i have a 1999 <nobr>ford f250</nobr> psd with a 7.3l and i just returned from a deployment in afghanistan and the first day im back i take my truck out for a drive it started fine but made a little noise starting up then it was fine i drove around for awhile then i went to the bank wen i went there i turned off the truck and went inside then wen i came out and tried to start it it made a horrific grinding noise i immediatley new it was the starter so i took the inspection plate off to see if there was anything wrong. there was nothing so i had my wife start it while i was underneath and the pinon gear was contacting the flywheel but it wouldnt turn the flywheell it would just spin and grind against it. so i manually turned the flywheel a little and tryed it again and it started with some horrific grinding noise with it so i took it home and removed the starter and it didnt look bad. so i thought it might have been the starter being loose so i installed it again and made sure it was tight and went to start it and the same grinding happend and the flywheel would not turn so i went to autozone got a new starter and replaced it and again the same grinding noise with no start to fallow so i just got back from returning the starter and just want to know if there is any other options other then replacing the flywheel because thats gonna be a job lol...any incite would be very appreciated......<nobr>ford trucks</nobr> rule!

 

Is it possible that the btteries may be dead. Sounds to me like there just isnt enough juice to start the truck causing the the starter gear to engage the flywheel and not be able to turn it.

I would take the battteries out and have them load tested at auto zone, if 1 is bad replace them in pairs. Other than that maybe a loose battery cable, or corroded cable?

Welcome home and thank you for your service.

Sarge

 

thank you sir....wen i first got home i did have to jump my truck so thats not a bad idea i will put the charger on and try starting it to see if theres any differnece....thanks for the reply..

 

No problem,

I willing to bet the batteries are toast. Start with the simple stuff first, then go from there.

If the batteries are 4-5 years old might as well replace them anyway. Im a 6.0 guy and they are hard on batteries, Im sure the 7.3 isnt as hard on them but with all the electronics on these things and the fact that winter is comming I dont go more than 4 years on my batteries.

Also my if my truck is going to sit for more than 2-3 days I put the CTEK maintainer on it and it keeps the batteries fresh so when I want to drive it I know it will start...cheap insurance for $200.00 worth of batteries.

Good Luck but I think you will find with fresh batteries you will be rolling gain,

Sarge

 

well i charged my batteries it was worth a try but it didnt work.. im pretty sure the flywheel is the problem i dont see how cuz the teeth dont look that bad but thats really the only thing left that i can think of

 

Thank you for your service. I was over for OEF 08, 09 and 10 as a contractor.

If your batteries are weak from sitting for a year, charging them will not solve the issue. Yank them out and have them tested.

 

Just a suggestion I don't know much about diesels but we had a 84 Bronco 2 4x4 did this all the time grinded when starting. I thought it was the starter replaced twice actually before concluding not the starter so i found out it was the ring gear. Is there a ring gear in a Super duty I am not completely sure again just a suggestion before finding out I would have more professionals verify. Just a suggestion for a fellow member and a great person whom sacrificed his life for everybody here in america.
Trav

 

well i dont really wanna by new batteries cuz it started a couple of times before it actually went sour...and like i said wen i watched the starter, it was shooting out and connecting with the fly wheel but it looked like it was just spinning beside it so im thinking that the flywheel teeth are bad but they dont look like they are so im kinda wary of dropping the tranny and replacing the fly wheel cuz thats alot of work and if thats not the problem im gonna be mad lol and ive had battery trouble before and its never made my starter grind against the fly wheel and since it worked at first then just went bad its wierd and i even changed the starter out and it still did it so i just dont want to spend money on somthings that i dont have to i figured by putting the battery charger on it with it set on engine start it would work but it just did the same exact thing....im confused lol but thanks for the support gents it means alot.

 

btw red neck ford is that ur house cuz thats badass lol

 

oh and as far as a ring gear u have to be more specific cuz theres ring gears in alot of different parts of vehicles was urs in the starter or the fly wheel or what red neckk ford??

 

No it isn't but I do have a similar house like that it is a double wide combined with 2 single wides and will have another addition coming. Send me a PM and I can send pics if you would like. Both houses we have built are custom made by us. Ours is still a work in progress. And thanks to our superduty we were able to do everything we have. flywheel was where the ring gear was bad on our bronco 2 but it was standard too. I was just suggesting it I am not a master diesel mechanic.
Trav

 

yea man that house is badass lol my wife seen it and was like hell no but shes crazy lol and im not sure if it has a ring gear or not all i know is that the fly wheel connects to the crank shaft flange with a couple bolts and possibly has some spacers but either a ring gear or flywheel i gotta drop the tranny so i guess ill find out lol

 

I saw the pic and had to put it for my sig pic. I will send you pics of our house tomorrow. My dad loves building custom houses and he knows more about the ring gear project I was in school when he did it (I am only 16). I am just full blood redneck heart and all shoot the bronco 2 we have now is held up with duct tape and bailing wire litterally but I won't redneck our super duty. And by the way yes all those are our project trucks. I do hope you find your problem like I said I am not a diesel mechanic I am still learning on our 02 F250 4x4 V10 gasser.
Trav

 

Before you go any furthere I would recomend that you take the batteries out and have them LOAD tested.Just putting a charge on them wont tell you if they are good or not.

I highly doubt that you have an issue with the flywheel, only other thing I would say is see if you can turn the engine over by hand, maybe a pulley or A/C compressor has siezed up causing the engine not to turn over.

Im still bettin on bad batteries tho.

Sarge

 

My 1999 did the same thing, I have 2 or 3 teeth on ring gear bad, when you trun of a engine it stops ar the same place most every time, thats why only a few teeth get messed up. I bought me a new flywheel, about 6 months ago but have not put it on, because I remembered some one telling me years ago to shut it off in gear then put in park and motor will stop in a different spot,well it has worked for 6 months and if it works I aint workin in it.