Dead starter motor

[dasnoboarder]

Hey, need some advice,

Got home tonight as normal, let engine cool for a few secs before turning off.
Went out about an hour later, and engine wouldn't start.

Turn key to ignition, alarm disarmed, turn key for starter, makes a click, dash lights go out, but no starter motor noise.
Managed to crash start it, ran fine.
Still showing same symptoms after.

So my thinking is nothing was jammed, the problem is electrical. Would this be the solenoid gone?

Any advice?
Try to get solenoid replaced (if thats the problem)?
Replace whole starter? (a friend said I could do an exchange for a reconditioned one).

Cheers,
Andy

[dasnoboarder]

Have just read 'Engine not cranking' thread.

Will check power to solenoid and try to find the big cable connector mentioned if there is none.

[geeves]

Might be the solinoid but could also be the whole starter. Water makes a mess inside and salt water is worse. When my starter failed my first suspect was the battery as the voltage dropped to 4 at the battery when trying to crank. New battery seemed to work for 2 weeks. Should of checked how warm the cable got. On my starter the front bearing was gone as in no longer there and the armature had worn through the stator coils. Nothing left inside worth exchanging or repair.

[dasnoboarder]

Bloody hell! Turns out it was supercheap special battery terminals!
They looked fine but had corroded between the terminal and post to cause just enough voltage drop to cause the problem.

Took it to a sparky this morn, wanted it fixed asap for 4wding this weekend.
They found low voltage at the starter motor, and traced it back to battery terminals, replaced them with quality ones and all is well again.

So weird that the car can start fine every time, and then the corrosion gets to a certain point, and the starter won't even try to go anymore.

Ah well, the MU lives!

[chrisfnq]

good was easy fast fix..
nothing worse than chasing faults...

[geeves]

Its not just the cheap terminals that do that. It used to be fashionable to coat battery terminals in Vaseline but noone does any more. Its suposed to stop this but it gets everywhere

[dasnoboarder]

Yea I'm glad the starter motor hadn't given up or the solenoid gone...

Would have been a much bigger bill