AUTO CLINIC
Dear Femi,
I own a Peugeot 306, which I bought in 2001. For some months now, it has been problem of kick all the time. As the rewire repaired it, the problem keep coming back. Each time I try to start the car, there is no sound whatever, even when the starter switch is repeatedly operated. My auto rewire has repaired it twice. Now the problem has resumed again. Should I buy another kick as being suggested by some friends? If you need more information, you can mail me back.
Thank you sir.
Yours sincerely,
Mrs. Precious Adah
ANSWER
Dear Mrs. Adah,
Thank you for your mail. And I welcome you back to the clinic. The problem you presented is electrical. So do as follows: Switch the headlights on. Normally they should light to their normal brilliance. With the headlight still switched on, operate the starter. If the lights dim considerably, the starter is jammed in engagement. But there is always a slight dim even when the starter is operating normally. You are looking for a marked drop in brilliance of the lights. Remember that on cars with automatic transmission, the starter will not operate in positions P or N of the control lever.
And what is jamming all about?
A starter pinion jammed in engagement (inertia of pre-engaged starter) can usually be freed by engaging 2nd or 3rd gear and rocking the car backwards and forwards a few times. If this fails to free the pinion from the flywheel teeth, it will be necessary to remove the kick starter from the car.
Of course, if, when you switch on the lights, they do not come on at all or are dim, it’s either there is a fault in the battery or the battery connections are at fault.
What to do?
Remove and clean the battery lead connections and refit and tighten the battery lead connection. Check that the battery earth lead is making good contact at the point where it is connected to the body.
Of course if the headlights were at normal brilliance, this would indicate a fault in the starter circuit or kick starter. Some starter solenoid switches have a rubber base and the starter can be operated independently of the ignition switch by pressing on this base. If you can operate the starter in this way, it proves the starter to be sound and that there is a fault in the electrical operation of the solenoid switch. This is the first check to make, if you can make it. Otherwise the connection of the starter leads should be checked. If these are sound, the starter switch should be operated once or twice. It is usually possible to hear the starter solenoid operate. If the switch is accessible, it should be possible to feel it operate, when the starter switch is turned. If you can feel nothing and there is no sound, the indication is that the switch is faulty or there is a fault in the switch operating circuit. If the switch seems to be operating, this brings the suspicion on to the starter.
We won’t be able to conclude the answer today. Do watch out for how to test the starter in the next edition of Motoring World.
Dear readers, for explanations to your intractable motoring problems, please mail [email protected] or [email protected]. Until we meet again in another edition of Motoring World, please be careful out there.
