12 Volt Starter Relay

[Brooklyn53]

My 53 Buick Special has a starter relay mounted to the firewall. It looks exactly like this:

http://www.bobsautomobilia.com/index...product_id=616

My car was converted over to 12 volts before I bought it, so I'm not positive if the job was done correctly. Anyway, my starter kicked in while I was driving today mid driving. I suspect it has something to do with this relay because the starter itself and selonoid is brand new. To tell you the truth, I'm not even sure if this realy is even necessary.

[raycow]

The relay is a necessary part of the original starting system which was actuated by stepping on the gas pedal.

Do you still have the gas pedal starting feature? Was the car converted to 12 volts using an internally regulated alternator? If yes to both, you now know why I ditched the gas pedal start on mine and replaced it with a separate starter button. I strongly recommend that you do the same thing because it is the simplest way to keep the starter operating reliably.

If no to either or both, please describe how you normally start the engine.

Ray

[Brooklyn53]

The alternator is internally regulated it's a new 12 volt GM one wire alternator. However my car has a 12 volt regulator also that is installed next to my horn relay that I'm pretty sure can be eliminated also because of the new alternator.

The gas pedal feature I'm pretty sure was eliminated because I have two Stromberg 97 carbs. I believe the gas pedal feature was used with the original carb.

I have a new key ignition that when I turn it the car starts.. Depending on how long the car has sat I press on the gas pedal a couple of times.

Under this set up, should I be able to eliminate the starter relay?

[raycow]

The alternator is internally regulated it's a new 12 volt GM one wire alternator. However my car has a 12 volt regulator also that is installed next to my horn relay that I'm pretty sure can be eliminated also because of the new alternator.

I have a new key ignition that when I turn it the car starts.. Depending on how long the car has sat I press on the gas pedal a couple of times.

Under this set up, should I be able to eliminate the starter relay?

Yes, with key switch starting you can definitely eliminate the starter relay.

Before disconnecting the relay you will need to determine if it is still a part of the starter circuit. The easiest way would be to trace the wire connected to the S or SOL terminal of the ignition switch. If it goes directly to the starter solenoid, the relay isn't doing anything and can be removed. Tape the ends of any wires presently connected to the relay just in case they are still live.

If the wire from the ignition switch goes to the relay, it will need to be re-routed and connected to the solenoid instead. If you have a neutral safety switch and you want to use it, run the wire from the ignition switch to one terminal of the NSS first and then from the other terminal of the NSS to the solenoid. If your NSS has more than two terminals, the additional terminals are used for reverse lights and can be ignored as far as the starter is concerned.

As for the voltage regulator, it is definitely not needed for the one-wire alternator. If it still has wires connected to it, I would say don't remove them until you find out where they go. If you don't want to trace the wires, just leave them connected as they are.

Feel free to ask if you need additional info.

Ray

[Brooklyn53]

If I remember correctly, the relay has two wires going to it from the starter. One wire is from the main terminal on the starter and the other is from the s terminal on the starter. Then coming out of the starter relay is one wire going to the ignition switch.

Are you saying to run the ignition switch wire directly to the s terminal on the starter?

Then where would the wire from the main terminal on the starter go that now runs into this relay I'm trying to eliminate? I assume this wire is main power because it's also the same terminal that has the battery connected to it.

[raycow]

If I remember correctly, the relay has two wires going to it from the starter. One wire is from the main terminal on the starter and the other is from the s terminal on the starter. Then coming out of the starter relay is one wire going to the ignition switch.

Are you saying to run the ignition switch wire directly to the s terminal on the starter?

Then where would the wire from the main terminal on the starter go that now runs into this relay I'm trying to eliminate? I assume this wire is main power because it's also the same terminal that has the battery connected to it.

Normally, you can connect the wire from the ignition switch to the S terminal on the solenoid. However, this assumes you have a stock starter relay, which has 4 terminals/wires. If yours has only 3, it may be wired differently, so you will need to run a wiring check before you can remove it.

Let's call the 3 relay terminals battery, solenoid, and switch, designating what they are connected to on the car. Remove the wire from the switch terminal and connect it to the solenoid terminal, leaving the other wire on there too. Now try starting the engine from the key switch. If the engine cranks, you can get rid of the relay. If it doesn't, I would suggest leaving the relay alone until you can have someone who is "electrically qualified" check out how the relay and the ignition switch are wired. This is something I can't do without seeing the car.

If you are removing the relay, check to see if the battery wire, the one from the large terminal on the solenoid, is connected to anything else. If it isn't, you can remove it from the solenoid. Otherwise, leave it in place.

Ray

[Brooklyn53]

I eliminated the relay today per Ray's suggestions and everything worked as usual. Thanks

[raycow]

When you said the relay had only 3 wires, I was beginning to worry that you had some kind of oddball wiring setup because of the non-stock relay. I'm glad to hear the change worked out ok for you.

Ray

[Brooklyn53]

The relay was the original starter relay with 4 terminals. The 4th terminal had a small jump wire connecting from one terminal on the starter relay to the same terminal that the ignition wire was connected to. I can only assume whoever wired the car for 12 volts wasn't familiar with exactly what the relay was for and just wired it to the best of his knowledge. Eitherway, it's gone now.

[AckBob]

I converted my gas pedal starter to push button under the dash so as to not have the problem of the starter sometimes kicking in when accelerating............ disconnected the wires from the solenoid on the and ran them through the firewall to a momentary switch under the left hand side of the dash..... made a huge difference and eliminated all starter problems