit 5-speed beater
Mitsu mods: 70 MPG in my ecomodded, dirt cheap, 3-cylinder Mirage.
Ecodriving test: Manual vs. automatic transmission MPG showdown



EcoModder
has launched a forum for the efficient new Mitsubishi Mirage
www.MetroMPG.com - fuel efficiency info for Geo Metro owners
www.ForkenSwift.com - electric car conversion on a beer budget
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