spiderpig773

Hi, the other day I tried to start my 1997 Tahoe, but it refused. When I turn the key all the way, I hear a single click, which I believe to be the solenoid engaging the gear on the cranking motor. However, it does not seem to be making any effort to turn. I am also pretty sure it is not the battery because after charging it overnight, nothing changed. I tried turning the headlights on, and they do not seem to be at all dim. Any help would be appreciated!

in2pro

need to have the battery load tested, it may have enough voltage to power the radio and head lamps but doesnt have enough current to power the starter motor..
Have the battery load tested and if its good then start looking at the starter.
If the battery is more then 3 years old its probably bad.

spiderpig773

Thanks, I'll try that...however I guess I did forget to mention that the battery was replaced just a few months ago...

73shark

Since your battery is probably good, I'm guessing that it's the starter. Maybe just the solenoid.

shawnvw

sounds like the starter to me.
The solenoid is engaging, but there is probably either a bad connection in the solenoid, or the brushes are worn in the starter motor itself.
One thing to try, is to have a helper turn the ignition to crank and hold it there, while you take a small hammer, and TAP (do not hit too hard) the starter body. It could be enough to jar the brushes and make contact and make the starter turn. If it starts, either drive it straight to the shop, or go buy a starter for it and replace it

spiderpig773

Thanks for the tips guys. So it turns out I jump started it to have it load-tested at Auto Zone, and yes the battery was perfectly fine, turns out one of the battery cables was loose. It has started fine probably 3 or 4 times today since then, so hopefully that was the only problem.

in2pro

good deal,I'd bet that fixed it, it would probably be a good idea to check the connection to the starter as well.

73shark

Mr. Wizard says that a loose connection is like having a resistor in series w/ the accessories and starter. With small amounts of current, the voltage drop across the resistance is low enuf that the lites w/ work or the radio. But when you try to pass several hundred amps to the starter, the voltage drop across the loose connection would be large enuf that there's not enuf volts to turn the starter. Therefore a tite connection is a good connection especially if it's in a high current circuit.

One way you can tell if this is the problem is to see if your dome lites go out as soon as you turn the key to the start position.

melissaR

Hi my 97 Tahoe will not crank over.. my starter was tested and is good as well as my battery.. but truck will not crank. I even checked the relay and no luck