Every once in awhile I will try to start my F150, 300 I-6 and it will just click...I can hear the power getting to the solonoid but it is not relaying the power to the other side of it. (which I am assuming ). So I am fairly sure that I have a solonoid problem and will be buying one fairly soon but someone said that there may be 2 of them in this truck, one on the passenger side fender well and the other on the starter. I've never heard of such a thing but I guess it could very well be, is there any truth to this?

 

I have no idea why there would be two.
Solenoids are very inexpensive...change the one on the fender well.
I would also clean all connections at the solenoid, starter, and battery....at ten years you probably don't have bright and shiny parts.

 

Good idea about cleaning the connections.

 

to the best of my memory chevys have one on the starter but yours dont. if it just clicks i think you have a bad ground. check the battery terminals, starter conetions, and block conetions.

 

In 1993 FORD, in their infinate Wisdom changed the starter on the 300 to a "REDUCTION GEAR" starter, WITH a SOLENOID on the Starter. This SMALLER unit replaced the Magnetic starter that Ford had used since NOAH! So now the trucks have two starters.

FROM THE BATTERY POSITIVE POST the Cable splits....The Large Part goes Directly to the Starter Solenoid TOP lug. And the Smaller part goes to the molded connector on the SIDEWALL Mounted Solenoid. When you turn your key to start, the Solenoid energizes and the voltage goes from the small cable across the solenoid contacts to another small cable that energizes the solenoid on the STARTER! The solenoid energizes, pulling a plunger forward which does TWO THINGS! 1.) it pulls the bendix drive gear out to meet the flywheel gear. 2.) it closes the contacts on the solenoid to energize the starter motor. Your engine spins and starts running. Or at least it should!

Mine did much the same last month. I troubleshooted the cables, the Sidewall Solenoid, the starter solenoid, and the starter. The starter would spin when out of the truck but not in the truck. Ended up being the Brushes. Total Cost. $8.46 for a set of brushes at the local generator shop.

Larry

 

Also check your cables for hidden corrosion inside the insulation, esp if they are oldsters.....

 

'92 and later have a starter mounted solenoid but they retained the fender mounted one. It doesn't handle much power like on the '91 and older trucks, just the trigger power for the starter solenoid. The starters changed completely in '92.

Edit: nevermind, I didn't see Larry responded....

Anyway, on my new old truck, I changed out the starter so I looked at the + cable. I had to cut it back about 2 1/2 feet before I found clean copper!!! I just replaced it. They're not that expensive to change out.

If it's clicking back and forth as you hold the key the battery is dead or the battery terminals are dirty, or maybe other terminals. If it just clicks once until you let go of the key one set of the solenoid contacts are bad. Check for voltage out the other side of the fender solenoid. If there is voltage there's something wrong with the starter solenoid (if there is one) or the starter itself.

 

I have a 73 f100 and at the back on the starter is a contact plate that works the thrust coils mine had burnt out the contacts you have to remove the starter and remove the slide cover on the back end of the starter.
hope this helps

 

FastEddie300; Ford uses a “positive engagement” starter on its gasoline engines. Internal to a positive engagement starter is a solenoid that does two things. When voltage is applied to the starter via the starter relay on the fender, current flows through the starter field coil which actuates a moveable pole shoe. The pole shoe is attached to a lever which forces the starter gear into contact with the flywheel. After the starter gear is pushed forward into contact with the flywheel, a contact on the solenoid removes a ground from the field coils which applies full power to the starter. The overall design is to assure that the starter gear is completely engaged before full power is applied to the starter motor. You may have noticed that your starter has a sheet metal cover that forms a hump on top of the starter. Under that cover is the starter solenoid.

Technically, what is commonly called the starter solenoid is the starter relay. A relay is an electrically operated switch. A solenoid is an electrically operated actuator. The relay is mounted on the fender, the solenoid is internal to the starter. There is pretty good explanation about all of this on page 28-02-1 of Ford’s 1984 truck shop manual.

Of course, all of this isn’t really all that important. Most of us know that the relay is commonly called the solenoid. However, when I was trying to teach this stuff to a group of young people, I found it necessary to differentiate between the relay and the solenoid. Several of the youngsters, picked right up on the fact that I was calling both units “solenoids”. As usual, I learn more from them than they learn from me.

 

I used to have the same problem with my mom's '68 wagon with a 390 in it. It was the connection to the starter. If I rapped the connection with a broom handle, the car would start right up.

 

Absolutely correct for older trucks. But in '92 or '93 they changed that. There is actually a separate solenoid on top of the starter. No sheet metal hump but a full solenoid cylinder with plunger, contacts and all, just like you'd see on most other cars/trucks. My '91 has the hump and internal contacts, shoe, etc and my '95 has a modern looking starter with a separate solenoid. Both have the big heavy fender mounted relay.

 

Gatesj; Thanks for the update. I’m not familiar with the newer starters, the youngest truck I work on is a ’84. Ford used to equip its diesel engines with a Delco starter which had the solenoid mounted on top of the starter body. From your description, it sounds like they adopted that Delco type starter as standard on all of their engines.

With that newer type of starter, I personally think it is all the more important that we differentiate between the starter relay and the starter solenoid when we discuss starting troubles. It is easy to see how a newer truck owner could become confused when we offer suggestions about how to trouble shoot a starting problem when it is unclear if we are talking about the solenoid on the starter or the relay on the fender.

Thanks again for the update.

 

Yeah, I always thought it was strange that everyone calls the fender mounted switch a solenoid instead of a relay because it doesn't actuate anything. It should be called a relay, it's just a very heavy relay.