New Battery and car will not turn over

[Gonzrizzo]

I am hoping that someone will be able to help me with this one. I replaced the battery in my 2001 2.0 Bug and ever since the car will not start or even turn over. I have tried jumping it to make sure the new battery was ok. I have also checked the battery connections, the ground seems to be ok as well. When I turn the key I hear a click from the engine compartment sometimes but not every time. Before I changed the battery the car did start but just barely. Please help my poor bug come back to life

[cep]

Sounds like you have a bad connection. Can you have someone watch while you turn on the headlights and then try to start the car? Usually with a bad connection, the headlights will get very dim.

[2005Beetle]

Check the "new" battery! Does it even have 12V? It's not unheard of to get a bad battery off the shelf, especially if purchased at a store that doesn't do a lot of business.

[Gonzrizzo]

I did check the battery and it is putting out 12 volts, I will try looking at the head lights tomorrow. Thanks for the feedback so far

[savethebluths.org]

If you're getting a 'click' then its your negative terminal, check the cable, there is definitely something wrong with it. Your battery has power it just cant get it to the car.

[snortingrooster]

or its simply the starter is completely shot. but hope I it's the battery connection as a starter is expensive.

[2005Beetle]

When I cam here telling of my VW repair problems I told a long and winding tale. I thought I was finally done but the shop (they had to send my beetle to VW for diagnosis and repair) had one more mistake up their sleeve. They broke the connector on the starter that came from the positive on the battery. I had to finally join AAA and the driver was able to diagnose the broken clip and plugged it back in. Other things were able to light up but the car wouldn't turn over because of that broken clip on the starter. The shop denied any responsibility. What else could have caused it though? Did you just recently have any repair work done on you bug?

[snortingrooster]

Originally Posted by 2005Beetle

When I cam here telling of my VW repair problems I told a long and winding tale. I thought I was finally done but the shop (they had to send my beetle to VW for diagnosis and repair) had one more mistake up their sleeve. They broke the connector on the starter that came from the positive on the battery. I had to finally join AAA and the driver was able to diagnose the broken clip and plugged it back in. Other things were able to light up but the car wouldn't turn over because of that broken clip on the starter. The shop denied any responsibility. What else could have caused it though? Did you just recently have any repair work done on you bug?

lets assume the shop didn't do anything so we look at corrosion, was the clip heavily corroded? I always use a dielectric grease on all my electrical connections to keep corrosion down. I also make sure I clean all my connections before I grease to make sure the connection is as clean as possible. but I would imagine the start is away from the ground. im not sure of the exact position of the starter but it between the tranny and the bell housing. so it should be above the oil pan so im going to assume the connection is no where near anything that could hit it while driving. so the next thing is to say the last person to touch it is responsible if the vehicle worked prior to work being done. so if it didnt break because of corrosion I would assume the responsibility lies with the last mechanic. other wise it came loose some how and then I would make sure to get some thread lock on the bolt that hold the connector so it doesn't fall out.

but I haven't had any repair work done on my bug, but I have had starter issues with a International Harvester scout I once owned. I had to turn the ignition over a bunch of times till the solenoid engaged and cranked the motor. so really the starter solenoid was bad. so i got a new solenoid and replaced the bad one problem fixed.

I'm sure you weren't replying to me but I figured I would give some insight on my experiences with starters.

[simonsi]

Originally Posted by Gonzrizzo

I am hoping that someone will be able to help me with this one. I replaced the battery in my 2001 2.0 Bug and ever since the car will not start or even turn over. I have tried jumping it to make sure the new battery was ok. I have also checked the battery connections, the ground seems to be ok as well. When I turn the key I hear a click from the engine compartment sometimes but not every time. Before I changed the battery the car did start but just barely. Please help my poor bug come back to life

I think there are only two possibilities:

a) The original battery was weak/failing causing the starting problem then, and the new strong battery hasn't quite been connected properly giving the problem now. If the only connections disturbed were the battery cables then double check the connections are correct (ie they mate properly giving a broad area of electrical contact) and are tight. As stated above the best test you can do at this point is turn the headlights on and choose main/hi beam, if the lights are anything other than nice and bright then there is still a connection problem).

b) The original battery wasn't the cause of the original problem and you still have that problem and it is/has got worse. In this case the fault could be elsewhere in the starter circuit, solenoid (part of the starter), the starter itself, earth strap from engine to chassis as well as the primary battery cables.

