battery question

[roadster]

My 6v battery started the car one time this morning
then when I retried to start "nothing" I put voltmeter on it
and it showed 6v but will not turn over starter. I feel the starter is good.
my question is can my meter show 6v and the battery still not have enough amps to start the car?
also with my dome light on when I hit starter it goes out.

Thanks

[ford1]

my guess is that you dont have a good ground to the motor and frame, or, the battery posts are corroded and not a good connection to the starter switch or the starter motor, another thing the bendix may be locked in the ring gear, put the car in high gear and rock it back and forth, if the engine turns over its not the starter locked in the ring gear

[PC/SR]

Check and clean all connections. Check water level. Install a separate ground strap to the transmission case. Get a proper charge. If that does not do it, probably the battery has reached the end of its life and wont hold a charge. The dome light going out indicates low amperage/charge. It will still indicate 6 v on a meter, which only draws milliamps at most.

[JBR]

Several years ago a friend was trying to start his 31 pickup for the 4th of July parade. The starter wouldn't turn the motor over. We tried to jump the car and that didn't do any good either. It turned out that the cable from the battery to the starter was corroded on the inside where you couldn't see it. Try all of the previous advice, maybe have the battery checked at a parts house or service station. If all else fails check the battery/starter cable.

[Kurt in NJ]

Hook your volt meter to the actual post of the battery ---it may take 2 people --one to hold the voltmeter probes---the other to push the starter ---if the volts go to 0 then it is the battery --an internal connection ---wear eye protection, a intarnal connection problem can cause a spark inside the battery --that spark could cause an explosion under the right conditions.
if the voltage stays the same you have a bad connection --wiring issue

[roadster]

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I hooked up meter and it showed 6v
pressed starter and meter went to o
Must be battery.
I did have a battery tender on it but it must have gone bad.
Thanks for your help.
will get new battery

[roadster]

Back again!
Battery and starter are good.
Tried to turn over with crank
it went a little and then stopped dead
will not budge now with crank.
Should I try to push this car in gear?
Remember this car started once before this happened.

[Kurt in NJ]

Put in 3rd , rock car in both directions, perhaps the starter gear is jammed on ring gear.

A leaking headgasket can fill the cylinders with cooland and cause the engine to lock up ---take out plugs and try to crank --or move in gear

When the engine was last run was it shut off or did it stop on it's own??

[roadster]

When the car started up it ran a short time and stopped.
I thought it was because I forgot to turn on gas value but now I'm
not sure. I have had the starter out and checked it was good.
Will need to check other things you said.
Thanks

[Patrick L.]

I think we all assumed that you had shut the car down, not that it stopped on its own.. Having all the info certainly helps with diagnosing problems..
It seems now that you may have an engine issue like a failed head gasket[ as said] or a failed timing gear, etc..

[roadster]

This is strange ,I just went to the garage and can now turn engine with crank.
I pressed starter and I hear starter run without it engaging flywheel.
I will take out starter and see why gear is not moving back to engage
flywheel

[johnbuckley]

busted bendix spring could be likely cause of starter turning but not engaging flywheel, ( or mucky track for bendix gear)

[roadster]

Got it running now !
turned out to be a bad cable from battery to starter
not enough juice getting to starter . Terminals needed cleaning
and I put on new cable.
Thanks All