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Re: [GMCnet] Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? [message #335093 is a reply to message #335059]

Sat, 14 July 2018 05:50

Ken Burton

Messages: 10030
Registered: January 2004
Location: Hebron, Indiana

Karma:

Senior Member

The Boost relay / solenoid is NOT your problem. Under normal operation the boost relay is not activated the contacts are not used. Under normal operation the relay is used as a simple terminal block for two connections. #1 is the engine side battery cables. #2 is the house side battery cables.

When the solenoid is activated it hooks the batteries together. When not activated the relay is simply two terminals. Since it is not used (activated) in normal starting it is not causing your hard cranking problem. I suggest that you look at battery cables and connections between the starter and the battery. This includes the battery cable connection on the boost solenoid. Remove every one of them and clean thoroughly until shiny. Reassemble them with anti-oxidation grease and see what you now have. Do not forget the ground cable which also must be shiny and attached to the engine block.

If you want to diagnose it farther with a meter, put your meter across the battery (not the battery cables) and crank the engine. read the voltage. It should be somewhere around 10 volts. Now move the meter to the big cable on the starter and engine ground. Crank the engine and read the voltage again. The difference between the two readings is what you are loosing in the cabling / connections between the starter and battery. It should only be a few 1/10ths of a volt. If it is higher than this you need to find the loss.

The next question is, is the loss on the hot (+12) side or ground side. Leave the positive cable attached to the big starter cable and move the negative cable to the POSITIVE battery terminal. Crank the engine and read the meter. This is the voltage loss in the positive side wiring/ connections. Move the meter to the engine block and negative battery terminal. Crank and read. This is the negative side loss. Now go fix / clean which ever side had the most cranking voltage loss.

If all of the above readings were good then now is the time to pull the starter.

In every case where I have worked on a hot start cranking problem, the issue turned out to be advanced ignition timing or battery cabling and connection issues.

Starters do fail but many times the problem is not really the starter.

Ken Burton - N9KB
76 Palm Beach
Hebron, Indiana

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[Message index]

		Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: Brian K on Fri, 13 July 2018 15:59
		Re: Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: lqqkatjon on Fri, 13 July 2018 16:15
		Re: [GMCnet] Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: Rob on Fri, 13 July 2018 16:17
		Re: [GMCnet] Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: Brian K on Fri, 13 July 2018 16:28
		Re: [GMCnet] Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: James Hupy on Fri, 13 July 2018 16:36
		Re: [GMCnet] Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: Brian K on Fri, 13 July 2018 16:50
		Re: [GMCnet] Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: Kosier on Fri, 13 July 2018 17:43
		Re: [GMCnet] Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: USAussie on Fri, 13 July 2018 19:18
		Re: [GMCnet] Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: Ken Henderson on Fri, 13 July 2018 19:47
		Re: [GMCnet] Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: USAussie on Fri, 13 July 2018 22:39
		Re: [GMCnet] Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: Ken Henderson on Fri, 13 July 2018 17:06
		Re: [GMCnet] Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: Brian K on Fri, 13 July 2018 17:14
		Re: [GMCnet] Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: Ken Henderson on Fri, 13 July 2018 17:27
		Re: [GMCnet] Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: lqqkatjon on Fri, 13 July 2018 17:39
		Re: [GMCnet] Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: Richard Denney on Tue, 17 July 2018 21:26
		Re: [GMCnet] Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: Anonymous on Fri, 13 July 2018 16:39
		Re: [GMCnet] Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: jimk on Fri, 13 July 2018 16:52
		Re: [GMCnet] Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: Kingsley Coach on Fri, 13 July 2018 16:19
		Re: [GMCnet] Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: Anonymous on Fri, 13 July 2018 16:34
		Re: [GMCnet] Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: Ken Burton on Sat, 14 July 2018 05:50
		Re: [GMCnet] Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: USAussie on Fri, 13 July 2018 16:43
		Re: [GMCnet] Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: Kosier on Fri, 13 July 2018 16:45
		Re: Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: Brian K on Fri, 13 July 2018 17:08
		Re: Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: SpookyEng on Fri, 13 July 2018 20:04
		Re: Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: GMC2000 on Fri, 13 July 2018 22:48
		Re: Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: JohnS on Sat, 14 July 2018 08:59
		Re: Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: JohnL455 on Sat, 14 July 2018 09:36
		Re: Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: Brian K on Sat, 14 July 2018 12:07
		Re: Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: rvanwin on Sat, 14 July 2018 19:42
		Re: Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: Ken Burton on Sun, 15 July 2018 00:22
		Re: Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: JohnL455 on Sat, 14 July 2018 09:42
		Re: Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: Brian K on Sat, 14 July 2018 11:58
		Re: Is the Boost Solenoid Necessary? By: Brian K on Sun, 15 July 2018 00:45

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