Hey fellas,

I'm a newbie to the J-body thing. Been a member (admin) on N-Body.net for the last 3 years.

My problem is with my sister's 2002 2.2L Cavi. She was having starter issues until it just up and died the other day. I went to AZ and got a new one. After install, the car will not start. I pulled the starter thinking it was DOA, had it tested and it passed. reinstalled the starter, and the dang thing still will not start. After doing a little research and talking with a GM mechanic, I believe the fuseable link is fried. I honestly have no idea what this fuseable link thing is or where it might be located. The car has had the starter relay recall performed, so I also have that in there.

A couple notes:
-the battery is not dead
-everything in the car works (electronics)
-all wires are secured
-the starter is wired correctly
-car will start and run if you jump the terminals on the starter

If ya'll could help me figure out where and how to locate this fuseable link it would be greatly appreiated. I need to get this car out of my driveway ASAP so she can take it back to school with her.

Thanks again,
Chris

Fuseable links are located on the starter, big post. They look like just wires but they are fuses. Check for soft spots in them. Your starter relay could be bad if the links are good. You need to get a 12 volt test light to go any further.


01 cav w/01 3400 gam gt 4t45e

Can I ask you a question first. Why would you buy a new starter if applying power to the current one starts the car?
You verified the starter is good. You havent however the wiring and connections up to it are good.


Do you have 12V at the starter from the battery?





- 2004 Cavalier - 124k, owned since new

You know we dont know if this is a stick car or not.

Could be the clutch pedal sw, or auto tranny sw. Try it in Neutral if its an auto.



01 cav w/01 3400 gam gt 4t45e

The current starter is the new starter. we had to get a new one because the old one crapped out and died. It failed the test at AZ.

I will check the link tomo after I get off work. There is 12V at the starter from the battery. I will also try to get a test light from my neighbor tomo to figure this thing out.

Thanks a lot so far guys.

Chris

check the ground at the battery. sometimes they get corroded and lose connection.

also, the fuseable link is between the starter and the alternator. if you notice, the wire colors should change leaving the alternator (possibly red) and leaving the starter (possibly blue). so where you find where the two colors suddenly meet into a thing of tape, thats the link

although its weird though, because the link is safety for the alternator, NOT the starter.



-----------------------------------------------------------------------

-----------------------------------------------------------------------
- Sold my beloved J in April 2010 -

This may soung really awkward.. but about a month ago i was driving i stopped went back to the car 5min later it would not start. i could not figure why i popped the hood jumped the starter ran ok

Anyway the problem was the ignition was not COMPLETLY going foward it would go enough to even turn off the radio so i thought it was cranking, aparently the locksmith said some piece was stuck a spring? he popped it apart and fixed it for 10.00 it had me STUMPED for 3 days.

Chris Lowe wrote

[car will start and run if you jump the terminals on the starter]

so all is well with the starting system EXCEPT the circuit to energise the solenoid.



Joe Malechowski wrote:-

[You know we don't know if this is a stick car or not.

Could be the clutch pedal sw, or auto tranny sw. Try it in Neutral if its an auto.]

Right on-Probably first things to go for.

Viper 98912 wrote:-

[although its weird though, because the link is safety for the alternator, NOT the starter.]

Quite correct- one terminal of the the starter solenoid is fed directly for the battery
and is hot/live at all times. There are no fuses, fusible links or any overload protection in this line.

If you can access the PURPLE (I think,please correct me if I am wrong on these later cars) wire that goes to the starter solenoid to energize it when the key is turned to START.Check for 12volts to ground when the key is set to START.

No 12 volts here could be:-

1. Clutch switch/Neutral safety switch

2. The Starter relay recall wiring

3. The ignition switch-the recall replaces some of these if they have been "toasted"

Alont

I got a chance to look at it yesterday. The grey wire that says fusible link is very easy to move around. I am assuming this is the one that would have burnt up, am i correct? Tomo I am going to go by the dealership and try to pick up a new starter relay wire set so I can change it out. Hopefully this fixes this problem and gets her go-kart out the driveway .

BTW, the car is an Auto, so I don't have to worry about a clutch switch.

Chris