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I don't know cars all that well and I am slowly learning and getting better and problem solving them. I need help though. My '84 vette won't start anymore and I think it has to do with the starter or the solenoid. I tried to start it one day and it would not turn over and made that clicking sound. Then a week went by and I tried it again but the battery was completely drained. I charged it and it started(baffled) and moved it to my garage, but of course after that day it would not start again, then eventually the batt. was completely drained again. I am not sure what the problem is anymore but still think it might be the solenoid or the starter.

Anybody have any comments or solutions to this problem?

I can't find the stupid starter. I have a Hanes manual for '84 vettes through '96 all the C4's, but it does not illustrate very well of where the location is. Thats my biggest problem because I want to take it out and have it tested to make sure that is the problem.

thanks,
Jeff

I posted this in the "Chat" section too...


First off, welcome to C4guru!

I could be wrong here, but it sounds like your battery is bad and not your Starter. I would pull it out and have it tested. Or better yet, get it started and drive it to a place like Autozone and they should be able to do a quick test of it and the Alternator while it is still in the car.

If both of those turn out to be OK, and you want to pull the starter itself.....

It will be on the bottom of the passenger side of the block. It will be right where the engine and tranny meet. A novice could pull it out with a little patience...just remember to UNHOOK BATTERY FIRST!!! Those cable you pulloff will be live and if they touch metal....that could be bad!!

Good luck!

thank you very much that helped a lot!

thanks,
Jeff

Jeff one of the first things you want to do is get rid of the Haynes manual, they suck. Get the Helms shop manual.

when you have a dead batt. charge to full, hook up the positive cable only and with a electric tester connect the meter + probe to the - post and the other probe to Frame with the - cable disconnected. you should not see any voltage other than memory then pull fuses for anything that needs memory (will have to reset) to see a drain on the batt then just find cause of drain :0 short, relay stuck, horn, amp, stereo, hvac ect. pull one fuse at a time till you find the circuit. then chase the wires in that circuit. but always clean ALL grounds first even if they "look" good. use aluminum oxide paste on all connectors (oxguard is one brand) never use dielectric grease when making connections only AFTER the connections have been made, dielectric grease does not conduct electricity for shyte. alldatadiy.com has a online manual for diagrams of specific circuits. Aloha

I was having starting problems as well. Had the battery checked on the local Autozone's battery testing machine; it tested OK. Spent another week chasing a non-existent electrical drain. No luck.

Had the battery tested again on Pep Boys' battery testing machine; it tested OK. Spent another frustrating week chasing non-existent gremlins. Put in new battery and haven't had a problem since.

I second the recommendation to get a Helms Factory Service Manual. The Haynes manual is less than useless.

yea mayun welcome
n i jus sorta did same thing ...ceptin mine was a junque batt...good luck fellas n keep us posted

heat will effect a battery a lot. If it is hot, it might be failing... so when cold, gives a false ok.