I have 96 Jetta gls 2.0, auto and I was hooking up my amp to it and it sparked from the battery terminal and smells like hot burning wires. Then now my car will not start. I have all lights, sterio, etc but no start. Not even a bumb. Took starter out and check out fine. Also checked all fuse and all seems good. So then I check to see of there is power to the starter and came up hot. So now I'm stumped. Please help. Thank you.

SOURCE: won't start

The [PG] starter motors are [non-]repairable starter motors. They have pole pieces that are arranged around the armature within the starter housing. When the solenoid windings are energized, the pull-in winding circuit is completed to ground through the starter motor. The hold-in winding circuit is completed to ground through the solenoid. The windings work together magnetically to pull in and hold in the plunger. The plunger moves the shift lever. This action causes the starter drive assembly to rotate on the armature shaft spline as it engages with the flywheel ring gear on the engine. At the same time, the plunger closes the solenoid switch contacts in the starter solenoid. Full battery voltage is then applied directly to the starter motor and it cranks the engine.

As soon as the solenoid switch contacts close, current stops flowing thorough the pull-in winding as battery voltage is now applied to both ends of the windings. The hold-in winding remains energized; its magnetic field is strong enough to hold the plunger, shift lever, starter drive assembly, and solenoid switch contacts in place to continue cranking the engine. When the engine starts, the pinion gear overrun protects the armature from excessive speed until the switch is opened.

When the ignition switch is released from the START position, crank voltage is removed from the starter solenoid S terminal. Current flows from the motor contacts through both windings to ground at the end of the hold-in winding. However, the direction of the current flow through the pull-in winding is now in the opposite direction of the current flow when the winding was first energized.

The magnetic fields of the pull-in and hold-in windings now oppose one another. This action of the windings, along with the help of the return spring, cause the starter drive assembly to disengage and the solenoid switch contacts to open simultaneously. As soon as the contacts open, the starter motor is turned off.


Here is the wiring circuit for the NEUTRAL SAFETY SWITCH which is what I believe to be your problem, do the reverse lights come on when the keky is ON and the transmission selector is in REVERSE? IF NOT you have a renge selector problem.
if you find this information helpful please give me a good rating and please contact me if you need any further assistance.
Thank you, Randy

www.aceautomotive1.com

SOURCE: 1994 Toyota Tercel Starter Problems

sounds to me that you have an igniton problem not a starter problem and or if you have or had an alarm system could be cause if u do give me feedback and i will explain but seems that your starter is fine from what u say but if you think in terms of the elemts to start a vehicle batery gives pwoer to ignition which sends to starter which gives spark etc i would check you ignition system something is causeing a short and not alowing starter to function

SOURCE: 2000 Windstar cannot start

I JUST HAD THE EXACT SAME PROBLEM ON MY 2000 WINDSTAR SEL LAST WEEK..IT WAS JUST ELECTRICALLY DEAD..I CHECKED OVER THAT THING WITH A FINE TOOTH COMB AND COULD NOT AT FIRST FIND THE PROBLEM..WELL AS IT TURNS OUT, MY INSTRUMENT CLUSTER WAS BAD AND IT WAS CAUSING ALL THIS HAVICK !!! I REPLACED THE CLUSTER ONLY TO FIND OUT THAT THE DEALERSHIP HAD TO PROGRAM IT BEFORE THE VEHICLE WOULD START DUE TO THE ANTI-THEFT SYSTEM..IM NOT SURE IF THIS IS YOUR PROBLEM BUT IT IS IDENTICAL TO MINE AND I REALLY HOPE THIS HELPS..
P.S.-I GOT MY CLUSTER AT A JUNKYARD BECAUSE A NEW ONE CAN BE PRICEY !!

SOURCE: possible bad alternator?

I went through three alternators before we found a good one for our saturn sl2. Now she has been good for two years. All I did was go back to where we bought it from, they hooked up the alternator to a machine and gave us a new one when it read that it was faulty.

SOURCE: Car has good battery doesnt make any noise after turn key

YOu may just have a bad starter relay or solenoid switch both will run you under $30 bucks to replace. Good luck