I assume its close to what bobcat uses. Three wires, one is ground, generally black. One is pull, i think its red, One is hold, i think its white. You can test by grounding the ground wire then apply power to red or white, see what one makes the plunger snap back, this is the pull coil. The other is the hold. The pul coil only goes on for a few seconds, the hold stays on. If you keep power on the pull coil, it will burn out.
I tilted up the cab to check the wiring and discovered that there was about 6 inches of dirt in the bottom. It took me about four hours to dig and wash it out. I then wiggled all of the connections. After this it started up and I haven't had any problem since.
I am having almost the identical problem on my Cat 246. thanks for the help on the first reply. I was also just going to remind you if you hadnt already.... check the fuel cut-off fuse. in my model year its the top left 10amp fuse behind the seat, and that can cause the same symptoms. I had that happen last year when it got real cold... new fuse and away she went.
It looks like a Caterpillar is the same as a Bobcat. I was able to start the machine by giving 24 volts to the red and white wires. As soon as it started I removed power from the pull wire and it kept run until I removed the power from the hold wire. The wire color changes at the plug. The wires that go from the plug to the solenoid are white for pull and red for hold. Before the plug it is red for pull and white for hold. I checked the voltage on the wires going to the plug. When I try to start the machine I have power to the hold wire but not the pull wire. I checked the fuse and it is good, and there is power to the fuse. Is there a relay or timer for the pull signal? What else could be bad?
Its obviously not getting a signal to turn on.... There is a way to go around this. Hook the pull wire to your starter. When the starter is cranking, the pull coil is on. When it starts and you let go of the key it will let go too leaving the hold coil to hold the plunger in. This is how i wired a solenoid up to my 743, been working flawlessly for 5 years now. Just an option if you can't find the fault, or to keep it going till you find the cause.
where is the relay for the solenoid located? I couldn't find it.. it maybe that I guess as well?