[T3] no start -- but just drove it!

[Bryon Garvin]

Question:

crawled under the car to do the starter check this morning.  I accidentally
let the small wire from the front of the car touch the big wire/lug from
the battery when I removed it.  I heard a noise up above, kind of maybe
where the battery is located?

Did I mess anything up?  Something I should check to see if I blew a fuse
or anything?  I was taking care, but it just sprung toward the lug when it
slipped out of my hand.

Thanks,

 - Bryon, '71 Fastback

On Sat, Feb 4, 2012 at 7:35 AM, Jim Adney <jadney at vwtype3.org> wrote:

> On 3 Feb 2012 at 11:52, Bryon Garvin wrote:
>
> > Well, the car sat after this episode until today.  I finally have the
> > time and weather to deal with it.  One question though, if I get under
> > the car (not in gear! ) and try the "quarter procedure" and the car
> > *doesn't*start, I assume then that I have a starter problem.  If that's
> > the case, does the starter have to come off to do further analysis?
>
> I would check a couple more things before pulling the starter. For
> these, you need a voltmeter or a test light. (A test light just
> checks for the presense or absense of voltage: the light is on or off
> (or dim.)
>
> Gearshift in NEUTRAL!
>
> NOTE: Any time you put a wrench to a nut that has + battery voltage
> on it, you must remove the battery ground strap first!
>
> Get a friend to help with the key. Crawl under the car and find a
> clean place to clip your ground lead. Check that this is good by
> touching the other lead to the large cable from the battery.
>
> Have the friend turn the key to START, while you put your probe on
> the lug on the solenoid where the ignition switch wire comes from the
> front. You should see voltage there when the key is turned to START.
>
> Put your probe on the LUG on the end of the large main cable from the
> battery. You should see voltage there even when the key is turned to
> START. If not, R/R both battery post connections. Check again. If it
> still isn't good, your battery may be the problem.
>
> Put the probe on the end of the STUD the large lug above connects to.
> There should be voltage there even when the key is turned to START.
> If not, loosen and retighten the nut on that stud. Add some grease
> there to keep out moisture.
>
> If all these things check out okay, remove the battery ground strap
> and then the starter. It's probably the starter brushes. Most of the
> time they just need to be freed up where they slip in their guides,
> but eventually they need to be replaced. There are special brushes
> for the Bosch starter motors with alum field windings. I don't think
> you'll find them anywhere else, but I think I still have some.
>
> The special brushes don't come with copper pigtails attached. They
> come with a hole in the brush that is metalized. You crush the old
> brush with a pair of pliers and insert the end of the old pigtail in
> the hole and solder it in.
>
> You CAN use normal brushes with pigtails, but you have to use a
> solder and flux that will work with alum. Normal flux will not work.
>
> --
> *******************************
> Jim Adney, jadney at vwtype3.org
> Madison, Wisconsin, USA
> *******************************
>
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