serious interior cleaning, and non-starting issues

davidpertuz@mindspring.com davidpertuz@mindspring.com
Fri, 17 Jan 2003 13:07:14 -0600


two totally different types of questions:

1) can any of you recommend something really
effective for cleaning  (and, environment allowing,
permanently removing) mold from interior vinyl and
plastics? First thing I will try is Simple Green,
but I really do not want the stuff to grow back.
This is for my poor Fiat, not my SE-R (thank
goodness), which sits a lot and by now has a
slightly fuzzy and yellow steering-wheel rim.

2) the non-starting of my garage-queen black
classic: one day the car just died suddenly and
wouldn't restart. Charging system is good, as with
a known good battery all the powered items work,
but when you try to start it you will get a solitary
crank the first time and only a solenoid cliking
thereafter. Previously the same thing happened and
it was a shredded alt. belt, but this time the belt
is fine.

This has stymied me to the extent that I have so
far tried to diagnose it, but I haven't realy
touched it in a while.

The two most likely-seeming things in my mind:

1) Starter is seized, or for whatever reason
internal resistance is too high, and the engine
can't crank past the resistance.

2) alternator is bad, as in physically seized.
I checked the voltage at the alternator and it
was fine, and at any rate the battery should
start the car anyway, bad alt. or not. Ron
Atteberry's suggestion was to loosen the alt.
a good amount and see if it will start then.

No. 1 does not jive with the died-suddenly-
while-running, the second one does.

Anyone else have any other thoughts?

I asked about this some months ago, but this'un
keeps stumping me.

thanks,
david