Just bought a 2000 Mercury Mountaineer

[wwiding]

Check the voltage, it needs close to 12v to be able to crank it, low 11's and the battery is drained a lot.

I'll grab a voltimeter when I run to the store later today. I hooked a jump box to the battery but I still wasn't getting anything. The plus side is, every thing else is working fine and I don't need to bang on the negative terminal any more!

 

[CDW6212R]

Hopefully it's just the battery charge, not the starter. How is the positive cable connection at the battery, did you replace the end or take it apart and clean it?

Often when someone cuts the end off and buys the bolt on terminal, the cable was beginning to corrode and it eventually grows inside the cable. That's why we suggested a new cable, they last for ages but at 20 years they're near the end of their life.

 

[wwiding]

Hopefully it's just the battery charge, not the starter. How is the positive cable connection at the battery, did you replace the end or take it apart and clean it?

Often when someone cuts the end off and buys the bolt on terminal, the cable was beginning to corrode and it eventually grows inside the cable. That's why we suggested a new cable, they last for ages but at 20 years they're near the end of their life.

I took the positive terminal apart and cleaned it. They looked alright, but I'll probably replace them anyway. The wires didn't crumble in my hands like the negative wires did. I may drop the starter and get it tested any way, since it's free. The starter is original, with 218,000 on it so I won't be too bummed out if it needs to be replaced. It looks like a straight forward job.

 

[CDW6212R]

These starters are very reliable, they'll basically be perfect until all at once they die. Often tapping hard on one that is hanging up will make it work. If you decide the starter isn't quite right, replace it or have it rebuilt.

 

[wwiding]

These starters are very reliable, they'll basically be perfect until all at once they die. Often tapping hard on one that is hanging up will make it work. If you decide the starter isn't quite right, replace it or have it rebuilt.

I had my girlfriend try to start it while I was underneath it. The clicking noise is coming from the starter. I don't think the flywheel is damaged but I couldn't really see it. I've heard that if the flywheel is damaged it would sound similar to someone trying to start an already running car.

Again, I appreciate the help. I'm going to pull the starter out in the morning and check the connections.

 

[wwiding]

Welcome to V8 Mounty club. The wire in the fuse box is hilarious. If only they made a crimp on terminal exactly for that purpose........ oh that’s right, they do. I’d follow that bad boy out and find out what they’ve added or ‘fixed’.

I traced the fuse box wire. It runs under the floor mat, then up to the parking brake, then across the bottom of the dash to the message center.

 

[wwiding]

So I climbed underneath the SUV with the goal of connecting a jumper cable to the solenoid, to touch the other end to my battery positive to see what would happen. I can't reach the wires without jacking up the vehicle, which means I need to go buy some jack stands and wheel chocks. I can't put the SUV inside, so I'm going to put some heavy duty plywood underneath it just in case. I have piles of old tires on rims and I planned on putting a few of those under the vehicle so I don't get crushed if it falls.

I know where to put the jack, but can I put the jack stands under the lifting points?

 

[Mbrooks420]

Depends on if you mean the hooks on the a arms. I wouldn’t. I’d put them underneath the frame rails themselves, or under the front crossmember itself.

 

[CDW6212R]

The trigger wire at the starter solenoid used to be a push on spade type, those would eventually lose a connection. The 302 Explorers always had the bolt on ring terminals, much better. Basically if the wiring doesn't corrode internally, the connections will be good. Battery cable corrosion typically starts from the battery. If you have enough voltage, the issue is probably the starter.

 

[wwiding]

The trigger wire at the starter solenoid used to be a push on spade type, those would eventually lose a connection. The 302 Explorers always had the bolt on ring terminals, much better. Basically if the wiring doesn't corrode internally, the connections will be good. Battery cable corrosion typically starts from the battery. If you have enough voltage, the issue is probably the starter.

The plywood won't safely hold the jack, even two inches thick. Rather than risk it, I'm going to wait until I can push it to my neighbors concrete driveway. I'll test the starter with a battery when it's in the air, I can't move enough to reach it with the truck sitting on the ground.

 

[CDW6212R]

Can you get a voltmeter to test the battery first, that's easier than jacking the car up?

 

[wwiding]

Can you get a voltmeter to test the battery first, that's easier than jacking the car up?

I've got to pick one up. I put the battery in my cousins truck, it fired his truck up just fine.

I've got to work a few 12 hour shifts, I won't be able to do anything else until Thursday.

 

[CDW6212R]

Ah, wish it was the battery, it sounds like the cable or starter then. Get some sleep, work is first priority.

 

[wwiding]

Ah, wish it was the battery, it sounds like the cable or starter then. Get some sleep, work is first priority.

The good news is I can get it into a garage to work on it. There is a slight hill leading into the garage, I'll probably use another vehicle to push it from behind up the hill.

 

[CDW6212R]

Very good, and it'll take a car to push it. I've tried to push mine on my almost flat driveway, it's not easy.

 

[wwiding]

Very good, and it'll take a car to push it. I've tried to push mine on my almost flat driveway, it's not easy.

Ok. So I've got the SUV up on jack stands. I'm trying to inspect the starter wires but I can't really see the connectors. From what I can see of the smaller one, it looks like a ring type connector which probably means that it isn't original based on what you've told me. It is old though, it's pretty rusty, But michigan does that to things. Do you know what size nuts are on the starter? Also, I thought there was supposed to be a ground wire from the starter to the motor or something, but I might be wrong.

It looks like there was an oil leak at some point. There isn't now, I checked for that when I test drove it. I also monitered the oil for the week before it crapped out on me.

 

[wwiding]

I got to the wires. The bolts are coroded, to the point that they're crumbling, as are the nuts.

 

[CDW6212R]

The smaller nut is about a 10mm size, the big one will be about 13mm I think. All of the 302 Explorers have the ring terminals on the trigger wire, I was saying in the mid-90's Ford had a lot before then with spade terminals.

I had bought a starter for my 91 Lincoln, and it came with a ring terminal and short pigtail section to replace the OEM connector. I later(recently) had to replace that starter again, and I put in a spare Explorer starter, they are virtually the same now with the ring terminals.

The starter grounds through the case/transmission.

Go slow on those nuts and bolts, be sure the socket is square before giving it torque. Rounding off bolt corners is no fun, we all forget that sometimes.

 

[Mbrooks420]

Probably your issue. The corroded terminal connections are too high a resistance.

 

[wwiding]

The smaller nut is about a 10mm size, the big one will be about 13mm I think. All of the 302 Explorers have the ring terminals on the trigger wire, I was saying in the mid-90's Ford had a lot before then with spade terminals.

I had bought a starter for my 91 Lincoln, and it came with a ring terminal and short pigtail section to replace the OEM connector. I later(recently) had to replace that starter again, and I put in a spare Explorer starter, they are virtually the same now with the ring terminals.

The starter grounds through the case/transmission.

Go slow on those nuts and bolts, be sure the socket is square before giving it torque. Rounding off bolt corners is no fun, we all forget that sometimes.

I'm thinking about replacing the bolts if I can. I give this suv two years before it's too rusty to drive. The money spent, is worth the amount I've learned though. I was just offered a 2004 mounty with 104,000 on it, but the transmissions slipping. I might buy it and send it to my local mechanic school.