1950s Car won't start

[Daffer]

Today I decided I was gonna start my 1950 cadillac after about 2 weeks of it just sitting in the garage. I hit the pedal to give it some Gas like the owners manual recommended and how I've done so for months then I hit the ignition button I hear it trying nothing no big deal try again I do this 4 times and nothing on the 5th it now just clicks what does this mean? Any help is appreciate! thanks, Joshua.

[The Tassie Devil(le)]

Just clicking means that there is insufficient charge in the battery to operate the Starter Motor.

The first couple of tries probably didn't have the engine turning over fast enough.

Bruce.

[Chopper1942]

Clean the battery with baking soda and water. get a battery terminal cleaner and some battery terminal protector at a parts store. Remove the battery cables and clean the posts and cables.  Now charge the battery. After charging, wash the battery with baking soda and water again, rinse with water, and dry with compressed air. Now, spray some of the battery cable protector on the cables.

It is best to charge at a low rate (2-5 amps) for a day or more. This prevents damage to the plates and boiling of the battery acid.

Once the battery is charged, attempt to start the engine. If it still only clicks, you could have several issues.

1.  Bad connection at the battery post on the starter solenoid. Clean the cable end and post on the starter. Still
    clicks?
2.  Take a small bolt and touch the battery post to the small post on the solenoid. Solenoid should click and
    starter turn the engine over. If not.
3.  Take the bolt and jump from the solenoid's battery cable post to the post for the starter motor. If the starter
    spins, then either the contacts inside the solenoid are burned or the winding has high resistance. You can
    remove the starter solenoid and remove the end cap, and if the contacts are burnt and worn, rotate the contacts
    (the large bolts), clean up or remove and flip the round contact, and reassemble. Try it again. Should work OK.

[Lexi]

All good replies. To add to the above I have experienced original positive battery cables fail as they were loaded with corrosion inside the insulation, so it was largely NOT visible externally. It was therefore not as conductive as it should have been. When removed, and manually inspected and manipulated, (bending and twisting the cable), tons of green corrosion poured out of the cable's inards near the battery cable post end. It had rotted from the inside. More common than you may think, expecially if OEM cables still in place. Good place to check and an easy fix. Good time to check all the grounding points with the negative cable as well. Not sure about 1950, but you may have a gounding point on the frame as well as at the starter end to the trany or engine. In my '56 I had to replace my ground as it was largely severed at the top of the frame grounding point with a prior owner amateur repair. Tough area to access but a stubby wrench did the trick. Clay/Lexi

[bcroe]

I take a couple steps if the motor fails to turn
over.  First have an internal light on and note
if it stays on or goes out when you hit the starter. 
Light stayes on, the problem is with the starter
or its wiring.  Light goes out, the problem is
the battery or wiring to it. 

If the latter, I would open the hood and hold the
crank position for 10 seconds.  Then jump out and
see if a battery terminal is warm.  If so, cleaning
that connection up might be the cure. 

Any IC starter battery here left unused for more
than a here, gets connected to a battery maintainer. 
Mine have a light, green means it has the battery
up to proper voltage, red means it has not.  I use
an EC3 connector, no clip leads. 
good luck,
Bruce Roe

[Jay Friedman]

After 2 weeks of not being run my '49, with the same engine, carburetor and electrical system as a '50, sometimes needs a squirt of starter fluid in the carburetor to start the engine. After sitting for that long the gasoline in the carburetor bowl can dry up. 

In addition to the battery cables a '50 should have 2 small ground straps running from the rear end of the cylinder heads to screws on the nearby firewall. Clean these in addition to all the other grounding points.  Also, it's a good idea when the starter is removed to clean off any paint on the surface where it mates to the flywheel housing as well as any paint on the adjoining surface of the flywheel housing.

