Dodge Dart electrical problems/starting problems

On Monday, March 17, 2003 at 10:42:31 AM UTC-10, pawn wrote:
> Hi:
>
> I have a 1974 Dodge Dart Swinger, straight 6, with a strange starting
> problem:
>
> After driving the car for a random amount of time, then stopping, the
> car won't start. If I leave it sit for a small amount of time (10
> minutes) then play around trying to start it for anywhere between 10 and
> 30 minutes, it will finally start. If I leave it overnight, it will
> start every time. I know this much:
>
> - It's definitely electrically related: the battery is good, there is
> no sound, click, etc., when starting. The headlights are bright white
> and do not flicker even the tiniest amount when trying to start.
> - It's not the neutral safety switch, I replaced that. That is, it's
> not the switch on the transmission itself , but for all I know, there
> are other parts involved that might be faulty.
>
> I'm hesitant to mention, because I really have no idea, but it's
> possible that the starting problem occurs after the car gets wet.
> Certainly the above symptoms are consistent with something drying out
> after getting wet. They also seem consistent with something heating up
> or perhaps a static charge building up, then dissipating.
>
> I'm looking for any starting point here, I don't want to go down blind
> alleys.
>
> How likely are the following?
>
> - That the ignition switch in the steering column itself has stopped
> working properly?
> - That the wiring between the ignition switch and the neutral safety
> switch has gone bad?
> - There is some sort of relay or solenoid that the ignition switch
> wiring goes to, then combines with the battery lead and the ignition
> safety switch, then to the starter and starter solenoid. What can I do
> to check that each lead is getting it's required current/voltage? This
> seems to me to be a good spot to check all wiring.
> - A friend (who used to have a Dart) pointed out a ceramic piece just
> under the hood, near the drivers side passenger area, that he said once
> upon a time had to be replaced a couple of times. This isn't even
> shown on my Haynes manual. What could this be and could it be related?
>
> Sorry for the long story, I just wanted to give all the facts.
>
> Thanks for your time.

Just replace the starter. My boss used to have a car like that. It was the hot rod version and had a "340" bumble bee stripe on the rear, big tires, and a jacked up appearance. I'd go on errands and sometimes have to wait for the starter to cool down before it would start. If you applied the brakes too hard, it would start to squealing and sliding. That was embarrassing.

He also had a hot rod Pinto. That was okay with me. I liked driving his tiny Ford Fiesta the most.

dsi1 > wrote:
> On Monday, March 17, 2003 at 10:42:31 AM UTC-10, pawn wrote:

>> Thanks for your time.

[snip]

> Just replace the starter.

Do you really think he's still got that car sitting there waiting
for a starter after 17 years have gone by?

On Sunday, January 19, 2020 at 5:28:12 PM UTC-10, Mark Olson wrote:
> dsi1 <dsi> wrote:
> > On Monday, March 17, 2003 at 10:42:31 AM UTC-10, pawn wrote:
>
> >> Thanks for your time.
>
> [snip]
>
> > Just replace the starter.
>
> Do you really think he's still got that car sitting there waiting
> for a starter after 17 years have gone by?

You know that's not the case, I know that's not the case, even God knows that's not the case. Why even ask that silly question? What I really think is that it doesn't matter how much time has passed. Good advice is always good advice. Bad advice and silly notions will always be useless.

On 01/20/2020 01:29 AM, dsi1 wrote:
> On Sunday, January 19, 2020 at 5:28:12 PM UTC-10, Mark Olson wrote:
>> dsi1 <dsi> wrote:
>>> On Monday, March 17, 2003 at 10:42:31 AM UTC-10, pawn wrote:
>>
>>>> Thanks for your time.
>>
>> [snip]
>>
>>> Just replace the starter.
>>
>> Do you really think he's still got that car sitting there waiting
>> for a starter after 17 years have gone by?
>
> You know that's not the case, I know that's not the case, even God
> knows that's not the case. Why even ask that silly question? What I
> really think is that it doesn't matter how much time has passed. Good
> advice is always good advice. Bad advice and silly notions will
> always be useless.

Usenet, the world's biggest and longest-lasting source of useful free
information on a variety of subjects. Or at least it used to be.

