gleninsandiego

The starter on my 71 big block barely turns over when hot.
Do I need to change the starter or the solenoid or both?
Assuming I do, which one should I get?
I have a 71 with a 69 396 block and a 73 muncie LOL
So I go to the catalogs and see different starters for big blocks
depending on what trans and block it has.

Confused in San Diego

OldCarBum

stingr69

If it turns over slow, the solenoid is good.

Check the ignition timing. Make sure the cables are still good and clean connections. Battery needs to be in good shape and fully charged.

jim2527

Insulate it. Switch over to the later heavier gauge battery cables.

BlowAMouse

Very common BBC issue, like stated above, insulate the starter and put on larger battery cables.

Chevy made a heat shield just for this issue. I use an aftermarket heat shield that wraps around the starter. But going to larger battery cables made the biggest improvement.

Or, get a gear reduction starter (power master is also my choice), wrap it AND put larger cables on. the forget about it

BlowAMouse

none of that answered your question, call the starter manufacture, they will set you straight.

derekderek

The small permanent magnet starters are Superior to the big 10MT starters that date to the early 60's. Straight drive or gear reduction. Gear reduction are better but pricier.

lionelhutz

The BOSCH SR8552N starter should work. It came in mid 90's trucks on both the SB and BB (7.4L) engines and is a staggered bolt pattern used with a 168 tooth flywheel or flexplate. It should work better than the original style starter that car came with. You can use the Bosch part which is about $150-$200 or get a generic one that is very similar for about $60. Many people have had great luck with the cheaper versions.

I believe the battery cables you'd want are AC Delco 2SD95XA for the positive cable and AC Delco 2SD30X for the negative cable.

CanadaGrant

One thing to remember is that with the earlier stock points ignition systems you have a 12v. wire running from the starter to the coil to supply 12v for starting only. Stock starters were 3 pole to accommodate the starter to coil wire but the mini starters are 2 pole. If you are running a HEI, Pertronix or aftermarket ignition you are Ok. I have a clockable Powermaster on my 69 and really like it.

lars

I don't think you need either. You need bigger battery cables.
Lars

7T1vette

A high probability is that the large grounding wire for the starter and engine is either missing or in bad shape (corroded terminals or disintegrating wire inside the insulation). That wire should run from the right side frame area to the right side motor mount & front starter bracket.

69autoXr

I've had the same problem with my car with SBC lately. I found my positive battery cable rubbing on the driveshaft (relocated battery to passenger side), and had worn through the insulation and some of the copper is gone. Cable or starter or both?

Question for Lars, my problem seemed to start right around the time I added vacuum advance; does the engine pull enough vacuum during cranking to pull in the vac advance (HEI w/AR22 can)? Or is it more likely that it was just coincidence?

SteveG75

GM increased cable size in '72 to help solve this problem. I made my own replacement cables for my '75 a couple of years ago. Made a huge difference.

I replaced all my cables with 1/0 cable from West Marine. Flexible enough and has a nice coating. I did the battery positive, battery negative, and engine grounding cable. I also added a terminal block by the starter because I had some extra wires (MSD, fans) attached at the starter. I then added a 1/0 cable from the terminal to starter. Total cost was less than the factory cables.

More info:
Spent like $80 to get the thicker cable at West Marine. It is made for boats and is nice and flexible. Made 4 cables and even used the tool at West Marine to crimp the terminals.

- Positive to new terminal block ~8 feet
- Terminal block to starter ~1 foot
- Negative to frame ~2.5 feet
- Engine to frame ~.5 foot

Used 1/0 gauge wire.
https://www.westmarine.com/buy/ancor...04?recordNum=7

0Willcox Corvette

My humble opinion says to inspect the ground cable from the battery to the frame. If it's swollen then it's creating resistance and it's easy to look at and tell. The cable will be swollen... or you'll have blue corrosion where it bolts to the frame... just take a peek at it... Next I'd pull the ground off the starter and clean it, then I'd also clean the ground to the bellhousing....

Usually when heat is involved in starting issue with a car the issue is a ground/resistance issue. As the cable heats up it creates more resistance and less of a ground. (In simple terms). I've had customers that have purchased heat shields, starter wraps, new starters and every other gobble-d gook you can think of to resolve this issue only to find out the issue was the main ground from the batter to the frame or the ground at the bellhousing.

If you inspect and do these things and you still have the issue then I'd possibly change the starter.

IMHO,
Willcox

gleninsandiego

Thanks so much for all the suggestions
I am going to work on this bad body today

Glenn in San Diego

69autoXr

Bumping back up with a question. Last year I was dealing with a slow start condition, so over the winter I replaced my positive battery cable with 1/0 West Marine cable as SteveG75 suggested. I have not yet replaced the battery-to-frame ground (still using factory small cable), and so far my starter is still slow. Will replacing the battery ground help since I haven't done it yet?

SteveG75

IMHO, yes. You have just moved the restriction from the positive cable to the negative cable.

I am fighting some starter issues myself these days but I think my issue is that the battery is dropping too much on start. 2 yrs 8 months old. Just doesn't get driven enough. If voltage drops too much, the FAST XFI resets and then fires a spark at the wrong time, causing a nice kick back. Has a tendency to bend starter bolts that then causes grinding issues.

cv67

x2 cables really make a difference. Corrosion can get under the shielding where you cant see it and cause problems
Same problem on my 02 1500 they are original..time to upgrade. Good grounds help everything