Intermittent "click click" during start

[shadango]

SO the son tells me that every now and then (not every time and very intermittent) when he tries to start the volare he gets no crank....just a click , like a dying battery....but its not.....so first thing I thought was starter or relay. The starter is newish and the mini stayle.... the relay is older.

BUT THEN he tells me that this last time he noticed that he had NO dash lights when he tried to start it. Then he tried again and started like nothing was wrong.

Sound like an ignition switch to you guys?

I looked at pictures on rock auto of the ignition switch and it looks nothing like the one inside the column of my 72 Cuda.

I guess the design changed.....? Is it still in the column? Dumb question I know....but it looks more ,like a square and has a mount flange.....and a place where a multipin plug goes.



Scratching my head.

 

[DCAspen]

It has a rod that goes to it,and is mounted under the dash on top of the steering column

 

[shadango]

It has a rod that goes to it,and is mounted under the dash on top of the steering column

AHHH! Ok, that makes sense.

So really it could be the rod OR the switch then?

Are these switches common to have intermittent issues?

On the cuda you have to tear apart the entire column to get to the switch....a real pain. At least this SOUNDS easier?

BTW, he does NOT have tilt steering, which apparently matters....

 

[80mirada]

Tilt and non-tilt are similar but different switches, but are fairly easy to change.

 

[Oldiron440]

Check out the grounds, every one you can find!!!!

 

[volare 77]

Very unlikely it is the rod. Make sure the switch isn`t loose(as in not tight) where it mounts on the column.

 

[AJ/FormS]

But before you start spending money,take a few minutes and clean the battery terminals including the clamp-on cable-ends if they are not one-piece items, and the cables-to-block and starter, and the starter to bell-house interface. Yeah that last one caught me by surprise a time or two.

The click usually means the starter relay switching side is working, and so then, so would be the ignition switch. That leaves the relayed side as not working, which in this case is the starter circuit.Which is
Battery to cableclamp to cable thru the relay to starter, then thru the starter to the bellhouse, to the block, into the ground cable at the head,thru the clamp and back into into the battery.