MG Car Repair: 76 MBG wont start, starter solenoid, brown wires

Question
QUESTION: I just bought this car today and drove about ten miles,it ran great. stopped for about 30 min. and when I restarted it it made a squealing and grinding sound from the engine compartment was able to drive for about a quarter mile and lost all power. car will not turn over now like it the battery is dead however, it is not as the head lights and wipers still work. could the alternator have gone bad and would this affect the car as I have described.

ANSWER: Hi Todd,

You need to approach this from scratch and first check to see that the engine is free turning. This is easy to do. Remove all four spark plugs and put the car in 4th gear and hand role the car forward and backward for 5 or 10 foot and watch the pulleys turn. The car should be easy to move by just one person. This establishes that the engine is not locked up. Now with the plugs still out take it out of gear and hit the starter and watch the pulleys rotate. If the engine spins ok this establishes that the starter motor and bendix are ok.

If you could hand role the car in gear but the starter does nothing you need to start testing with a test light or volt meter.

Let me know which it is and I will give you the next test.

Howard

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

QUESTION: I was able to roll the car but the starter does nothing,so I'm ready for the next test.

Answer
First listen under the hood while someone tries to start the engine. Do you hear a "Click" from the starter area? If not, take a 12v test light and put it on the white with a brown tracer wire on the starter solenoid and have them hit the starter again. If the test light lights up and you didn't hear a "Click" you have a bad solenoid. If you did hear a "Click" from the starter motor area put the test light on the large post of the solenoid closest to the starter motor (not the one with the battery cable and all the brown wires on it) If it clicks and the test light does not light up the solenoid is bad but if it does light up the starter motor is bad.

If on the first test of the small white with brown tracer wire did not light up, the problem is either in the wiring, the starter relay or the ignition switch itself.

You can do the same tests in that area by reading your wiring diagram to see what color code wires to test with your test light. If you don't have a wiring diagram, let me know and I will post one on my web site for you to copy.

Howard