i have an 07 Chevy duramax. 170 k mile. Original owner. very nice clean truck. Pretty much trouble free all its life. I parked it a couple days ago in my driveway. The overnight temp was 28° here in Nashville. When I went out to start it starter would engage make a clicking attempt to turn the engine but that’s it. Pretty much just like it had a discharge battery. So I disconnected the batteries and checked them each individually and they were both at 12 9 V. I also check the starter relay and it wasn’t that. So before I start thinking about replacing the starter what should I do? I was a technician for 33 years but that was about 20 years ago but I still work on all my own stuff so appreciate your help thank you. jim
Starter problem? Maybe help…
- Thread starter Jimongee
- Start date
Low temps decrease the ability of the battery to crank the engine, and the engine becomes much more difficult to turn over. Jason is correct, load test both batteries or put them on a charger to bring the charge up to full full.
Ok thanks. One of the batteries is 2 months old. And before I posted my question I disconnected the batteries and charged them. Then I checked them individually with my DVOM and got 13v each. Should I still load test? And I had a person attempt to start while I was watching the crankshaft balance just to make sure the engine was not locked or? Well when the starter is engaged the sound is pretty much like a low bakery with out the bendix chatter and the engine moves about 1 inch in rotation. Then nothing. Unbelievably I also found a P0761. This DTC in my opinion may very well just be a phantom since I’ve never ever had anything wrong with this pristine Allison…And so I am pretty certain that Code has nothing to do at all with the starter thing. Thank you for your help I really appreciate it. Jim
Take the batteries out and bring them to an auto parts store and have them test them. Batteries are normally replaced in pairs. So if one was old and the other new then the new one can be brought down to the older batteries condition quite quickly
If the batteries test good then we can check other things such as cables, connections, etc
If the batteries test good then we can check other things such as cables, connections, etc
Smack the starter with a hammer while someone else turns the key.. Also check the small purple wire on the stater for power when turning key. If power at at purple wire, it's starter. If not, check relay in fuse box. Since you hear clicking, tells me the relay is good and ECM is telling it to crank. So leaves sticky stater, or corroded battery terminals...
Load test the batteries and if you have batteries with 4 post make sure they test the ones your truck uses. Not only did I have this exact issue, but I had 4 post batteries. The shop didn't test the ones my truck uses, so they would test good but not start my truck.
