That is the inertia fuel shut off switch. It is reset by pushing down on the button on top. If you have fuel pressure and the fuel pumps run than the switch is OK.

That is what my grandfather call the starter and he said the Ford dealer called it that when he bought his 1919 Ford. But my grandmother said the side curtains always leaked on the 1919 Ford.

 

As soon as you said "rain" my brain went straight to the MAP/BAP getting wet up there near the cowl and the trailing edge of the hood.
But slow cranking and other things don't work with that scenario.

Still, it would not hurt to do the same things to the sensor that you're doing to the distributor. Pulling connectors, cleaning out, making sure it's dry, etc.

Good luck.

Paul

 

So far I have sprayed or wiped dry every thing on the ignition system I can think of. The small wire on the starter had a crack in the insulation so I fixed that. I hooked up my multimeter to the battery and jumped the solenoid with a screw driver. I still have 2 seconds of good cranking then the started starts to strain.The voltage drops to 8 volts or less. If everything else is right, would this indicate a failing or failed starter? I can't convince myself there is still moisture in the system after 5 days.

What are your thoughts?

 

If you pop the starter out, your local auto parts store should be able to bench test it.

 

what is the battery voltage on your meter Before you activate the solenoid? It should be around 12.6 V.

 

Thamks for your responce. The voltage meter is showing 12.3-12.4 before activating the solenoid. After I remove the screw driver, it goes builds right back up to 12.3 or 4 within about 30 seconds or so. Also, I have tried the starter with a charger connected to the battery that has a 50 amp boost. Same result.

 

Battery voltage dropping to about 9 or 10 volts is normal when cranking. If the battery returns to normal voltage in 30 seconds, I think you can rule it out. The starter is one thing that can cause your symptom to happen. I think the bench test of the starter as mentioned by LSCRX is a good idea and should be free. Checking your coil would be next. Sandy

 

Yeah, I think we are on the right path now.

 

Yep, agree.
About the only four things I can think of that cause slow, or strained cranking are:

1. Failing starter.
2. Failing starter/battery cable(s).
3. Failing battery. (Especially after trying to start a recalcitrant engine)
4. Something causing the ignition to advance severely, creating the strain on the starting system.

And I don't even know if it's possible for the computer to advance the ignition (even through a fault) beyond it's normal parameters. But you never know. Those pesky TFI modules (is yours a TFI engine? I think so) do cause a lot of headaches every now and then.
However, of those, only the ignition would be able to make the engine run rough as you mentioned in your first post.
The computer controls are able to retard the timing during the START procedure, and it almost sounds like when you first jump the starter or turn the key, it's retarding like normal and the starter spins normally. But after that couple of seconds (is that very consistent as far as you can tell by the way?) it's no longer retarding for some reason, and the starter has to strain.

It's a very long shot I think. Very "out there" even for me. But at this point, a hail Mary might net some good trains of thought after rolling off the tracks!

Easy enough to have the starter checked though. Good luck.

Paul

 

Well, I got the starting problem fixed. You guys are going to love this. As I was screwing around with it today, I tried to start it in neutral just for ****s and giggles. It started like a new truck. So for what ever reason, it will crank but not start in park but will start in neutral. Never heard of that but it gets better. I try to put it in gear, I get a lond klunk and it shuts off. When I finally get it going I figure out it is stuck in either 3rd or over drive. Won't go into reverse without killing the motor. I'm starting to think it's got a poltergeist. Any ideas?

 

How's your transmission fluid look/smell? I am going to be of little help if the problem resides within the voodoo that comprises an automatic transmission.

 

It sounds like you have a bad neutral control switch. At least the symptoms point that way. Sandy

 

It looks good although it is a little over full. Prior to the rainstorm last week the only problem I had was hard shifting. No starting problems or anything else.

 

I know that could caues the starting problem but would that cause the stuck in gear problem?