so i did a clutch change over the last few weeks. i did timing belt today and water pump and thermostat change. i also did a battery relocation. all this was done at once so the car was never started in between any of these jobs. so today i thought i had the car ready enough to start. but when i put it in the run position to check for any codes the main relay buzzed really loud. and the ecu code light was solid on. what could cause this. thanks for any ideas.

 

Turn the headlights on, if they go out or severely dim when you try to start, the car isn't getting enough juice from the battery.

 

would that cause the main relay to do that and the ecu light to be on all the time? or no...

 

well i figured out that problem was a thermostat ground. so that got fixed. now i have 8 flashes on my ecu code. which tells me TDC problem... but im fairly sure i did the timing right... so could it be something else. also when i just try to crank it, it doesnt do anything. so could i have a starter problem being miss diagnosed as a TDC?

 

so i went to check the voltage at my starter. i have twelve volts ground to power. and 2.6 volts power to the little spade connection. and my starter was like a billion degrees. so i think that is shot. could that have caused my TDC code pop?

 

Again, are you getting enough power from the battery to keep the headlights on while you try to crank? Is the large ground wire from the transmission to battery (-) secure?

 

it does not crank. but i do have 12 volts at the starter. which should be enough right... or am i missing something.

 

ok so forget what i said before and lets work off this. here is the picture.


ok bolt 1 is the ground to the starter. bolt 2 is the positive to starter. and i believe wire three is the wire that says hey starter turn on. i have 12.18 volts from positive on the battery to negitive on the battery. i have 11.56 volts from bolt 1 to bolt 2. i have 11.55 volts from the wire three to big bolt 2. by the way my keys are not on or in the start position. they are not even in the ignition. and from what i know that is telling the motor to spin if i connect wire three to the spade it is supposed to go to, which is inbetween the two bolts. so my starter is for sure fried. and maybe the ignition switch is bad? or am i just an idiot?

 

That looks like a bad connection on the 4 AWG wire. You can't just smash those lugs with pliers and have a good reliable connection. Either crimp with the proper tool, or smash and solder them. Redo all the #4 wires both power and ground. Also you should top up the battery with a battery charger, 12.18 volts is rather flat.

Your understanding of how the starter works is flawed, but that's not important right now.

 

so its fine that i have 12 volts between my starter positive and the black wire that it goes to the top spade? because all my knowledge says that should only happen when the key is in the "start" position. because as i said my starter was literally a few hundred degrees. and my key was not even in. what could have caused that?