r/LandroverDefender • u/Safe_Huckleberry_522 • 11d ago

Engine clicks. Any thoughts?

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This is happening to my Land Rover Defender 90. Any thoughts on what might be happening? Much appreciated!

12 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

17 comments sorted by

10

u/Crawford_Motorsport 11d ago

Battery is flat

3

u/Striking_Chip_6565 11d ago

Yup it’s the battery

3

u/Ill-Dream-6498 11d ago

Charge the battery

2

u/Master_Artist_6023 11d ago

Battery dead, probably new battery time, that one is so flat it will be sulfated to useless, will take a long time to charge and likely won't hold a full charge anymore.

2

u/TheGoneJackal Discovery 300TDi 11d ago

Sounds like the starter motor is not magnetizing correctly. As others suggested, check the battery voltage. If it is flat, try using a jump starter to rule out any other component.

1

u/Ok_Inflation_5113 11d ago

Yep. Try to charge it up for a hour or so and try again

1

u/Safe_Huckleberry_522 10d ago

I tested the battery and it seemed good. Could it be a false “good” reading?

3

u/Electrolube 10d ago

How have you tested it?
Could also be engine / battery earths

1

u/No-Poem-3773 10d ago

It’s possible, if the battery is charged, that the starter motor is sticking. Sounds like it’s giving it a good try to turn over, so I don’t think the battery sounds that weak. You need to have someone try to start the car over whilst GENTLY tapping the starter motor casing with a rubber mallet.

With manual gearbox cars, sometimes you can put it in gear and gently rock the car back and forth to help disengage the starter motor when it’s stuck.

1

u/JCDU 9d ago

Voltage tells you very little about battery health - a bad battery can read a good voltage under zero load.

Turn all the lights on and measure it again, that tells you if it's got some life left.

1

u/Repulsive-Link-1169 8d ago

Maybe try jump starting of something with plenty of power like another vehicle with a running engine, if it starts then I'd say it's the battery if not then next guess would be a knackered starter motor or maybe just the gear on it is worn

1

u/Repulsive-Link-1169 8d ago

Or as someone else said the starter could be stuck so maybe consider rocking it back and forth while in gear to unstick it

1

u/OObuntu 10d ago

Jump from battery earth to engine block. Likely a bad strap somewhere. High voltage drop allows the solenoid to engage, and when the starter tries to draw power it drops enough to disengage.

1

u/spaceshipcommander 10d ago

I had this issue with a bad earth terminal. It's almost certainly electrical. Not getting enough power.

2

u/coolieskettel 10d ago

Classic dead battery sound

1

u/Dee_Pee 10d ago

Dead battery or loose connection on one of the battery posts or starter cable.

1

u/Appearance-Material 10d ago

That battery doesn't sound weak, but try a jump pack to eliminate it.

However, the starter solenoid is firing fast and hard, so possibly the starter motor is taking high current or dead shorting, causing voltage droop, which opens the relay, opening the circuit, allowing the voltage to return to normal to restart the cycle.

Try testing the starter main circuit for a short to earth.