Starter died

[elconquestador]

My starter has been acting up for a few weeks and it has finally died. It would not crank, and I could hit the starter a few good whacks with a long wrench, and eventually get it to start. Well I think it has finally turned its last turn. So, is it something I can repair, or does it need to be replaced? I remember hearing something about brushes going bad on starters and causing this. Napa has the brushes. Most likely the starter itself or the solenoid? Thanks for the help.

[M Code]

My starter has been acting up for a few weeks and it has finally died. It would not crank, and I could hit the starter a few good whacks with a long wrench, and eventually get it to start. Well I think it has finally turned its last turn. So, is it something I can repair, or does it need to be replaced? I remember hearing something about brushes going bad on starters and causing this. Napa has the brushes. Most likely the starter itself or the solenoid? Thanks for the help.

 

 

Pull the starter and rebuild it..

http://www.rockauto.com

Carries the brushes, also check the solenoid as these can give problems.

 

EZ to rebuild, more trouble to pull it out..

A local electrical shop can rebuild it bearings, brushes, kleen the armature for < $50

 

Just my $0.01..

[elconquestador]

Yea, I definitely want to do it myself to save dollars. Just didn't know if someone on here might have some advice or has done it before. I've never torn into a starter. Doesn't seem too bad though. I've got decent enough mechanical/electrical knowledge to figure it out. Lol.

[Indiana]

You can easily bench test the solenoid and the start motor separately so you'll have to figure out which is bad first.

[elconquestador]

I just pulled it out, and the little wire coming off of the solenoid that has a plug on it was not connected to anything. Where does that hook up?

 

 

 

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y34/criminaljd/IMG00203.jpg

[elconquestador]

Just got back from Autozone. Starter tested fine, but their setup couldn't test the solenoid... Any ideas now? I am gonna start tearing into it.

[JAinsworth]

From the picture above, it looks like the flat male connector is corroded. Try cleaning it back to shiny, do the same with the connecting end. Put some dielectric grease on it and plug it back in. Without a good connection there, it won't turn over.

Jimmy

[elconquestador]

Thanks Jimmy, I'll give it a try. Any idea where the female end that is hanging loose hooks up? It was just barely soldered on to the solenoid and when I moved it a bit, it broke off.

[Indiana]

That loose wire goes to nothing important its not even in the manual so it may be from another vehicle and I don't remember seeing that it might be on some older one or its for a noise filter of some kind. This same starter is used on many different mitsubishi vehicles and I think on many fwd mopars that used Mitsu. engines so it may have been the wrong part in the box or it just didn't matter that wire went to nothing on this car.

 

To test the solenoid all you do it put 12v+ to that male spade terminal and the ground to anywhere on the starter and it will throw the drive gear out.

 

The solenoid is actually the switch for the starter motor and the contacts where the the disc on the plunger that makes contact when it gets all the way to the back of the housing energizes the starter motor and at that same time it has the drive gear thrown all the way out and is engaged to the ring gear on the flywheel. If with a good battery that isn't working consistently you can replace just the solenoid, it has a loop on the end where it hooks to the lever that pivots and causes the gear to slide out.