Just another simple problem that goes bad!
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Sep 2011
Posts: 29
Likes: 0
Just another simple problem that goes bad!
It all started with rrrrrr! rrrrrr! crack bang! You know the one, turn the key and the wonderful sound of a dead battery. So, I do a charge and get the car to start with another crack bang! Hopefully you don't know this one. This is the one where your substandard battery causes your starter to jump from not having enough amps to turn properly and breaks the drive housing. It also seems that when I put the other starter in 4 or 5 months ago maybe I had 1 to many shims. Either way it sucks. Now, I'm not really bitching here but I got to say damn! WTF! I will write this off as just another fine C4 moment. BTW, I think the new battery and starter helped me as much as the car. End of this story.
Safety Car
Joined: Aug 2009
Posts: 3,752
Likes: 277
From: Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Yeah the starter housing breaks eventually if the gear mesh clearance is not checked, the starter alloy housing takes a lot of force. 
All you need is a paper clip and a screwdriver to check the new starter clearance, with the starter in place pry the starter gear out till it is out all the way. Use a paperclip (wire thickness) to check the clearance between the teeth of the flex plate and starter, if the paper clip fits between the high teeth of starter and low points of flex plate teeth you are good to go.
If the paper clip doesn't fit add shims till you have enough clearance.
Remember starters come in large and small flywheel/flex plate sizes,
the starters with offset bolt holes are for large and the straight parallel bolt holes for the smaller type
Nothing more annoying than fitting the wrong starter and just hearing a whrrrr as the gear is no where near the flex plate/flywheel
All you need is a paper clip and a screwdriver to check the new starter clearance, with the starter in place pry the starter gear out till it is out all the way. Use a paperclip (wire thickness) to check the clearance between the teeth of the flex plate and starter, if the paper clip fits between the high teeth of starter and low points of flex plate teeth you are good to go.
If the paper clip doesn't fit add shims till you have enough clearance.
Remember starters come in large and small flywheel/flex plate sizes,
the starters with offset bolt holes are for large and the straight parallel bolt holes for the smaller type
Nothing more annoying than fitting the wrong starter and just hearing a whrrrr as the gear is no where near the flex plate/flywheel
Thread Starter
Intermediate
Joined: Sep 2011
Posts: 29
Likes: 0
I had pepboys put the starter in this time. I know he did not check the clearance. I'm now worried that it's too tight. Is that possible? He did it by ear and finally left all shims out is this a problem? I also told them if they break anything it's on them!
