I have to fix our fork lifts at work and they break a lot. Finding parts for them isn't always easy so sometimes I have to make my own parts or improvise.
We've had a starter problem on our Yale forklift for some time. I ended up taking the starter and solenoid apart to figure out where the problems were coming from.
I figured out that inside the solenoid there is a copper contactor that passes the heavy battery cables power to the starter motor at the end of the solenoids push that engages the starter gear to the flywheel gear. If that solenoid isn't making those copper contacts fully contact, all you'll hear is a click. They take a lot of amperage so it probably isn't that uncommon for them to carbonize and stop conducting well. If they don't conduct the starter won't turn but the solenoid and starter gear will still engage, that's the click. They are deep inside the solenoid and not easy to see. Designs vary a lot too. This one was an older Nissan starter.
The best solution when you start having problems like that is to replace the starter and solenoid.
If the battery is the problem, when you engage the starter, the voltage will drop below 10V. If that happens the battery either has a bad cell or is discharged.
On batteries that have inspection covers the problem could be low electrolyte. Adding a little distilled water can fix that if the battery will charge back up and hold the charge.
A bad charging system can be the culprit too. If you don't see anywhere from 13.5V to 14.5V at the battery when the engine is running then the battery isn't being kept charged.
Been fighting all this the past week on the Yale forklift. It seems to be running and starting well now. It has an old school mechanical voltage regulator that keeps loosing its settings. I think its caused by the forklift not having any suspension, the shock when it hits a bump jolts the regulator and tweaks the contactor arms. They are majorly sensitive.
All this stuff can be and is inter-related.
Steve
I suspect you may have a starter solenoid that is starting to stick. This is not an unusual problem.
Dale in the Flat Lands:----- Politics is supposed to be the second-oldest profession. I have come to realize that it bears a very close resemblance to the first. ~Ronald Reagannan8136 wrote:
Well, I'm kind of back to zero in this thing. All has been checked. The battery terminals are clear. I took my car to a parts store yesterday and everything checked out ok. The guy that did the check said the only thing he could think of was maybe something was causing a slow drain on the battery. I know electrical problems are hard to find and fix. Since it's not too bad I will wait and hopefully not have a "no starting" car in the future.
Thanks for your ideas. I would not have taken it to the parts store without your suggestions.
Nancy
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