Delica Canada | Mitsubishi Van Club

Hi folks...need help and advice.

Truck won't start. Tries to turn over a bit but then just makes a clicking / clacking sound.
Checked the poles on the batteries to make sure they're clean and on good.
Have heavy gauge jumpers and got a neighbour to help but only for a few minutes but didn't make any difference.

Vehicles are DC correct? Put the meter on 10v on the DC and the meter spiked all the way. The other options were 250 and 500 so if it spikes on 10 that should mean a good battery...correct?? I don't know those things well.

Not sure how to run power direct to the starter on this thing to see if it's the solenoid...can anyone offer advice on this?

And...there seems to be cross reference parts for most things on these trucks including timing belts...is there one for the starter and solenoid??

Hi folks...need help and advice.

Truck won't start. Tries to turn over a bit but then just makes a clicking / clacking sound.
Checked the poles on the batteries to make sure they're clean and on good.
Have heavy gauge jumpers and got a neighbour to help but only for a few minutes but didn't make any difference.

Vehicles are DC correct? Put the meter on 10v on the DC and the meter spiked all the way. The other options were 250 and 500 so if it spikes on 10 that should mean a good battery...correct?? I don't know those things well.

Not sure how to run power direct to the starter on this thing to see if it's the solenoid...can anyone offer advice on this?

And...there seems to be cross reference parts for most things on these trucks including timing belts...is there one for the starter and solenoid??

Check your connections on the starter and battery - make sure they are tightly fastened in place. Even slightly loose and there may not be enough contact to allow for the current requirements to turn over the engine.

The "clicking/clacking" noise is usually indicative of not enough current getting to the solenoid, which is attached right to the starter motor.

Also, do you hear a whirring as well, or just the clicking? Whirring would be something else (more costly).

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I don't recall the whirling noise... I'll check tomorrow - it's late. And thanks...
The connections at the terminals are tight. I took them off to clean them and made sure they were just as snug if not more so than before. As for other connections to the starter itself. The one going to the solenoid seems decent enough. Everything was working fine yesterday night. I can't see the connections going to the starter...!@#$ awkward placement for a starter on this thing!

I got a feeling it's the batteries...I'm just not sure how to check if they're out of juice or low enough that they're no good for turning over this diesel.

Orionsbelt wrote:I don't recall the whirling noise... I'll check tomorrow - it's late. And thanks...
The connections at the terminals are tight. I took them off to clean them and made sure they were just as snug if not more so than before. As for other connections to the starter itself. The one going to the solenoid seems decent enough. Everything was working fine yesterday night. I can't see the connections going to the starter...!@#$ awkward placement for a starter on this thing!

I got a feeling it's the batteries...I'm just not sure how to check if they're out of juice or low enough that they're no good for turning over this diesel.

If you take it to a battery shop, a lot of them will test your batteries for free. Keep in mind though, they test your batteries: they'll disconnect the battery from your vehicle, test it, and then re-connect it. What that means is they are only testing one component of your starting system.

A mechanic should be able to test/fault-find the whole starter system.

The wire going to your solenoid only activates the solenoid. Look for the larger wire that goes to the back of the starter motor - that's the one that has to be tight because it carries the hundreds of amps to spin your big-block diesel-compressing engine around.

Okay, it's not that BIG of an engine, but you get what I mean.

A friend is helping me take the batteries to crappy tire to test - free.

The million $$$ question is getting a starter for this thing if that's hooped? Is there an equivalent part out there for these?

We can get brakes, alternators, etc...a starter shouldn't be that different?

Do you have the two battery setup??

If you do you need to disconnect one of them completely and then test both of them.

it is almost certainly one or both of you batteries, these trucks require alot of amps to start, (80amp glow plug fuse and high compression)

also its possible that an old battery will read 11 or 12 volts but simply does not have enough cranking amps to do the job

polar batteries will hook you up with two deep cycle batteries for under $175 (boundary road and 1st ave)

And CVI automotive in richmond will have a starter

you cannot get a starter at your local parts store (lordco etc) because they dont list for the diesels


good luck

Yes 2 battery set up -apparently common for diesels. Also, I'm in Calgary so no Polar Battery for me unfortunately because that's an excellent price.

Anyone know a good shop in Calgary that has a similar price range to Polar...?

you do not want to use deep cycle batteries for your starter batteries. Keep that in mind, especially in your winter climate.

Polar batteries tend to have their prices fluctuate from customer to customer.

Just pick up a pair of good batteries from your local parts supplier. NAPA HD (heavy duty) battery line are meant for diesels as an example.

There's a lot of debate on these but I just use Kirkland batteries from Costco, $70 each 850 CCA and tested and true at -20.

jfarsang wrote:you do not want to use deep cycle batteries for your starter batteries. Keep that in mind, especially in your winter climate.

Polar batteries tend to have their prices fluctuate from customer to customer.

Just pick up a pair of good batteries from your local parts supplier. NAPA HD (heavy duty) battery line are meant for diesels as an example.

why do you not recommend a deep cycle for the starter battery? I thought that it was not recommended to mix a deep cycle and regular auto battery?
thanks!

The battery should be at around 12.5 volts if its good, at 12, or 11 volts it would not be good, but it would still endstop a voltmeter with 10v FSD set.

Thanks guys for all the great tips and info.

In the end it was the batteries and not the starter...thank God. That starter doesn't look easy to pull out.

I ended up getting a couple heavy duty Interstate 800 cca at around $220 with the old battery return. Got from Auto Value which is close to me and required less favours from friends.

Just wanted to say thanks...

Orion