Starting

[truckdogg4]

I tested batteries. Chassis Batteries = 12.7 each. House Batteries = 6.8 each. When I turn the ignition it clicks about 8 times and then nothing. Won't even turn over. HELP

[HaRVey]

Have you tried using your Aux Start switch?
You could have a bad cell in yourStarting battery which reads good voltage but doesn't handle a load.

[javelin]

You don’t say what RV you have or how old it is/mileage (in other words is it time to replace the starter just based on age factors ?). If you measured your chassis battery at 12.7 vdc when not charging (engine off, no shore or gen on), that is basically fully charged. You say you hear a relay click about 8 times when you go to start position on the ignition switch.........is that after 8 attempts to turn ignition to start position......or turn to start once? Can you tell if the relay clicks are coming from the starter relay in the Ford Power Dist. Box (R4) mounted in front of the engine, or from the starter motor itself under the engine? I “believe” the starter relay in the Ford fuse box in the engine compartment closes when you turn the ignition switch to start position which in turn operates a relay contact inside the starter motor which actually connects the starter motor to the chassis battery. So nothing from the starter could mean it’s time for a replacement. I would also check your chassis battery connections are clean and tight and also at the start motor end. If the starter relay is the problem (contacts are burned for example) you could try replacing with another R4 equivalent and see if that makes a difference.

[truckdogg4]

It's a 2010 Damon Tuscany on Freightliner Chassis, Cummins 8.3 litre diesel. When I try to start the engine I hear about 8 clicks and then nothing. Could it be the starter or maybe not enough voltage in batteries to start the engine.

[simidrm]

Originally Posted by truckdogg4

It's a 2010 Damon Tuscany on Freightliner Chassis, Cummins 8.3 litre diesel. When I try to start the engine I hear about 8 clicks and then nothing. Could it be the starter or maybe not enough voltage in batteries to start the engine.

Take a hammer and hit the starter a couple times and if it starts then you need a starter the brush's are worn out.

[SANDDOG]

Agree - if that starter motor has lasted 9 years in a Diesel It’s done ✅

[Shawn62]

Originally Posted by truckdogg4

I tested batteries. Chassis Batteries = 12.7 each. House Batteries = 6.8 each. When I turn the ignition it clicks about 8 times and then nothing. Won't even turn over. HELP

Last time that happened to me it was a bad battery cable. Check voltage drop to starter. Also check the resistance of the cables. Battery cables don’t last forever. They can look great on the outside and be rotted on the inside.

[Judge]

Also check your grounds. A loose or bad ground will cause this as well.

[TurnerFam]

yep, clicking is typically a 'bad' battery, or a 'bad' starter or solenoid ...

our Subaru outback recently had the same issue - was the solenoid... if I 'hit it' a time or two, I would suddenly and easily crank. Over time, though, it took more and more 'hits' to get it to work. Replacing it solved the issue.

As for 'low battery power' even though the chassis battery reads over 12 volts... it does happen. A low 'cell' within the battery can give a false reading, for the battery level as a whole, but when the LOAD is applied(i.e., starting the engine), the low cell pulls down the whole battery level, leaving not enough 'umphhhh' to start the 'starter'....

I recently had this issue with one of our HOUSE batteries, one of the Four 6v type...
I found the suspect battery, which had two suspect cells, drained it, filled with distilled water, ran thru a full charge cycle, drained again, and then refilled with battery fluid/acid from the local auto parts store. After running thru a full charge cycle again, overnight, it was back to it's 'old self'... and working properly under a load, which was, in this case, the INVERTER when the fridge or the microwave asked for power.