Starts and doesn't ???

[tonyloban]

Looked at like 10 different threads about starts and non quite similar to mine.

88 325i vert.

For a while the car would start awfully.. it would crank and crank, I'd have to smash on the throttle a bunch (I'm guessing this is bad, why do I need to do this?) and sometimes it would crank for a while but I wouldn't hold it too long. Other times it would crank a second and I would press the throttle and it starts.

So yesterday the car did something different.. it sort of cranked like higher audio tone than usual and I pressed the throttle right away and it started up right away. I drove to the mall, came back, get inside and turn the key and NOTHING. Just clicks a second and a faint buzzing sound. Had a friend jump start and that worked. But this started happening out of no where. Same thing today.. I turned the key and it lit right up with a little throttle, drove it around a couple minutes and turned it off. Tried turning back and nope. No crank again. Messed around with fuses, non blown, checked without fuse 27, no help, took out heated seats fuse (I don't have mine plugged in, just to check) nothing. Went and unhooked the antenna ( doesn't go up anyway) and didn't crank so plugged it back in. I went inside to research a little more and came back and it turned on without any problems at all... multiple times, without any throttle either which it has never done. I'm so confused. My first car and really nooby.

[tonyloban]

Just went out to check again. Started twice without having to crank, almost instantly, then third time no crank or anything. Just the little clicking sound.

[e30vert]

Swap battery or take existing battery to the auto parts store and have them determine the capacity of the battery to see if it has diminished signifigantly. Volts reading could be within spec , but capacity of the cells may not be.
Solved?

If not
Check your grounds. Battery first. Clean Corrosion. Then check where the ground cable bolts to the body. Age and heat cause increased resistance in wire. As the resistance in the wire goes up then the wire will not make a good ground. Or if the wire is loose in any area then driving may shift the wire enough to make contact or inhibit it.

Unbolt wire from body and wire wheel where it connects to the body or use a metal brush to scrub that area. Also check the ground strap that is below the engine.

[tonyloban]

Battery is brand new. Not dead for sure. Cleaned connections and ground. No start. Tapped on the starter and it started.. Solenoid is it? When people tap to unstuck it or something?

A picture of what I hit. The red cable connects to it. Starter, yes?

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[tonyloban]

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[tonyloban]

Ok. So tried again starting, didn't work. Tapped on the starter and starts. Do I replace it or hwhat?

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[Dakotademon7]

Make sure the red cable is ok first. Get someone to hold the key on if it won't start and wiggle the red cable. If it starts, the cable is bad at the crimp end. If that doesn't work, tap the starter. If that works, replace starter.

[jlevie]

Ok. So tried again starting, didn't work. Tapped on the starter and starts. Do I replace it or hwhat?

Replace the starter. Best to get a real Bosch reman. The generics are an iffy proposition and you may have to go through 2 or more to wind up with one that works.

[tonyloban]

Looks as if that's what I'll be doing. I'll first try fixing the one I have. Always interesting to mess around with something like this.

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[tonyloban]

So I cleaned up the connectors and it starts way better now, I used a battery connector cleaner. Sometimes the easiest fix is the simplest one.

[enigmaticdream]

Crank position sensor

[3vilE30]

Crank position sensor

That what I was thinking at first but the audible differences made me think otherwise. OP is car auto or manual?

[tonyloban]

That what I was thinking at first but the audible differences made me think otherwise. OP is car auto or manual?

Sorry, new phone and didn't have the forum on there. Tis an auto.