Watch where you put your remote-mount solenoid.

[Doober]

I thought I'd found a good spot on the inside of the fender directly behind the coolant tank. Wrong. I had made sure it cleared when I was mounting it, but forgot to take into account the cable that ran to the starter. Luckily it was on the switched side, far as I can tell it was touching the hood hinge/spring. Went to start it and the solenoid clicked, but sounded like the battery was bad (lights went dim, buzzer became very faint). I had tried it a time or two more, then I saw some smoke star to rise from directly above where the solenoid was :shock: In a panic I flipped the hood open (probably not the best choice), and the starter-side of the cable must have welded to the hinge, because it broke the solenoid Picked up another one, I'll be mounting this one on the inner fenderwell, clear of any moving parts.

It could have been much worse, just thought I'd share because it was a bit of a learning experience for me (I try to always be cautious with high-current stuff like that).

Be aware of where you mount things!!!

 

[bustedknuckle]

Good tip! The thing that scares me the most about building my car is FIRE. I am going to be going through all of the electrical on my car. Id hate to build the car of my dreams and it go up in flames!

Be cautious

 

[Doober]

Another glorious update.

Apparently a solenoid can be wired wrong. I may have torn up both the starter and flywheel.

 

[Doober]

Thankfully the flywheel's not torn up. The teeth on the bendix look like the starter's older than it is, so it's getting replaced (brand new). I'm also returning the Ford solenoid I got.

When I mounted the new one and tried it (starter disconnected), it seemed to stick on. Turns out it probably was, the first time I went to disconnect it it was hot (like almost burn your fingers), that should have sent up a red flag right away.

 

[Doober]

The red teeth are where the starter was grinding (opposite side of course), I'm hoping it'll be ok.

 

[gbodystuff]

I put my ford solenoid there-but I used a later model one that mounts the wires straight up instead of in a 180-degree orientation. Now that I think about it.....I mounted mine on the inner fender and grounded the solenoid body to the fender.

 

[Doober]

That's how mine was, grounded on the fender. I've since taken it out & just bought a starter with a lifetime warranty. Now if it starts to get hard to start when it's hot I'll just replace it.

 

[Badass442]

I thought I'd found a good spot on the inside of the fender directly behind the coolant tank. Wrong. I had made sure it cleared when I was mounting it, but forgot to take into account the cable that ran to the starter. Luckily it was on the switched side, far as I can tell it was touching the hood hinge/spring. Went to start it and the solenoid clicked, but sounded like the battery was bad (lights went dim, buzzer became very faint). I had tried it a time or two more, then I saw some smoke star to rise from directly above where the solenoid was :shock: In a panic I flipped the hood open (probably not the best choice), and the starter-side of the cable must have welded to the hinge, because it broke the solenoid Picked up another one, I'll be mounting this one on the inner fenderwell, clear of any moving parts.

It could have been much worse, just thought I'd share because it was a bit of a learning experience for me (I try to always be cautious with high-current stuff like that).

Be aware of where you mount things!!!

Ha! Ha! I did the same thing a few years ago except mine started smoking as soon as I closed the hood! It looked like such a good install! Totally forgot to check for spring clearance.
New position was down close to the battery tray screwed to the plastic inner fender and a small ground strap. No problems since! =D>

 

[Doober]

Yeah, I should've done that to start with #-o Mine was probably in the same spot yours was (right behind the coolant tank). Thing was I drove it for close to a week like that without any problems. Guess the cable on the starter side migrated up & touched the hinge over time.

 

[slimbo]

never had a need for a remote mount. i just use the one on the starter