'90 Corolla starting issue

[killermrob83]

Greetings, fellow AF'ers. 1990 Corolla LE, 4A-FE, 114k miles, 5 speed manual, runs quite well......consistently getting 45mpg (I drive with fuel economy in mind....very easy!) This past winter when it got really cold, the car would not start for me on the first attempt at turning the key in the ignition.
I could hear the starter motor running, but it was not engaging with the ring gear. It also was not grinding as if the teeth on the gears were messed up....it would just spin freely. Every time this occurred, except for once, the car would always start normally on the second attempt. On the other occassion, it spun twice, and then started on the third try. This non-starting issue happened about 6 times this past winter, and hasn't cropped up again for the past 2 months or longer.
2 days ago I pulled into the gas station to fuel up, and when I went to leave, the car would not start. When I turned the key, absolutely nothing happened. My first thought was that I did not have the clutch pedal fully depressed; sometimes the floor mat will bunch up just enough to keep the pedal from traveling the distance necessary to meet the interlock. I pulled the floor mat up and out of the way and gave it another try, but to no avail.
At this point I am hearing absolutely nothing, no starter solenoid clicking, nothing. Got out and checked the battery connections for corrosion and tightness....all seemed to be in order. Got back in and tried again and got the same results. Took an impact screwdriver and rapped on the starter motor body a couple of times thinking that maybe the brushes were worn to the point that they weren't making good enough contact with the commutator. This little trick will often get you a handful of starts out of a Ford starter ( the vibration causes the brush springs to push the brushes down onto the commutator), but wasn't sure if it would work on the Toyota starter. As I look back in retrospect, if the solenoid wasn't picking up, my problem wasn't with the brushes. Got back in the car and tried again, got the same results.....nothing. I did notice that with the key held in the start position, and depressing and releasing the clutch pedal (I was figuring that it might be the switch at this point), the idiot lights (oil pressure, battery voltage, check engine, etc.) would dim ever so slightly when the pedal was depressed and the clicking of the clutch switch could be heard. This slight dimming of the idiot lights leads me to believe that the clutch switch is good and there is something in the starting circuit that is drawing current but not functioning properly. I push started the car and drove home from there. The car has started perfectly every time since then, about a half dozen starts. Any and all ideas will be greatly appreciated.
Please contact me by email.... [email protected]
as I do not always have time to log onto the AF.

Sincerely,
Rob