shythone

2007 Corvette will not start. Wife & I took Vette to get gas a couple weeks ago. I went in to pay and when I came back out, wife tried to start car. Would NOT start. She said she could smell something HOT and smelled electrical as I went into station. She also said she saw a puff of smoke come from under the right side of the hood. By the time I returned to car, the smell was gone.
Found someone with booster cables but to no avail. As it is a stick, we then "push started" the car and drove it home.

Would not start afterwards. I bought a new battery installed it and still won't start.
Power comes on, accessory mode works windows, radio, etc. all come on.

Tried START and only get gauge readings and hear click. Had an electrician buddy come out with a voltmeter. He checked all fuses and relays which checked fine. I jacked up Vette, crawled underneath looking for frayed or burnt wires. everything intact. Even the fusible link was good. the anti-theft light is NOT on.

I disconnected "negative" side of battery, left it a few minutes, came back and reconnected it. Same problem.

PLEASE help !!!

rkj427

From your description, not clear if it doesn't engage starter motor...………..

if you checked all wiring, did you also check starter motor for functionality...…………….

possible to have power available at the wiring connections, and still have a malfunctioning starter motor...…………...

Lee Cromwell

Sounds like the starter to me as well, it's a known issue at the connector

BackInBlack05

Starter? Battery cables?

Volts by themselves don't mean much. Need volts when current is drawn. Bad connections can show volts until a load is supplied.

WW7

I'm thinking starter solenoid ..Get under it and see if it could be battery wires or a cracked solenoid..Second guess, starter is bad or shorted out....WW
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C6ToGo

See if this is cracked or if wires don't look right.

Bruze

Nice Ride

Sorry to hear of the electrical problem. The puff of smoke and electrical smell likely indicate a component failure, and not just a battery. At this point I would take it to a Chevy dealer with certified Corvette tech who can correctly resolve the issue. Good Luck.

shythone

the starter never attempts to engage.

HBsurfer

Check the top of the starter to see if the solenoid has come apart. Happens a lot on cars with headers.

Bruze

Starting at the beginning: If the starter doesn't do anything, but dash lights come on, then loosen and wiggle both battery terminals, retighten and try. If it doesn't help, get under car and do the same with the other ends of BOTH cables, and visually inspect the solenoid and its terminal. If the car still won't turn over, remove the battery and have it load tested.

However, the puff of smoke also needs to be tracked down and maybe that should come first. What did it smell like? An electrical burn or not?

shythone

She said it smelled like an electrical burn

rkj427

It could have been an issue with the starter solenoid contacts, or possibly even the armature and brushes of the starter motor itself, which would explain that the starter doesn't even function or try to engage..................

check all the voltages to the starter, and then have the starter motor itself removed and tested

shythone

Problem solved !!!
Contacted local shop which specializes in performance cars and especially GM. He came with a rollback, took it to his shop, replaced starter and called me 3 hours later to get the car.
He said the starter was completely fried. The new starter is very quick and sounds powerful.
Looking back I remember the old starter was lagging and struggled to start. So if your Vette is starting to struggle to start, replace the starter immediately.
THANK YOU to everyone who replied. I really appreciate your comments.

rkj427

Thank you for responding and letting the forum members know exactly what corrected your issue!

That is how a forum should work, as others may have this concern and now can find resolution.

GOLD72

Positive cable connection at the starter motor fried on my ZR1 over a month ago and wouldn't allow the battery to recharge. Engine would not jump start with battery cables either. I am seeing more and more reports of this on C6 cars as time goes by.

RichKiss

shythone

shythone

agorena123

Just replaced my starter this past Friday on my 08 Same symptoms as yours but no electrical smell. It would start sometimes and sometimes not. Battery was on its last legs so replaced it but problem persisted. Starts up strong now. It's cammed, headers and catted x-pipe.

I did not go this route as the car got 64k miles before needing to replace the starter, but a local Corvette modder/tuner recommends using LS3 starter with appropriate wiring modifications as permanent remedy to starter issues common with C6s.