'85 308 Will Not Start

When a car doesn't start, it is usually Fuel, Spark, or Air.

The buzzing could be your fuel pump. Does the car turn over and not fire?

 

Well, I would start by assuming you have a dead battery. Remove the spare tire and battery cover and try jump starting the car. If it starts right up, then you know you need a new battery. The size is a group 34R. It is like a group 34 but has the terminals in the reverse positions.

Good luck.

 

Could be the starter dog is stuck, put it in gear and rock it back and fore a bit and try again.

 

Dave,

the clicking is the fuel pump. I would try the battery and connections first.

 

Dave,
Welcome to the 308's biggest weakness: electrical system. The good news is that it's probably something simple. The bad news is that sometimes troubleshooting these issues is hard if you aren't good with electrical concepts.

If you turn the key and you hear the fuel pump but no starter, it's not a tooth engagement issue of the starter. I mean, the fuel pump isn't that loud. If the starter were turning and not engaging, you would know it. The way to tell the difference is that the fuel pump comes on in position 1 of the key. When you turn to the start position, you should get the starter. If nothing changes in terms of sound, the starter isn't turning or trying to turn, and that is an electrical issue, not mechanical.

Check the schematic (owners manual) and figure out which relay drives the starter. Follow the circuit. I'm sure you will find that a relay or fuse is not working. My advice...start by pulling every single fuse in the fusebox, clean the contacts on the fuses and the fusebox with something abrasive (220 or higher grit sand paper works well) and put them all back in. The fuseboxes on 308s totally suck beyond words. They cause most electrical issues. If this fixes it, save yourself a lot of future aggravation and build/buy some upgraded fuseblocks that use a better design. (Search the archives, this is a common and easy upgrade).

Good luck

Birdman

 

On an 85 you shouldn't hear the fuel pump in the second position unless you have the safety switch bridged.

 

Dave -- If you had a "dead spot" on the starter motor commutator you would hear the starter solenoid click very loudly (when you turn the key to the "start" position) even though the starter motor doesn't spin (so I wouldn't suspect that as the problem if you don't get the loud starter solenoid click first).

The good news is that there are no fuses or relays involved in the 308 start command stuff. Do the gauges (e.g., the oil pressure warning light) come "on" when you turn the ignition key to the "run" (not "start") position? The +12V power going to the ignition switch comes from the smallest of three wires leaving the "+" battery terminal so if your dash is completely dead check that first.

If the power to the ignition switch is OK (i.e., your oil pressure warning light does come "on" OK), you could try removing the "G" relay shown in the OM and measure the voltage from the "87" slot in the relay socket (the bottommost horizontal slot) to a good ground (the same "start command" signal that should be going to the starter solenoid also goes to relay G to run the cold start injector during starter cranking) -- it should go +12V when you turn the ignition key to the "start" position. If it does -- then you'd need to look further downstream and probably check the connections/voltages at the starter itself. If it doesn't go +12V -- then you'd need to look upstream at the ignition switch and/or wiring.

Just a suggestion as a (fairly easy) place/test to look to determine the needed direction...

 

I guess the injected ones are a lot different from the carb ones if the fuel pump doesn't come on when you turn the key!

 

One thing you will have to do is check to make sure you are getting ignition power to the starter solenoid. The car will have to be jacked up,or put on a hoist to do this. If you find that you do have power to the starter with the key turned by a helper, then more then likely the starter went south for the winter. BUT..you may want to put a 36mm socket on the crank pully and see if you can turn the engine by hand(clockwise rotation). God forbid anything happend here.

 

Do you smell gas? I had this problem in my 86 328 once. It turned out that the cold weather choke (now an electric unit) was staying open throughout the start process flooding one bank and killing the start. It was an easy fix once it was chased down.

 

How about trying to push start it? Is it ok to push start these cars? If so, use second gear to do it.

 

David,
Just because the battery will turn on headlights and other accessories does not mean it is healthy enough to turn over the motor. Even a jump box will not overcome some issues. Start with the obvious first (and easiest) and positively eliminate it as a cause. Get a battery tester and check the cells. If ok, check connections (remove and clean), then move on to other suggestions mentioned here. The clicking/spark noise could just be the starter solenoid gasping for juice. Good luck - let us know what you find!
Jim

 

My 85 GTB just had a similar problem - I have not gathered if your starter is turning over or not. If it is and you get no fire on either bank (no spark) check your RPM sensor. FoA could fix that in a jiffy.

 

I would believe it is in the starter circuit. Either the starter relay or the starter solenoid . If you get the loud click but the starter does not engage it is the solenoid. Should be a simple fix baring the job of getting the starter out.