> John, I went through this in detail in my earlier post (see the first post here for a link), so I didn't want to repeat all of that again (ad
> nauseam and bore people who had already read it). In short, the problem I was having was at took a long trip from Seattle to Los Angeles. When I
> drove a long stretch 2 to 4 hours, and stopped at either a rest stop, gas, or Walmart, when I got back, I got nothing when I turned the ignition key
> (no cranking, no clicking, no sound). I had over 12.5 in battery power, but nothing. Everything else worked. I managed to get it started twice
> (once with a jump, the second time by me taking off the cables from the chassis battery). When I reached a destination, and plugged in or hooked up
> my battery tender, it would start without a problem (hot or cold).
>
> When I was in LA, I went to Pep Boys and bought some battery cleaner and some protectant. I cleaned all of the upper connections (in the front
> compartments). I did load test the battery. I charged it to full, and then cranked it with a meter. It held at about 12.7 after cranking, and
> didn't drop below 10 that I could tell when I cranked.
Brian,
I have a similar symptom to what you are experiencing. Every since I purchased the coach 11 years ago, it sometimes will not do anything when I try to
start after we having been driving for a while. I monitored the voltage while trying to start and found that there was not a voltage drop which told
me that starting level current was not getting to the starter. As a diagnostic aid, I ran a wire from the solenoid up to the battery area. The next
time I had the problem, I went out an touched the wire to the battery and the engine started which told me that the starter and solenoid was OK and
that there was another problem somewhere between the ignition switch and the solenoid. Because Margie was getting tired of going out and touching the
wire to the battery (especially in the rain), I put in a relay and ran wires into the cockpit connected to a momentary switch so that when I energized
the relay, the engine starts. Margie appreciated the effort. Obviously, I should fix the problem. In fairness, I did replace the NSS to no avail. I
now believe the ignition switch to be the culprit. But, hey the work around has worked for 11 years so why hurry.
On our way home from a 2500 mile trip to Wash DC with a couple of grandkids, I experienced the same no-start issue. I hit the momentary switch and
still nothing. Monitoring the voltage showed that the voltage dropped to 10 volts while trying to start - hmmm, this is different. So now, I suspect
the starter or solenoid. I slip under and tap on the solenoid and starter with a hammer while Margie successfully starts the engine. Next stop is for
gas, no start so Margie pushes me out of the station with our little Honda HRV towed. I try the hammer - no joy! I'm thinking this is heat related so
I asked the grandkids if their water bottle squirted water. They were quick to demonstrate. After drying myself off, I crawled under and squirted the
solenoid and starter and it started up and off we went. After overnight, it would start normally so I got gas early in the morning on the remaining
trip home.
Back home, I now have a new starter and solenoid and will be inspecting the old for evidence of a problem. I suspect the starter because there was
such a voltage drop. I will check the starter brushes - maybe they are toast.
I plan on changing the ignition switch soon, hopefully, before another 11 years pass.
--
Randy & Margie
'77 Eleganza II '403'
Battlefield, MO
