Countach bummer

Charging gauge been at the 15 area give or take.
So, a very nice early Sunday morning and I take the car out. Drove about 5 miles, using the headlights so the gauge would be lower. Parked it for 15 minutes, couldn't start it. It would crank slow but not start. After 4-5 tries, just a click. Used 2 diferent cars with 2 different jumper cables (one very good set too).....just a click. Towed it home (great driver, was real careful without being asked, didn't even have the cable press on the spoiler). Tried a power charger/jumper, tried banging on the starter, just a click.

What should I do next?
Was going to remove the alternator and have it check & rebuilt if needed. Voltage regulator.
That starter looks seriously buried, how do that come out? Hopefully I won't have to
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You should have accepted my offer years ago. lol.

Good luck with fixing the beast !

 

Peter: this thread and the other one you started a couple weeks ago show that 1121006 could benefit from a comprehensive service by a specialist, wouldn't you agree?

 

A starter problem is not out of the question (surrounded by blazing hot headers and protected by a frequently missing heat shield) and yes it's buried deeper than Ferrucio Lamborghini's tomb.

 

if it turned and cliked imo power arrives to the starter and very likely your problem is the starter itself

if you are not hearing it click i would have thought the key block...but looks not the issue here

 

Sorry Joe, I do not agree. Not yet.

 

Then, the starter would be a logical place to start diagnosis.

 

If a proper jump did not do the trick then I would rule out the alternator and the battery. That said checking a battery is cheap and easy so I may consider it before tackling the starter. The starter does sound like the culprit however given the difficulty to remove these on a Countach I would also have a look at the backside of the fuse panel and the relays. 'Maybe' you have a melting fuse panel where the fuse is good but the connections are leaking power causing not enough juice to make it to the starter. Again this is an easy visual check that could save some work down the line. If all of this fails then yank the starter. I would leave those more experienced with this procedure to chime in on this one. Good luck with it.

 

All I got to say is the starter location sucks Damn bendix, will try to roll it &free it up.
Yeah, I'll look into the fuses. One thing I did a year or 2 ago was remove all the old style fuses, complete clean both upper and lower tabs that hold them until they were bright, like new. I installed all new glass fuses.

Right now I have the car on the battery tender all day (had a family thing all day after I got the car home). It's at about 80%, which means it was quite low when I broke down. I haven't use my multimeter yet.
I would assume a low battery would cause not even the engine to turn. But cause just a click in the starter?
I know, jumper cable should've worked.
We all know he low battery-multiple clicking in most passenger cars Throw a set of jumper cables on it, it fires right up.

 

Not uncommon to not be able to jump start off another car if your battery is really dead. Could you start it at home on a higher charging rate?

 

Give that ground cable a really good look at , maybe clean it and make sure the connection is good and that the cable end is not burnt up and causing problems, this or a bad + cable could cause the ALT. to overcharge , 15 is a bit high your battery can get cooked, Seems like you have a few things going on , Countach `s are just the coolist dam car made , Once I took the soleniod off a starter to get the starter out of the chassis, I am not sure if this can be done on your car , Perhaps ? .

 

My 308 would slowly turn over 'till the battery died without starting. I had it towed only to find out the battery cables were loose.

 

That's typically the starter's solenoid not releasing. unfortunately you have to take the starter out to fix this, but having it out use the change and have it thouroughly overhouled.

 

Peter, a few years ago I had the same hot charging problem on my countach. The volt gage was reading upwards of 16volts. I noticed it right away since the lights and fan jumped to overdrive. 15 volts is definitely not right. The early countach probably doesn't have any solid state circuits, which is a good thing, otherwise they could have been damaged, but the battery could well be toast. That is the first thing I would check. Oh, the fix was easy. I just pulled the alternator and removed the voltage regulator. Then matched it with a replacement at Autozone. seriously! 2 hours back on the road and charging perfectly since.

 

NO, NO, no...
Awnser is: Clean battery connectors! and positive side; if you have original connector that can be separated from cable, remember to clean cable copper as well.



I had same problem with my car and took starter and alternator out for nothing... Both of them where fine and alternator even makes 90amp.
If cable is oxydazed bitween cable and connector you can't even start using other car and cables.

 

Voltage regulator, internal or exturnal? I haven't looked yet.

Cables are fine but will check them. When I refurbished the fuse panel I also took care of the cables with new terminal clamps and refreshed the ground. Still looks new.

 

Sometimes this stuff boils down to something as simple as a shot negative battery cable.

Good luck--I hope the fix isn't too much of a horror show...

 

Internal. The alternator is a bosch unit.

 

Spend a $100 and get a new battery...yours is shot.

 

Peter, Your battery has an internal short and you have damaged the plates inside the battery, I will bet the cost of a battery. go buy one from napa and start your car. The battery has been failing from the non daily use and the alternator has been working double time to get it back to full and damaged it internally. I have had this happen to me on other cars and wouldn't you know my Countach did the same thing. Clicking noise was all I would get. I even added a ground strap. Bad Battery was all it was.

Joe Frazar

PS. Your voltage regulator is held on the back of your alternator by 2 screws, commonly called a "brush pack" for Bosch alternators. $20 Part and 5 min fix. Any alternator shop should have them in stock. The Brusch Pack contains the brushes for the alternator and the voltage regulator.

 

I'll try another battery & replace voltage reg.
Rolling it in gear did nothing. I could roll it down my hill and pop start it.......but...if that doesn't work.....I'll have a Countach stuck at the bottom of a hill LOL. Plus pop starting isn't great for a car, I'd only do it in an emergency.

My Optima has always been on a tender and periodically I'd leave it disconnected for a few days at a time.
From my experience in the automotive biz, a 5 year battery is good for 5 yrs, a 6yr for 6yrs. Sometimes right down to the month. I swear there is a timer on some of them.

 

The click is typical for the solenoid, you can't kill an optima, I'm using them for years, defintely not the issue.

 

I've seen them die just like every other battery.

Paying more for an Optima is a waste of money.

 

Gel batteries like the optima are particularly sensitive to overcharging. If your alt decided to go haywire and flip over to full charge power, it will have roasted the thing. If you do have the bosch alt. the regulators are cheap and easy to change.

From Optima's site:

Overcharging a optima battery:If the regulator is not set properly, then the optima battery can be subjected to an excessive charge. If left unchecked the battery will overheat. The overcharging will cause the accelerated break up of the active mass on the plates and the optima battery will lose performance. This is generally obvious from the examination of the battery. This is not a manufacturing fault.

and more:

# Always use a voltage regulated battery charger with limits set to the above ratings. Overcharging can cause the safety valves to open and battery gasses to escape, resulting in premature failure. These gasses are flammable! You cannot replace water in sealed batteries that have been overcharged. Any battery that becomes very hot or makes a hissing sound while recharging should be disconnected immediately.


PB

 

Thanks for the info.
So far Joe Frazar owes me for a battery lol
I swapped the Urraco's new & fully charged Interstate battery and nothing, just a click.
I'm checking to see if the Optima will hold a charge. Right now, the tender is unplugged and I'll check the battery in the morning.
If it's questionable I'll get a new one.

I have a new identical Bosch regulator on its way.

I guess I better start finding ways to ge in there & bang on that starter otherwise I'm in trouble