Starter problems

Posted: Sat Apr 16, 2005 8:47 pm Post subject: Starter problems

Tried to start her up today, nothing. Changed battery, all the dash lights go on and everything but it just clicks, doesn't even runt the starter engine. Crying or Very sad

I know the battery is fresh.

Any ideas? Blonde question

Don't tell me i have to change the starter engine now as well...

Iketani Joined: 21 Mar 2005 Posts: 35

Swedish=on

*Dubbelkolla anslutningarna mot batteriet, det är väldigt vanligt att lite skit eller liknande begränsar effektuttaget tillräckligt för att solenoiden inte skall slå till ordentligt.
*Lyssna på solenoiden, ett svagt klick är antingen dålig kontakt eller en defekt solenoid, ibland kan det dock vara så att solenoiden hänger sig.
*I nödfall kan du kolla startmotorn genom att "tjuvkoppla" den, dvs koppla dig förbi solenoiden. Jag vet inte hur det ser ut på en ae86:a, men på en gammal volvo kan man lägga en skjuvmejsel mellan polerna.

Swedish=off

Hope that helps.......

Posted: Sat Apr 16, 2005 9:38 pm Post subject:

i had the same problem, it clicks, and it clicks but u can't hear or feal anything else.

the problem was solved by putting in a new starter (an old one, not so €€)

Posted: Sat Apr 16, 2005 9:43 pm Post subject:

Thanks for the help guys,

PDE: I double checked the battery connections, didn't help... Even tried with start cables from another battery, same thing.

Anyone know if a Starter from a AE92 4-AGE is the same?

Moderator Joined: 13 Sep 2004 Posts: 1032 Location: Sweden

Looks to be the same starter.

i just checked on my AE92GTi

Posted: Sat Apr 16, 2005 10:03 pm Post subject:

Thanks for the help, Kristian! Smile

Posted: Sat Apr 16, 2005 10:11 pm Post subject:

The starters are different, the later AE92 one is a gear reduction one, meaning it spins faster and starts the engine quicker. The fit the '86 ok but i had to remove the heat shield from the starter to get it in, it apparently is a little sensitive to exact mounting position, but i got it working first try so i'm not sure how true that is. I have a new one waiting on my shelves ready if i ever need one.

Posted: Sat Apr 16, 2005 10:58 pm Post subject:

First: Check the starter wire
Second: If it seems connected ok, try and directly connect a wire from the battery to the starter and see if it starts.
Third: while trying to start, hit the starter with a FBH (Fucking Big Hammer). Might wan't to use something to reach in there thoug, like a piece of pipe or wood.
If that fails, then pull it out and open her up. I had the same problem a thousand times before. Usually its the starter wire or something similar. When we first got the car we couldn't fix it the usual way, so we pulled the starter and opened it up. It was pretty obvious that the bearings and crushcollars had failed on the starter, preventing it from turning. All it took was 5 euro's at a dynamo revision company and she's as good as gold.
Not bad for a couple of rookies.

Posted: Sun Apr 17, 2005 1:29 am Post subject:

I had the same (recurring) problem for a bit.
Solved temporarily by just switching the key from power to start again and again in rapid succession. After 10-20 tries, it worked itself loose (or whatever) and the car started up.
If that fails, follow Ivan's advice and smack it with something hard.

I got mine swapped for a new one since I really really want it to *just work*.

Posted: Sun Apr 17, 2005 1:50 am Post subject:

Thanks for all the help, guys!

I tried hitting the starter.. didn't work eather...

How much is a fresh starter in .dk?

Posted: Sun Apr 17, 2005 10:48 am Post subject:

Did you try bridging it? (direct wire from battery to small terminal on starter). As I said before, I had this problem many times over, and if you only hear a clicking relay then you probably have a loose or broken wire somewhere. You can easily check by taking off the oil filter (if you still have the bottom exhaust heat shield, otherwise you can probably see what your doing anyway).

I really cant understand this "it doesnt work so the part must be changed" attitude. I would probably have wasted 4 perfectly good starters if I did this everytime I couldnt start my car. So far I've had starter wires come loose, immobiliser failure, and when I just bought it bearing failure (it did turn over a little bit then). These days I've taken out the immobiliser, have new bearings in the starter and my engine fires up on the second revolution of the starter engine.

