Oh woe. Bit of what I’ve done. What happened. Where I am now.

Had small weep from water pump. Car ten years old in May next.

Decided to do pump, belts and new adjusters/rollers.

OMG the crank bolt took two of us two hours to remove. Had locked
Engine as per instructions except it seems the pin through the flywheel didn’t
Engage fully.
Marked top and bottom and copied marks across to new belt.
On fitting new belt I ended up one tooth out. Didn’t realise the crank must
Have moved slightly.
Went to local independent LR garage. Was told, without belt in place needed to turn
Crank independent of cam until pin hole came round again. Relocked engine
Leaving cam uncharnged.
Refitted belt and all lines up. Cranked engine over ten times. No problems.
Fitted new clank pulley bolt (much easier than removing).

Rotated engine twice. Adjuster/tensioner in correct position.

Now when I try to start, just get loud click from starter motor solenoid.

Have fitted new starter motor. Still no start.

Headlights go out when pressing start button so think power going to motor.

Need some help as to why no turn over. Engine can still be turned over by hand. So
Not locked I think. First and only FL2 from new. Stornaway Grey 77k

Sounds electrical to me.

Have you tested the old starter motor.

Is the battery sound ? FL2 very prone to voltage drop issues in older batteries when under load.

I suppose you could try turning the engine on the starter by connecting starter directly to a good battery. Jules

Headlights going out and starter clicking usually indicates a flat battery. Did you leave a door/boot open or an interior light on when changing the belt? That could be more than enough to drain an iffy battery. Past: FL2 TD4 HSE Auto
Evoque SD4 Dynamic Lux Auto
Present: Audi A3 S Line.

I left the battery on charge for the six days I messed about doing the job, fitting around work etc. It’s about five years
Old so will have to put a meter on it tomorrow as now at work. First and only FL2 from new. Stornaway Grey 77k

Did you reattach the earth strap to the starter motor bolt?

Yes I have, I also have the additional earth lead attached to one of the starter motor mounting bolts. First and only FL2 from new. Stornaway Grey 77k

The Masked Banana wrote:

I left the battery on charge for the six days I messed about doing the job, fitting around work etc. It’s about five years
Old so will have to put a meter on it tomorrow as now at work.

First thing I’ll say is I’m not a mechanic so what I say may be but;

You say the engine hand turned with no issue. So no miss timing.....

When the crank is timed to the cam, the cam turns at 1/2 speed of the crank so that every second turn of the crank the Ex and in valve open. So if you rotate the crank once to relocate the locking pin, you are in fact going to be one Rev of the crank out in Relation to the original set up. Could this make a difference to a mechanical fuel pump etc? And there for cause a lock up after everything is tightened.

I really don’t know but thought I’d chuck it into the mix.

I can see your thinking but that would only be true if there was another timing pin hole 180° on the flywheel or camshaft pulley from the correct one. There is only one position in which both the camshaft and crankshaft can be correctly locked. Past: FL2 TD4 HSE Auto
Evoque SD4 Dynamic Lux Auto
Present: Audi A3 S Line.

I see,

I thought I’d throw it out there just in case. Hopefully the OP will post the end result.

At the moment the starter loom fuse is Donald ducked. Have sourced a second hand one. So before I fit that going to try and turn starter over with a spare battery. Watch and shoot with that one. Will update when there is more. First and only FL2 from new. Stornaway Grey 77k

So, have turned car over using the starter motor connected to a spare battery and then bridging the gap between the permanent feed and the starter signal feed.

Turns over fine. So now, before I fit the replacement loom (which will need several extra elbows and wrists to achieve)
I will check as many negative earth points to avoid the CAL3 fuse burning out on this lead.

The one by the battery has been cleaned and checked. There is a second earth to the starter motor mounting point.

Any others folks can suggest to check? First and only FL2 from new. Stornaway Grey 77k

Also not a mechanic but have taken enough engines apart and put them back together and successfully started them ranging from an ancient Raleigh Runabout, Honda CB400 F1, and Ducati 900GTS to not be talking rubbish.
If the camshaft is set up with the timing points correct, that is only one cylinders valves both closed? One of the other cylinders valves are going to be open running the risk of damage when you turn over the crankshaft.
I was always led to believe that you shouldn’t turn over an interference engine without a correctly timed cam belt/chain/shaft.

That would be true on a twin cylinder OHC engine but on a 4 cylinder OHC, two pistons will be at TDC at the same time. Timing marks can be in any position though - some engines are timed with both the crank and cam not on TDC for that reason and yes, if you turn a crank with the cam not moving, at some point a piston is going to come into contact with a valve. As long as you are turning it by hand though you should do no damage and can reposition the cam to enable the crank to be turned further. It's normally when you turn it on the starter with the timing out that you'll do damage to the valves. Past: FL2 TD4 HSE Auto
Evoque SD4 Dynamic Lux Auto
Present: Audi A3 S Line.

Okay. Main CAL 3 starter cable fuse was blown. It’s a non replaceable type 150a or so.

Why it’s non replaceable when it was crimped in place I don’t know. Will post a photo from my phone in a minute.

Probable cause was starter motor left out in the cold and damp for too long whilst I fannyed around With the timing.

Fitted an eBay starter/charger loom and bing! Started first time. Runs fine with exception of the coolant drain plug weeping.

Will change the seals on that or will have to get a new one. First and only FL2 from new. Stornaway Grey 77k