Another good way to ensure the starter is grounded well is to run an additional grounding cable to the starter commutator end plate.  A simple concept from the late Doug Houston.  A few years ago the Caddy Wizard, Art Gardner, and I wrote a step by step article in the Self Starter on how to do this.  I'd be glad to email it to anyone who would like to read it. Email me at my email address in the CLC directory in Georgia and I'll reply with the article attached.

And to paraphrase the Dutchess of Windsor who supposedly said "You can't be too skinny or too rich", in a 6 volt 49-52 Cadillac with a 331 engine, the positive battery cable can't be too thick.  The Brillman Company sells these in, I think, 0/0 gauge.  Or make one up from 600 volt welding cable as I had done for mine. 

[Chopper1942]

When I am diagnosing an electrical problem like Daffer's, I voltage drop the circuits. I didn't go into it because you need a good DMM and have to make the connections correctly. I assume that most DIYer's don't have the equipment to do some of the more in-depth testing/analysis. I try to use the KISS method (keep it simple stupid). I also assume that as you perform the tests, you will respond with your results and then proceed further if needed.

Lexi is correct. A cable can become corroded inside the insulation and not be visible to the eye. A voltage drop test of the cable will identify the problem immediately.

Rule of thumb:
1.  Maximum voltage drop on a connection: 0.1 V. For example: DMM + lead on the battery post and DMM - lead on the +
    battery cable clamp. Activate the starter a reading < 0.01 is an issue and the connection needs cleaned.
2.  Maximum voltage drop in a cable: 0.5 V. For example: for the Battery + cable: DMM + lead on cable clamp at the
    battery and DMM - lead on the starter motor solenoid stud. Anything < 0.5 V is an issue with the B+ cable or
    connection at the starter.
3.  The same applies to the negative cables. A quick and dirty way to check the ground side is to voltage drop from
    the battery - post to the engine block.  For example: DMM -lead on battery - post and DMM + lead on engine.
    Let's assume there are 2 negative battery cables (1 to the frame and 1 to the engine). The total voltage drop
    when the engine is cranked or attempting to crank would be: 1.3 V maximum. - post to cable = 0.1 V, - cable to
    frame = 0.5 V, connection at frame: 0.1 V, - cable to the engine: 0.5 V, connection at the engine: 0.1 V, for
    the total of !.3 V. This assumes the 2 cables are attached at the same point on the frame. If not you have to
    add in another 0.1 V.

This will verify all the cables and connections. Another thing to check is the starter motor ground. One DMM lead on the starter and the other on the block. Should be 0.1 V or very close to it. If the block and starter have been painted, the starter may not have a good ground.

All voltage drop test have to be done with a LOAD ON THE CIRCUIT. Whether you are checking a light circuit or the starter circuit, you must power the circuit.

Checking resistance in a cable or wire/wire circuit is meaningless. Your battery cable could have every strand broken in two except 1. If you checked resistance it would probably read 1-3 ohms, which is good. But it would not carry the current needed for the circuit to function properly.

A resistance test can tell you if the circuit is open or if shorted to ground or another circuit when done properly.

If you are going to replace any of your battery cable, do as Jay suggests. When I install the 3208 CAT diesel in my 73 Chevy crew cab, I made my battery cables from large gauge welding cables. I got crimp on ends and crimped and soldered them together. Been on the truck for 40 years. Large truck shops, welding center, or a CAT dealer should have the large cable. The CAT dealer will have the cable ends and can probably install them for you. I would call around and see what's available. They won't be cheap, but they will easily carry the current in your 6 V starter system.

[Daffer]

Thank you all for the great suggestions I got a battery maintainer for Christmas so I started with that suggestion as it was the easiest for me to do I left it on for 24hrs and just a few minutes ago i tryed and without any problems my car started! Ill deffinetly be changing my battery cables around spring though as i noticed the connectors are a bit corroded after what 74 years 😂 anyways Thanks again you all were alot of help!, Joshua

[Jerome506237DX]

Now your car starts again, check if your generator is charging or you'll end up with a dead battery again. If it's not charging, maybe your voltage regulator is stuck or in need of adjustment.

Jérôme