Posted: Sun Apr 17, 2005 12:33 pm Post subject:

You need to spend 200 kr and fix your starter... I'm not sure what the parts are called but I can show you pix later Cool

Posted: Sun Apr 17, 2005 2:57 pm Post subject:

... when mine didn't start it was the wire i wiggled it around a bit and it would start the wire is really small and thin ....

Wataru Joined: 07 Apr 2005 Posts: 50

wht not spray lubricants on it.... keehehehe jk only Cheerleader

FBH(fucking big hammer)heheheehehehe..... Mr. Green

Posted: Sun Apr 17, 2005 3:44 pm Post subject:

This is what you need:

Takumi Joined: 14 Jan 2005 Posts: 200 Location: Zg, CRO

I had that problem on my AE82... the problem was starter selenoid switch [i think thats whats caled]..

I couldn't find a new one, so I disamble old one and olied it... it works for now [5 months]...

Posted: Wed Aug 31, 2005 8:26 pm Post subject:

Changed the topic title and made it a sticky.

I suffer from the same problem at the moment. Battery fully charged, all I hear is a click and 1 out of 10 times it makes about a half revolution. I guess it is not a loose connection but something with the starter.

Anyone got a good pic to show me where to apply the BFH? Blonde question

Takumi Joined: 08 Sep 2004 Posts: 322 Location: Slovenia

Look into my project, I had a problem with a starter too...

The common problem on the starters is, that the B+ contact gets galvanised during usage (the pic of galvanised contact is shown there).
So the electric contact is poor - the consequence is that only few % of the current flows, so the starter doesn't have enough power to turn the engine or it turn's it just a few times...
The other case is that the pinion doesn't return when the car starts.

A friend of mine dissasembled and changed contact, as his department in the company produces starters Smile

Regards
Andrej

Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2005 9:45 am Post subject:

Thanks! I'll apply the BFH today and see if it helps. (first aid)

I'll probably replace the contacts anyway, do you have the partnumbers of the contacts?
And how hard is it to replace them?
Do I need to do anything special to remove the starter? (e.g. prevent oil leakage)

Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2005 10:25 am Post subject:

There are 2 ways of taking the starter of banpei:
1: least stressfull method, more expensive: detach exhaust manifold to make room to get to the starter, then just loosen the 2 bolts and disconnect wiring.

2: Method I used (on the older type starter):
Get under the car, take off the small metal heatshield that's bolted to the starter engine. Try to disconnect wiring as far as possible, loosen bolts holding the starter in place (You can reach one from under and one from above the car). Now with the starter loose, you can manouver it out between the exhaust manifold and firewall.
I've used this method 3 times, it is a pain to do and it will leave some wounds on your hands before your done, but you will save on the cost of exhaust gaskets.

Takumi Joined: 08 Sep 2004 Posts: 322 Location: Slovenia

You reach the contact just with unscrewing two screws at the back of the starter and removing the metal cap.
I've made the new contact myself, you only need a piece of copper about 2.5mm thick and some ammount of patience...

I used the second method to take the starter in and out. I didn't have to go under the car to reach the heat shield's screw to unscrew the shield. A also removed the oil filter, to put one hand under the exhaust header.

To get the starter out of the engine bay is complicated, as Ivan already described, but to get the starter back in is twice more complicated. This is because you have to screw the starter's shield when the starter is already inside (under the exhaust header). So you don't see the screw, as in my case the lower exhaust heatshield wasn't dissasembled from the exhaust header...

Regards
Andrej

Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2005 11:19 am Post subject:

Thanks!
Method 1 sounds like a no-go at the moment...

Hmmm, sounds like a lot of work since my car was lowered by TE71Corolla and thus leaving less space from underneath. Also sounds like I might need to use a bridge to reach it. I'll have a look at it tonight.

Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2005 12:09 pm Post subject:

You could try to see if you can get a jack under the crossmember and then lift it up and put it on axlestands..

Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2005 9:55 pm Post subject:

Okay. That was a total waste of time...
I couldn't reach it at all with a hammer from the enginebay and the car is too low to crawl underneath and apply the hammer. I do have a jack (oem), but no axlestands so I was not going to risk breaking my neck (or some other bodypart) by crawling underneath and try to reach it and the jack tipping over...

So I tried to follow the cables from the enginebay but I could not see where the cables came from or went to. Probably one of the cables packed in a tube which go to the engine for all I could tell. Then it went too dark to see and I gave up. Neutral

Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2005 11:15 pm Post subject:

Art, I need to get my drive on things to you, then we can easilly get underneath your car safely...

I don't know if there is a chance you can get over here tomorow night?