VS Ecotec starting issues

[andruku]

Hi,
First post, wanted some ideas on what could be the issue.
Symptoms
Fault is intermittent, car won’t start sometimes
Turn the key to start and it clicks once.
Car: 1996 Holden Berlina V6 auto

What I’ve done.
Charged battery, it started, used multimeter to test alternator was charging battery. Was 14.2V so alternator is good
On engine start used multimeter across battery. On load the volt dropped to under 8volts. Battery had been sitting for a year....
So battery may be stuffed, it was draining fast. So I got a new Supercharge 650cca battery.
Battery is good, but since I purchased I haven’t been able to start the car.

Also the neutral safety switch by the auto shifter.
Previously had starting issues and my wife would move gearstick around a bit like form park to neutral or push up from park abit and it would start.
So I pulled that apart cleaned points with isopropyl and gave edges a light sand.
Seem to run every time after i did this, until the other day and now won’t start.
Is there a linkage from under the shifter that might not be lined up?

Pulled starter motor out of car.
Tested on ground by connecting it to spare battery and the starter looked ok, gear spun and pushed out.
Gonna get it load tested tomorrow.

Other things
I had been driving car around fine for a week, after doing a charge on previous battery. Fuel pump was replaced a year ago, been going fine.

I’m going to check for error codes.
There is no check engine light on though so not sure if I’ll find anything.

Hoping it’s just the starter failing under load?

The battery terminals weren’t corroded.
I sanded them anyway as there was a little bit of residue on the earth connection.
I’ll also clean up the starter motor terminals.

Other than the above I’m out of ideas.
Can anyone give me some suggestions on what I could try next.
Could it be a sensor issue?

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

 

[greenacc]

I'm not much of an auto sparky but maybe a bad starter relay? I think they cost about 10 bucks.

 

[vs-lover]

Amazing how starter motors will perform perfectly out of a vehicle but when in the vehicle it is put under immense load and fails. I pretty much feel that your starter has failed and is drawing huge amounts of current and thus won't function as it should. This was the case on my sons $300 VS. Changed the starter and haven't looked back. This is rather common on Ecotecs.

 

[losh1971]

I'm a tad confused as to whether you're still getting click, click. If the former is the issue then the starter is probably fucked. The Commodore starter is not easy to repair if it is an internal issue. And once the old brushes are disturbed they can play up.
Your issue could be a solenoid. Now if you have nothing when you hit the key and not click, then the key bump could be worn down like it is on mine. If it doesn't kick over, try turning the key all the way back and go again. This will tell you if it's the key.

 

[andruku]

Thanks for the replies.
I took starter to get looked at, was pretty worn.
I’m getting a replacement and will see how it goes.
I’ll also check out the key idea above if I still have issues.