Help - 169 won't start

[bvanzalen]

Hey guys, I was out mowing with my 169, turned her off and went to restart and all I get is the solenoid clicking.

I just walked back home to grab some tools and my truck.

How do I determine it's not a bad solenoid? The battery is new and charged. I plan on checking for loose connections. Any help?

Thanks!

Bob

[Matt G.]

Check your ground connection first. If that checks out, see if you've got 12V at the wire that activates the solenoid when the key is in the 'start' position. If you do, the solenoid is probably bad.

[bvanzalen]

I shorted out the solenoid with a screwdriver and it cranked...heading to the parts store.

[FFGino]

When I bought my 1650 last fall, the PO threw in a new solenoid because "it has to be bad because it wont crank or click". It turned out to be a bad ignition switch. Jumping across the solenoid worked, but the positive wire terminal on the switch had rusted off. I replaced the switch and put the original solenoid back on and it is still working to this day. Just another thing that could cause the 'no start' problem.

Happy cubbing !!
FFGino

[bvanzalen]

Thanks for the input guys. Turns out, I jumped to a conclusion and was wrong.

I put in the new solenoid and still only clicked. All my connections were good too. I watched closely and noticed the s/g belt "twitching" when I hit the key. I then took the belt off and the s/g operated perfectly...then I thought "did the engine seize up?" I tried turning the engine at the pto and it didnt move at first then it turned. I hit the key and it started.

I dont know what caused this. When I turned it off, I had been mowing for 30 minutes and the engine was very warm. When I throttled down to talk to a friend, I did so too rapidly and it stalled. Could this have been the cause?

[Tim S.]

Is it possible you stuck a valve from heat?

[bvanzalen]

I don't know but the way I shut her down was not optimal. I'm usually much more careful.

[cledford]

My 169 has an out of adjustment hydro level - as does my 1650. I have not had time yet to adjust either yet. The point being, when the hydro lever in not in just the right position (the mystery "N" position that is not near the real "N" position on the console), the motor will not turn over - I just get a click. At first I thought it to be an electrical system problem. Somehow I stumbled across the issue on the 169 and found it was the same issue on the 1650. Although it is probably not good to do so, the engineer in me recreated the problem on both multiple times to be sure that was what the deal was.

-Calvin

[bvanzalen]

Thanks for the tip Cledford