Hi everyone,
I am facing a no crank issue with my 6A12M converted Lancer. It used to start with this motor so this is not a post conversion issue.

I originally suspected it was a starter motor issue and performed the following tests:
1. Checked the voltage of the battery (12.6v)

2. Checked the direct battery positive feed to the starter has voltage; it does however I did not record the voltage so cannot comment currently (will perform this test tomorrow)

3. Checked that the starter solenoid (S terminal) is receiving voltage once ignition is turned; 10.3v was registered which is within “normal” even though a 2.3v volt drop seems excessive (more on this later as something odd happened with this test)

4. Checked for voltage from the solenoid directly to the actual starter motor while turning the ignition on; 0v registered. At this stage I thought “Ok, problem is with the starter solenoid”

Odd behavior in test 3:
The voltage would go up to 10.3v when I tried to start the motor at the starter solenoid. Then when I stopped trying to crank the motor and just left they key at “on” in the ignition the voltage was at 9.5v (I was expecting unless I am trying to crank this should be 0). Finally when I turn the key to the off position the voltage takes about 3-5 seconds to slowly drop.

At this stage I removed the starter motor thinking it needs replacing and while out I bench tested it directly with the car battery. The pinion spring up and the starter motor started spinning very quickly, so it seems the starter motor and solenoid are fine.

What could my problem be?
Starter motor relay?

I plan to reinstall the starter motor and try to connect the solenoid S (ignition/crank) terminal directly to the battery live feed that goes to the starter solenoid. Also will do a voltage drop test and possibly use jumper leads to provide ground/positive to the starter to see that the load of spinning the engine is not preventing the starter from working.

Any other tests I should perform?
Any ideas of what this could be?

If it is the starter motor relay, is this a common part on other Mitsubishis that are more easily found at wreckers?