IML: Starting My 64 Imperial

[Joe Strickland <jwstrick426@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Dave wrote:

"Yes, this works AND it bypasses the neutral start switch.  You must be 100% certain the car is in park or neutral before doing this or you may be very, very sorry."

Yes this is a very important safety step.  Always be sure that the car is in neutral or park and that the parking brake is applied.  Also, do not let anyone stand in front of or behind the car while trying to start the car.

On the issue of wire failure to conduct electricity:  The situation described in some earlier posts had mentioned that the end terminals were bright and shiny but the cable still would not conduct electricity well enough to start the car.  It is possible for wire strands to corrode up inside or underneath crimped terminal ends.  That is the usual failure mode.  The wire strands in between the end terminals can be corroded externally and still pass current well enough to start as long as there is still enough copper there to do so.  Usually the wire strands between the end terminals do not get corroded unless the external insulation has cracked open and some sort of contaminant [such as battery acid] gets underneath to start the corrosion process.  The wire strands can appear perfectly normal right up to the point they go into or underneath a crimped terminal's metal.  That is why it is so difficult to determine the cause.  It would be possible to cut the terminal apart and see the corrosion inside, but in so doing the terminal has been destroyed and the cable would have to be replaced.

Sometimes bad terminals will give themselves away by getting hot after power is applied in an attempt to start a vehicle.  Wire strands that have been subjected to excessive heating can change from the normal flexible soft form to a more brittle oxidized form and not conduct electricity well at terminal ends.  However, if corrosion is bad enough not enough current will pass through the connection to let the terminal and wire strands get hot.  Another clue would be to look at the color and texture of the insulation near the terminals.  If it is discolored or dull in appearance compared to the rest of the insulation on the same cable and/or has cracks in it those are additional indications of possible bad cables.

Fortunately new battery and starter cables are cheaper than new batteries.  Good Luck!

Joe


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