Classic/Antique Car Repair/"74 VW Beetle

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Expert: Paul Wilczynski - 4/30/2009


Question
I'm having intermittent starting problems.  Battery is good, starter and solenoid are good.  Some days it starts right up.  Then for a week it won't start; not even a click at the solenoid.  I turn the key, the dash panel lights up but nothing.

Answer
Bill, you're going to need to check the entire circuit for continuity. Offhand, it sounds like a corroded connector leading to high resistance somewhere between the ignition switch and the starter itself. Check the switch, the push-on connector at the solenoid, and the thick wires going from ground and hot to the starter itself. You might also want to clean connectors in the circuit at the fuseblock.

80% of the time, intermittent starting issues like ths can be tracked to corroded connectors.

Good luck!

--Paul  

Classic/Antique Car Repair

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Paul Wilczynski

Expertise

Most questions involving vintage car restoration, mechanical and body, paint and upholstery. Parts sourcing. Extensive experience in wood-bodied station wagons, British and French cars of the '40s through '70s. Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow, Sunbeam Alpine and Tiger, Citroen Maserati, VW Beetle, 1955-65 Chevrolet (especially Nomad station wagons), Corvair.

Experience

Wide-ranging and long-term. I owned a restoration shop in the 1970s, continue to dabble in vintage exotics. At one time, had a seven-car collection of contemporary exotics which I had restored and maintained myself. When I was 18 years old, I designed a woodie kit for the VW Beetle, which I developed into a product which was featured on television and in over 100 magazines and 25 books at last count. I still own and drive one of my creations. I owned a design and fabrication consultancy from 1982-2002, specializing in show car fabrication for manufacturers including Ford, Mazda, GM, Subaru, Mitsubishi, etc. Since 2003, I have been a department manager in Industrial Design, and a full-time instructor in automotive design and fabrication at the university level. My students go on to design automobiles as staff designers for major auto manufacturers worldwide.

Organizations
Western Automotive Journalists, Industrial Design Society of America.

Publications
Long list of magazines and books, including Playboy, VW Trends, VW Greats, Hot VWs, and European automotive magazines.

Education/Credentials
I teach design and fabrication at university level. My education is in Industrial Design, University of Illinois (1966-1970).

Awards and Honors
Many awards for restorations in local concours and shows.

Past/Present Clients
Mazda, Ford, GM, Subaru, Mitsubishi, Honda, Toyota, Chrysler, Mercedes, Porsche.

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