Bus owner: I bought the Gus Bus and ran it through the car wash. It died in the car wash. It was idling just fine and then it just died. Didn’t even sputter. I had it towed home. No lights would come on or anything when I turned the key. I posted and people said to check the fuses. Two days later the lights did came on when I turned the key, but that was it. The battery was prehistoric and barely held a charge so I replaced it. Today I dove into the fuses. There was one that was definitely bad. The metal was broken. These are the other ones. How do they look? Can they be bad even though the metal is not broken? Gus still didn’t start. Lastly, what would I check next? TIA.
Intelligent Tinkering: Get a VOM and 12 V test light. Study the instructions for the VOM. Focus specifically on the 20V DC and continuity settings. Test for 12V at the coil + terminal. If there isn't any power there, jump it from the battery with a wire and two alligator clips and try for a start. If it turns over and fires or starts you found your problem. Use the two settings to find out why there is no power to the coil and fix it with new wire or connectors as needed. If it doesn't turn over, you may have two problems so now troubleshoot the starter circuit. Disconnect the alligator clip for now so you don't melt your coil. Measure the voltage across the battery terminals. It should be 12.5V, or at least above 12V. If not 12.5V, disconnect and charge it until it is, or if it won't hold a charge, get a new one, or "rob" some other vehicle of a known good used one to use for testing. (This is where it helps to have a buddy with some yard trucks and junkers.) Then reconnect and try again for a start. If instead you get 12.5 V right off the bat, take the VOM to the starter solenoid terminal. You roll under the bus with the wheels chocked and gear in neutral (waist measurement must be less than 36") and measure voltage at this terminal, which is or should be a 13 mm nut, with the key held on to the starter setting. Vice grips and six feet of string or a buddy help here to hold the key on. You may need to take a piece of sandpaper to clean up a spot to make a clean ground on the bell housing or some other piece of engine aluminum. If you have 12.5 V here, the starter solenoid should at least click. If it doesn't, take the starter off -- two bolts and three connections. Remember where they go. Bench test it, with the spare battery and a pair of jumper cables. A big vice helps here. If it doesn't turn at all on the bench with a known good battery, get a new starter and fit it, and reconnect the alligator clip and try for a start. If it does turn, clean up the contacts, reassemble it to the car, and troubleshoot the wiring from the battery to the key and back to the solenoid using the 20VDC and continuity settings on the VOM. There are no fuses in this circuit. An easy test is to jump it using one side of a jumper cable, car chocked and in neutral, right to the solenoid terminal. If the starter clicks or turns, you faulted the battery to solenoid wiring and you may need to replace some of this wiring, or use the old relay mod. Start a new post for the relay mod instructions if that's where you end up. Otherwise, once you have a turning starter, reconnect the alligator clip to the coil and try again for a start. It should start. If it does, troubleshoot the wiring to the coil. If it doesn't get back to us with a fresh post.
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