Q: I think the motor is having a starting issue. New battery, separate solenoid, and put in a new starter. Are all the cables good?

Hey there. The starting system has to turn the engine over at a certain minimum rate (RPM) in order for the engine to catch and run. If there is no voltage drop between a new fully charged battery and the starter and the starter motor itself is new, there is something mechanically wrong with the engine.

Try removing some of the spark plugs to relieve the amount of "work" that the starter has to perform when it turns the engine over and see if that makes a difference. Also, try removing ALL of the spark plugs and turn the engine over by hand (at harmonic balancer, use large bolt with 18 inch wrench) and see what kind of resistance you are getting. It should not be much. If the engine turns freely by hand (18 inch wrench; then it should turn freely) and the electrical wiring to the starter are good, the new starter motor you have may not be good (by the way, standard bench testing of a starter is useless the starter has a Bendix drive - such starters will test perfectly good even with broken or defective as Bendix drives that make them unable to turn over an engine). Ideally starters have to be tested under a load, not simply free wheeled unloaded which reveals nothing as to their installed performance. If you need help with a diagnosis of the hard start, a certified professional from YourMechanic can come to your car’s location to inspect and repair the car.