Just Lost Reverse. Solenoid?

Lochlin

Gentlemen,

The '85 DX4 has been running great, forward and reverse. I got on it today, threw it in reverse and nothing. Put it forward and it takes off as normal. Put it back in reverse and nothing again.

Believe it or not, I had a new and correct F/R switch sitting around from a previously owned cart. I put the new switch in the cart and nothing has changed; forward still works great while there is still no activity at all in reverse.

I bench tested the solenoid and it seems to be testing "bad" as I am occasionally getting ohms on a multi-meter across the outside posts while the inside posts are energized. This is my issue, the ohm readings on the multi-meter aren't "slam dunks." It reads "0" until I manipulate the probes pretty well against the outside posts on the solenoid. Does this sound about right? Can a bad solenoid only affect one direction?

Is there anything else I should be looking for?

BGW

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Lochlin

UDPATE

The good news is that my local auto parts store had an exact solenoid in stock. The bad news is that, after being installed, the new solenoid didn't correct a thing.

The manual is pretty much useless for whatever issue I am currently having.

To recap, cart runs great in forward but there is no action whatsoever in reverse. No solenoid click, no activity at all.

Any thoughts?

Lochlin

UPDATE #2

After trouble shooting all of the wiring in my cart I discovered the source of the problem; a portion of the wiring harness that connects to the F/R switch.

The problem resides with the three wire "cluster" that connects to the F/R switch through push connections, not screwed. See photo.

When I "jiggled" this area the cart would go in reverse. I tightened up all of the connectors so that they are snug. However, if I still jiggle this area my reverse cuts in and out. I intend to re-wire this entire area.

My concern is with the diode on the jumper between outside wires. I swear I saw it puff a bit of a smoke while jiggling but, as it was a tiny amount, I am not sure.

I am aware of how diodes function. Is this diode essential? It looks like, ultimately, it only goes to the reverse buzzer (which I don't have) so I don't know why it would be needed. For that matter, should I just remove this jumper altogether?

Attached Images

IMG_20140322_125506.jpg (71.2 KB, 0 views)

Lochlin

This problem has been resolved but it lead to a new problem that will start a new post. Please disregard this post.