[taylorGTO]

I'm having a somewhat strange issue starting my 68 GTO. The car will fire up right away and run great if it's nighttime or morning when it's not hot. As soon as the outside temp warms up the car will not even turn over. I replaced the starter last night with a new High Torque one from Ames as the mechanic said the old starter was getting too hot. It fired up right away multiple times last night and this morning but now that it's about 90 out I don't even get a click. Any ideas?

[AMH555]

Did you replace the solenoid? battery good? Mine had hot soak starter problems, but only after it ran on hot days. I put on a solenoid heat shield that helped some, also made sure the starter was aligned correctly with the ring gear. I have had two original type Delco repo style batteries and had problems with both of them. Got an Optima Red- Top battery and it really cranks it over, even when hot. The Goat sat in the cold garage with the Optima battery in it all winter with no charging and it started right up.

Good Luck, hope this helps some,
Allan

[gtohurstjudge]

Pontiacs are known for this problem and nothing is more frustrating
to deal with. Make sure you have a heat shield on the starter solenoid. Also
if your engine wiring harness is original....replace it with a new one. If you
buy a new one, order one for a ram air car. It will have extra long starter
solenoid wires so that they can be routed to the front of the engine, down the front of the left head and block and then back towards the starter, eliminating the routing of the positive cable and starter harness through the
heat shield between cylinders five and seven. This routing keeps everything
cooler, helping the problem. Any heat in the wiring harness and battery cable
is transferred to the starter solenoid. Another contributor to this problem
is scale buildup on insides of the block water jackets on 38 year old engine blocks. Obviously there is no quick fix for this, but it is often a contributing
factor. The use of Evans waterless coolant will help heat dissipation in the block. In my shop I have seen this problem many times over the years and for some reason, most of the cars that I have seen do this have been 68 models. On my 69, it has never done this in 35 years of ownership, thank goodness. I attribute this fact to not allowing the coolant to become
dirty and corrosive, and keeping new wiring under the hood with the ram air
routing of the harness and using a Delco starter with heat shield. If you are
running a 455, that is a factor as well. They are more prone to do this due
to the lousy heat dissipation associated with the 455's thin cylinder walls.
Over the years I have seen a lot of people who never had this problem in
their Pontiac till they installed a 455. Good luck with your problem, hope one
of these tips helps.

[68MeanVerdoroGreen]

If your not getting the "clicK" extend your troubleshooting to include the ignition switch and wiring. When the no start condition exist, check for voltage on the small gauge wire connected to the soleniod with a test light or DC voltmeter. No voltage when the key is turned to the start position eliminates starter/soleniod.
Another test to do while under the car would be to take a piece of wire jump and between the main cable from the battery to the small gauge wire. If this engauges the starter and turns the engine your starter can be eliminated as the cause.

[blown 68]

beings as abrand new starter has the same issues, i would definately be checking all connections. they may look fine, but i would start at the battery, both teminals, remove and clean every point of connection, and work your way through the system. i have had on more than one occasion, connections that worked, but under heat and load, would not carry the current.
davey

[Chiefpontiac]

Don't forget to check your ground straps. These are often left off after a rebuild and not having them can lead to hot start problems.