A quarter Charge? That panel meter is a voltmeter therefore you telling me 4 volts is enough to start the car?

My battery is 3 years old and when I cranck it I have seen voltages drop as low as 8 volts and the car starts but 4 volts to begin with?

Also when you jumped your battery from your friends car.... I bet there was a big loss of voltage while his car was trying to bring your car upto snuff. I would get the battery tested...

The other concern is that you conected your friends battery and there was no increase in voltage although the battery is known to be good.... the first thing I would do is check the ground and positive conections not at the battery but to the car... if one is rusted your car wont get enough voltage to start....

I dont know about the starter itself... it may have been defective or not... I would get my voltage up in the dashboard meter before I go about replacing that starter. Remember if your dashboard meter its in the red zone your voltage is too low to begin with... it will start if you are at the upper part of the red zone but you saying you are only 1/4 up the scale... that is not enough.

Marvin

 

Deffinately a connection problem. The starter has nothing to do with the relays clicking under the dash. You aren't getting enough current like mental said. To further what he said about them, you need to check the ground connections at the frame and engine. They need to be cleaned. Also be sure the + pos battery junction on the passenger fender is clean. The last one to check is the one at the starter.

If you suspect the wires or the starter, a simple test will answer the question. Use a known good battery. Ground the negative post directly to the frame of the starter with a jumper. Use a jumper from the postive battery terminal to the positive connection on the starter. Now hit the solenoid connection with positive voltage and see if she cranks. You can leave the key in the off position so the engine won't start since you will need the car on ramps to test. If it doesn't crank then, you know you have a bad starter.

 

thanks a lot for the relpies guys, kinda lost the post....im sorry i really didnt understand the way to test the starter, if you can please a bit more, Sorry and thanks!