Changed altanater

Asked by Guru8D4W1 Dec 23, 2019 at 04:45 PM about the 1997 Toyota Camry

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

Changed out altanater put new battery and
the car don't want to start the starter is good
the car makes a clicking sound when I try to
start it also cleaned cable cord that goes to
battery

1 Answer

26,810

Use digital multimeter across battery posts, the generic spec for a full charge is 12.6 volts. Leave the meter leads touching the battery posts, have helper turn key to crank, how far does the reading drop or does it drop at all? Generally it shouldn't drop below 9 volts, some makers say 10 volts, you get the idea. If it doesn't drop much at all, you have open circuit, somewhere. If it drops way down, that won't work. Two voltage circuits at starter motor, one comes from battery, hot all the time. The other circuit goes hot when starter relay is energized. The starter motor should ground through engine block. There are two sides at starter relay, the control side and the load side. Another thought, check the neutral or clutch switch. At the moment, not sure where clicking sound is coming from? You may be able to jump the relay or starter motor just to see if it will crank the engine. If you try that, make sure transmission is in park or neutral and parking brake is set. Make sure vehicle can't move.

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