Oldsmobile/Buick Repair: Starting, buick park avenue, jumper cables

Question
I have an old Buick Park Avenue and it had been running well for its' age.  Now it won't start!!
When I turn the key all I get is a "clicking sound".  You would swear it was a weak battery but the battery is showing well over 12 volts when I tested it with a meter and all the accessaries work fine (strong). Even when trying to jump start it, it would just click!!  I just started it and it was fine but the very next time like 10 minutes later the clicking came in I'm confused!!!!

Answer
Hi Doug,
First about the volt meter. If the battery is old, it could show 12 volts with no load, but pull down quickly under load, so check voltage while cranking, and see what it stays at then.
Another thing that might give you a problem is the side post connectors. They are usually very good, especially about not corroding so bad, but they will corrode, and are a little hard to clean. You need to remove the bolt,(it does come out), peel the rubber cover back, and clean that connector ring to bare metal. If there is corrosion between the shoulder of the bolt, and the cable ring, even jumper cables won't push the power through to the starter, even though a volt meter will show good battery, and the contact could be good enough for heater fan, and lights.
While the connections are off, and the rubber peeled back, try connecting good jumper cables directly to the cables, with the battery out of the loop. But use good jumper cables, not cheap ones with only about 6 strands of wire in them.

OK...enough about those battery connections. Once you get good battery voltage to the starter, if it still clicks, it is eithre the starter solenoid, or the battery cables themselves.
It is a shame that on older GM engines they put the starter where it is impossible to get to the connections to check for voltage there. But that is where it should be checked. Low voltage will try to pull in the solenoid, but as the starter begins to get power, there isn't enough to run it, and the solenoid drops out, then tries again, and again, and that is the click-click-click.

So first, remove the batt connections, and make sure there is CLEAN, metal-to-metal contact.

Then connect the volt meter, and make sure it stays above 11.5 volts while cranking.

Good luck,
Van