Triumph Repair: Idle spit, wont turn over, Spitfire, battery

Question
QUESTION: hey Jim,
my '75 triumph spitfire has been in my garage all winter, and when i tried to start it up today, it wouldnt turn over.

I hooked clips on to my battery from a wall charger and let it charge for a bit,but it still wouldnt start. I got one click and then nothing.

I also tried "hot wiring" it, by touching the + and neg with a screwdriver on the ignition but got nothing, no turn over.

I have an electronic ignition as well. I noticed that when the key is in the ignition the red light dosnt come on. and when i unplug the ignition and touch it with a ground, my voltmeter, the light comes on...

any advice is appreciated.

ANSWER: Harold,

First off, you've got to have a good battery to get things working.  After "charging for a bit" did you test the battery with the voltmeter?

With the ignition on but not trying to start the car you should still see 12.5 or more volts.  If not, time for a new battery.

I'm not clear on where you were shorting + and - in the ignition, or why you'd even attempt such a thing.

If you suspect the starter soleniod you can test my using a screwdrive to short across the two large terminals.

Be careful as the screwdriver will get very hot carrying the starter current.

If shorting across the solenoid doesn't get the engine to turn over with a good battery then it's time to pull the starter.

The "IGN" light in the speedometer actually provides a voltage feed into the sense wire in the alternator regulator circuit.  The light comes one when the ignition is turned on because with the engine off the alternator is acting like a ground for the lamp.  Once the alternator is spinning fast enough to generate greater than battery voltage there is no differential across the bulb, so it is dark.

So, first step, sort out the battery issue.   If that doesn't fix the problem, let me know.


Cheers,

Jim

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: hey Jim,
I tried starting the car with the battery connected to the wall charger, so i was getting 14V out of the voltmeter. does it make a difference if its plugged in or not, just to get it started?

i did use a screwdriver to short the 2 large terminals, screwdriver has wood handle, and i got nothing.  

Answer
Harold,

Have a friend try to start the car while you put the voltmeter on the battery.

If you see no change in the voltage reading, it's time to start cleaning cable connections and hope the starter itself it ok.  Don't neglect to clean the earth terminal connections also.

If the voltemeter does show a change while you're trying to start the car it means that either a) the battery does not have sufficient power to spin the starter motor or b) the starter motor is jammed or c) the motor has chosen to sieze up during the winter.  

Spin the engine by hand several times (put the transmission in neutral and either grap the alternator belt or put a wrench on the alternator pulley nut) to make sure that the engine still spins freely and the starter motor isn't jammed.

Most auto parts stores will test batteries for free, it's worth trying that also.

Otherwise, time to pull the starter.  Again, many autoparts stores are equipped to test starters.


Cheers,

Jim