hey guys, I got stranded today at work because my starter went out. It's only a few months old, and it broke in the exact same manner as the last 2, both of which also failed very quickly. So far as i know, the only reason a starter would keep cracking in the nose housing part (like they have been) is if its installed wrong, and I'm pretty sure i installed them all correctly, they were all shimmed so there was no grinding, and no whining after start-up from a hanging gear, so i really dont know what the problem is.. when i was putting this most recent one in, my freind said he thought the longer of the two starter bolts was bent slightly. It looked fine to me, but on the off chance that his eyes are better than mine, would a slightly bent bolt cause uneven stress on the housing and cause it to crack like these have been? If this is the case, any ideas on where i could get some nre starter bolts in the next day or 2? I pickup supplies for work at a bolt and screw supply place, so if i go in there, is there anything specific i should ask for, or as long as their bolt is dimensionally the same, is that all I need to worry about? One of the guys I work with whos a pretty big gear head said I should just get a starter for an older 'vette, since their housings were made from stainless steel, and are otherwise the same and would bolt right in. I'd never heard of this, so I figured I'd see if any of y'all knew anything about this. My thought is, even if a vette started will bolt in, and last longer, that would kinda be fixing the symptoms and not the problem, so If anyone has any ideas why I keep cracking starters like this, any light you could shed would be very helpful. Thanks a bunch, and happy motoring! PS- The motor is a 72 455 with a TH-400 Switch pitch tranny
Th only thing I can think of is the bolts you are using. Starter bolts are tapered and unlike other bolts. In the area of the bolt where there is no threads, it is fatter in order to seat the starter firmly. If your not using starter bolts, I'd bet that would be the problem. Otherwise I'd check your flywheel or flexplate for straightness. If the car starts hard when Hot, I'd knock the timing down a notch or two. That would do it. Joe :beer :
I've been using whatever bolts were in there when i bought the car a few years back.. I haven't noticed them having a taper, but if its pretty gradual, I probably wouldnt have noticed it without actually looking for it. It starts fine when hot, actually starts up quicker and easier, so I'm pretty sure timings not the issue. Since I cant just get a set of generic bolts with the same length and diameter, any ideas on where i could get a set of new starter bolts in the next few days?
You can go to any auto parts store and ask for them at the parts counter. Napa has them for sure. Joe:beer
Had a friend many years back who had a pretty stout 455, but when it sat a day or so and the battery wasnt at its finest hour, when he would go to start it, the motor would turn over slowly, and he would release the key and the motor would kick back(I guess thats the only way I can think to explain it), and it would knock the nose off the starter like you are explaining. He had some pretty serious compression(was a strong runner), and Im sure the timing could have been a factor as well. Just sharing what Ive seen. Not sure it helps......o No:
Cory, Is the engine kicking back on you and causing the nose of the starter to break? This is my guess. What usually causes this to happen is timing. Your cylinder is supposed to fire a certain amount of degrees after top dead center. I am thinking the actual number is around 18* but dont quote me on this. If the cylinder is trying to fire early then it will therefore cause the engine to kick back and of course then bust the nose off of the starter. It could also be in the distributor. Every distributor should be put on a machine and verified to make sure it has the correct initial and total advance. This is cheap... maybe $25. Take Care
I know how you feel.. In the past few years I've gone through three starters and two flywheels. The starters allways broke at the gear housing. I finally got fed up with having to warranty it at Autozone every 10 months (had 4 of them... man my motor is getting oldou: ) or so and the last one I bought was an actual GM starter. The Mech who put on my second flywheel found it for me... That had to be almost 4 yrs ago... Although that flywheel broke about 2 yrs ago. but still running the GM starter. Good luck, I wouldn't go With an Autozone starter unless I had no other choice.
Went through the same thing with mine. warrantied about 5 advanced auto starters. I even made a bracket to go from the end of the starter to the block to keep the starter from twisting, it helped but did not cure the problem. I finally bought a mini starter from a member on the board here. I have not had a problem in a year or so. doesnt even hesitate in 90 + temps. :grin:
Same thing happened to me shortly after I purchased my Convertible. The guy at O'Reilly's said the timing can cause this to happen.
This happened to me once. I never figured it out, but after I rebuilt the engine it never happened again...does seem drastic though, don't it? lol A have a friend who's an ex-pro mechanic. He ran a service station in the early '70s. According to him, this can be caused by of all things the distibutor cap having a lot of moisture in it. He explained it at length, and I generally have a clue, but I couldn't make heads or tails of it, myself. Just thought I'd pass it along.
