At 02:23 PM 3/7/2011, Michael Sullivan wrote:
>I may have cranked it a little too long while diagnosing the bad battery.
>That's all I can think of.  I am gonna take a pic of a new starter if I
>cannot get the clearance inder the van of the one I have in there.  It is
>only 3 mos old.  I can add some liquid rubber to that wire, but the first

I'm having trouble understanding exactly what I'm looking at in the
photo.  Is it an unplugged female that just happens to be resting
crosswise on the male terminal?  I see what looks like carbonized
insulation to the right.  Is that recently melted solder on the base
of the male terminal?

In any case - how long in seconds is "a little too long?"

My suggestions - using a wire direct to the alternator B+, measure
the draw of the control terminal.  Report your results.  If the
solenoid has shorted turns it will overload the ten-amp range on your
ammeter, so be ready to disconnect instantly if the meter goes into
overrange.  A ten-amp fuse in the line would be a good idea.

In the mean time, replace the female terminal on the control
wire.  Cut it back to clean wire and splice in a new piece if you
have to.  I think the strong likelihood is that you had a bad crimp
connection at the terminal, but whether or no, the terminal is ruined
now.  Covering the mess with liquid vinyl won't be sufficient.

Yours,
David