67 sunbeam alpine hard starting

[Ian Faulkner]

Hello all,

Ive recently been working on restoring a sunbeam alpine 5 over the last few weeks. Its sat for just under 20 years in a sideyard. A few days ago I finally got the engine turning over and running, even idling for a little bit. The issue now is the starter no longer turns the engine over. More specifically the starter will rotate the engine once, then stop. Adding more onto the story of this car, the ignition switch has also had some issues. To get the engine to turn over I cross the 2 points at the starter solenoid manually. The thing is it was working the other day but now the starter barely rotates.

Any suggestions?

 

[Gordon Holsinger]

Hello all,

Ive recently been working on restoring a sunbeam alpine 5 over the last few weeks. Its sat for just under 20 years in a sideyard. A few days ago I finally got the engine turning over and running, even idling for a little bit. The issue now is the starter no longer turns the engine over. More specifically the starter will rotate the engine once, then stop. Adding more onto the story of this car, the ignition switch has also had some issues. To get the engine to turn over I cross the 2 points at the starter solenoid manually. The thing is it was working the other day but now the starter barely rotates.

Any suggestions?

Starter is got a lot of crud in it rust scale, solenoid problems high resistance connections at solenoid, and starter!

 

[Acollin]

Lets start at the beginning.

Are you starting with a fully charged battery?
Is the ground clean and in good contact?
Check for blown fuses?

When you now jump the solenoid , what happens? Sounds? Slow cranking?Do you not have one of those “button” solenoids— ignition on push button to start?

You’ll need a volt meter or at minimum a test light.
Do you have a Work Shop Manual ( wsm). They often provide procedures for testing electrical components.
Electrical problems can be tough if you jump around — trying this and that. Unless there is something obvious visually, a methodical process will make the most sense.
Keep the forum engaged— there are some genuine wizards ( I am not one) who will be reading these posts. They will have they answer.
Articles too— awakening an alpine after a long sleep.
Be well— looking forward to your posts

 

[Shannon Boal]

Simple tests with voltmeter at battery: battery resting voltage-12.6 volts......battery voltage when cranking- 10.5 minimum Next, voltage drop test, positive meter lead at positive battery terminal, negative meter lead at starter itself.....when cranking, should have no more than 3/4 volt drop from battery to starter. last, voltage drop test from battery negative terminal to starter case (meter negative to battery negative post, meter positive terminal to starter case) voltage drop in negative circuit no more than 1/4 volt. If first test shows battery resting voltage low, charge or replace battery. If cranking voltage low, maybe weak battery or starter drawing too much current (dragging of shorted). If voltage drop high, feel components to see which ones get hot during cranking......retest parts of circuit, like from battery positive to solenoid, voltage drop across solenoid, etcetera....You may need a test jumper 6-8 feet long to reach the battery with the meter leads...