Starting Problems

[apelke]

Have always been able to just jump my 65 but now it does nothing. Tried jumping it and the cables got really hot and started to smoke. Thinking it could be a short but where do we start to look?

[simplyconnected]

Begin troubleshooting at the engine. Is it stuck? If you can turn the crank with a wrench, go on to the starter motor.

Your jumper cables are telling you that the starter motor requires too much current. If the starter motor is bad, it could be from a shorted field winding or shorted armature (they are internally connected in series). This usually happens from overheating the starter. - Dave