[Gonzrizzo]

I have spent a good portion of the afternoon working on the car and so far no luck. I am thinking that it may be the starter. I am hoping to remove it tomorrow in order to test it. I want to thank everyone for their help so far and I will report back what I find.

Thanks
Rob

[2005Beetle]

Don't forget about unprofessional starter test of just tapping it with a hammer. Then turn over the car and if it starts then the starter is the problem.

[Fl_bug]

Originally Posted by 2005Beetle

Don't forget about unprofessional starter test of just tapping it with a hammer. Then turn over the car and if it starts then the starter is the problem.

So easy, cavemen have been doing things like this for years!!

[Gonzrizzo]

I managed to pull the starter this afternoon and it looks like that was the problem. The wire that goes between the starter and solenoid was corroded and broken. I'll try to post a picture this week and report back once I get a new starter in.

[Gonzrizzo]

I did not get a chance to take pictures but I did have the starter rebuilt and it now starts right up. It appears that the wire that goes between the solenoid and starter was corroded and when I put the new battery in the additional current from the good battery fried the bit of wire that still connected the two. Thanks again for the help

Rob

[Canadianbugin]

Originally Posted by Gonzrizzo

I did not get a chance to take pictures but I did have the starter rebuilt and it now starts right up. It appears that the wire that goes between the solenoid and starter was corroded and when I put the new battery in the additional current from the good battery fried the bit of wire that still connected the two. Thanks again for the help

Rob

Hard lesson to learn. As mentioned in this thread Use Dielectric grease on all you electrical connections and you will never have a problem again.Glad you found the Gremlin though Rob.

[2005Beetle]

I picked up a pizza last night on the way home from work and when I came out the car wouldn't start and I could tell it was the clip on the starter that is broken because the dash would light up when I turned the key but no cranking would take place. I had a flashlight but couldn't figure out the connection in the dark so I called AAA and the guy drives right by without even pulling in the parking lot! I had to struggle until I was able to get it connected properly.

Today I'm going to fix it a little better than just pushing it on. Maybe some JB Weld will hold the broken clip on until I eventually have to replace the starter which is when I'll finally get a clip.

[simonsi]

Originally Posted by 2005Beetle

I had a flashlight but couldn't figure out the connection in the dark so I called AAA and the guy drives right by without even pulling in the parking lot!

He posts on here. I don't blame him, I'd have driven by too.

Get it fixed already!

[krse]

Seems like this starter issue is a common beetle problem. Mine won’t turn over. How difficult is it to replace the starter?

... before sending the above reply, we tried it again and it started this time. However before trying it we wiggled the cables on the battery. That may (or may not) have had an effect on it. We're going to remove the terminals this afternoon, clean them and torque them down well just in case that was the issue.

I suspect though that it is the starting going bad. Is it difficult to access? Any tips?

2002 New Beetle
KRSE
Beaver, PA

[krse]

oops... forgot to mention it's a 2002 Beetle, automatic, 2.0, with 73,000 miles on it.

KRSE
Beaver, PA

[Pseudotropheus]

Its clicking and theres no juice.

Do an available voltage test. I would also test your negative battery cable. Even if you have voltage on the negative you can still experience unsurpassable resistance, which means it needs to be replaced. Just because there is voltage, doesnt mean it is good!

You need to do a starter current draw test on the starter.
If its excessive, then junk the starter.

Also, if you have a burnt out indicator bulb, I would check that as well. As I was informed the beetle doesnt have a secondary resistor to bypass the bulb so it remains operational.