When I discovered it in 1994 I was amazed that you could ask a question
and get a GOOD answer from someone on the other side of the world within
MINUTES sometimes.

--
Cheers, Bev
In theory there is no difference between theory and practice,
but in practice there is.

On Monday, January 20, 2020 at 6:36:37 AM UTC-10, The Real Bev wrote:
> On 01/20/2020 01:29 AM, dsi1 wrote:
> > On Sunday, January 19, 2020 at 5:28:12 PM UTC-10, Mark Olson wrote:
> >> dsi1 <dsi> wrote:
> >>> On Monday, March 17, 2003 at 10:42:31 AM UTC-10, pawn wrote:
> >>
> >>>> Thanks for your time.
> >>
> >> [snip]
> >>
> >>> Just replace the starter.
> >>
> >> Do you really think he's still got that car sitting there waiting
> >> for a starter after 17 years have gone by?
> >
> > You know that's not the case, I know that's not the case, even God
> > knows that's not the case. Why even ask that silly question? What I
> > really think is that it doesn't matter how much time has passed. Good
> > advice is always good advice. Bad advice and silly notions will
> > always be useless.
>
> Usenet, the world's biggest and longest-lasting source of useful free
> information on a variety of subjects. Or at least it used to be.
>
> When I discovered it in 1994 I was amazed that you could ask a question
> and get a GOOD answer from someone on the other side of the world within
> MINUTES sometimes.
>
> --
> Cheers, Bev
> In theory there is no difference between theory and practice,
> but in practice there is.

It used to be when a more valuable, purer, resource back in the old days when the posters were mostly from educational institutions, government agencies, and science labs. There used to be more decorum and civility, less gossip and name calling. That's the breaks.

https://groups.google.com/d/msg/rec....I/fD3k2Z7MjgIJ

On 01/20/2020 10:54 AM, dsi1 wrote:
> On Monday, January 20, 2020 at 6:36:37 AM UTC-10, The Real Bev
> wrote:
>> On 01/20/2020 01:29 AM, dsi1 wrote:
>>> On Sunday, January 19, 2020 at 5:28:12 PM UTC-10, Mark Olson
>>> wrote:
>>>> dsi1 <dsi> wrote:
>>>>> On Monday, March 17, 2003 at 10:42:31 AM UTC-10, pawn wrote:
>>>>
>>>>>> Thanks for your time.
>>>>
>>>> [snip]
>>>>
>>>>> Just replace the starter.
>>>>
>>>> Do you really think he's still got that car sitting there
>>>> waiting for a starter after 17 years have gone by?
>>>
>>> You know that's not the case, I know that's not the case, even
>>> God knows that's not the case. Why even ask that silly question?
>>> What I really think is that it doesn't matter how much time has
>>> passed. Good advice is always good advice. Bad advice and silly
>>> notions will always be useless.
>>
>> Usenet, the world's biggest and longest-lasting source of useful
>> free information on a variety of subjects. Or at least it used to
>> be.
>>
>> When I discovered it in 1994 I was amazed that you could ask a
>> question and get a GOOD answer from someone on the other side of
>> the world within MINUTES sometimes.
>
> It used to be when a more valuable, purer, resource back in the old
> days when the posters were mostly from educational institutions,
> government agencies, and science labs. There used to be more decorum
> and civility, less gossip and name calling. That's the breaks.

But there was the Green Card Lottery...

The tech groups seem to be alive and well, although sadly diminished.
Hobby groups are nearly invisible. My motorcycle and skiing 'friends'
(some of whom I've 'known' since 1995) have moved to facebook, so I did
too, but it's no substitute. You just don't meet new people unless
they're friends of friends. And you never get ALL the posts; you get
different ones depending on which browser and/or device you're using. I
wish I knew why Zuckerberg thinks that's a good idea.

> https://groups.google.com/d/msg/rec....I/fD3k2Z7MjgIJ

But using Thunderbird is SOOOOO much better than the website. There
were real advantages to using tin as a newsreader, though...

And I really wish I knew what happened to Scott en Aztlan and his yellow
Corvette.

--
Cheers, Bev
"Once you've provoked a few people into publicly swearing they are
going to hunt you down and kill you, the thrill wears off."
-Elric of Imrryr