I have a 99 4.3 mercruiser and sometimes when i turn the key it does nothing except make one small click?

Question

it sounds like the click is coming from somewhere right by or under the hour meter..sometimes it takes a few times but then it will fire right up no problem...what would this be? starter going out?

Answer 1

Start where the click is coming from.  Look for loose connections on the key switch, then follow the others' advice.

Answer 2

if the click is coming from under the dash, then i doubt it is the alt/ batt..more than likely it is your key switch. but check the connections under the dash, it could be a loose ground or a loose connection somewhere under there....while your looking pull on the wires see if any come loose or break.

Answer 3

The problem you are having is a bad solenoid.It is working intermittently and needs to be changed.It is not the one on the starter,

it is the slave solenoid.It has 4 wires on it.On the large terminals there

is a red on one side and a yellow with a red stripe on the other.On the small terminals there is a black on one side and a yellow with a red stripe on the other.Once you have changed this you problem will be fixed.I hope this helps and happy boating.A new solenoid is probably about $30.00.Good luck.

Answer 4

Possibly a starter, clean and service the battery and check the connections at the starter and ignition switch

Answer 5

could be the starter, could be the battery is low, could be your battery is good but your alternator is not charging it, could be the terminal that connect to your battery is bad.  The first thing you should do is to take it to an autoparts store like Autozone or Oreily's.  They can test your battery and alternator for free.  If both of those are good, clean your terminals with the 5 dollar cleaning kit that the stores sell.  If the problem still persists, take it to a mechanic to check the terminals and the starter.  If its the terminals, you'll fix it for less than 50 buck, if starter, then you are looking at about 350 prolly.  Good luck

Answer 6

Sounds like a bad ground somewhere.