starting problems

i bought a 95 s series sw2 at an impound auction. i had to put a battery in
it and have a key made. when i try to start it i get dash lights and
headlights but thats it. no solenoid click, nothing. there's a new cable
going from the battery to the starter and i found a receipt in the car for
a starter that was recently put on. everything looks right. what else could
it be?

 

My first step would be to check the ground cable.

 

Bad cables (positive and negative), bad/corroded connections (at either
end), a defective ignition switch, starter relay, or starter solenoid?

 

If the lights work, the ground cable is good.

I wonder about the battery, though -- the OP didn't specifically say that he
put a *new* battery in it, and it's quite possible for a weak battery to have
enough juice to light up the headlights partially, but not enough to turn the
starter.

It can be very hard to judge, in the _daytime_, just how bright a headlight
is, and so seeing headlights isn't necessarily an indication of a strong
battery. Put a voltmeter on the battery. Should see _well_over_ 12V (e.g. 12.8
to 13+) if you want to have any hope of turning the starter over.

 

thanks guys, i appreciate your sugestions. i thought i might have missed
something, but i've already checked all those out. last night while i was
going thru different web sites like this one, i don't remember where, but
on one of them it said that alot of the 91-95 s series cars had a factory
installed anti-theft device. are any of you familiar with that? on the
bottom of the dash, right under the hood release, my car has a little box
with a plug. on the back side is a group of six wires that go up and join
the main bundle of wires that continue on thru the fire wall. could this
be an anti-theft device? if so how can i get the piece i need to plug into
it? i'd really appreciate any info you guys might have about this.

 

If it was the battery or ground cable, the light would basically go
out when you tried to crank it, not just dim a bit. Also GM starter
generally need at least 9V at starter to engage and if it is below
that it will not do squat when you try to crank it.

 

eabbott wrote:

The plug you're seeing is the ALDL (OBD1) plug.

Unless you have the RKE, you do not have factory anti-theft. I'm pretty
sure that wasn't even an option until '97.

Kevin