hopefully this is a quick question with a quick answer -

for a few weeks now my starter has hesitated to start spinning when i turn the key to start. i hear the click of the starter relay (i assume), then half a second later the starter fires up, then the truck starts right up.

well, yesterday, with it being 10 degrees outside and my truck sitting in the shade all day at work, not plugged in, when i went out to start it for the ride home, it clicked, but nothing more. luckily, i had gone out about 15 minutes earlier than i usually do to let it warm up while i finished up inside, so it wasn't completely dark out yet.

assuming it was the solenoid sticking on the starter itself, i climbed under the truck, banged on the starter with a wrench, hopped back into the truck and it started right up. i used to have to do this on an old car, so figured it was worth a try, but i does anyone have any advice on what a long term fix? i'd rather not have to do this all the time.

assuming its the cold that caused the problem and the solenoid is getting stuck, is there any way to lube it with a lighter weight grease than might be in there now?

or could it be just corroded connection wires? would that be affected more by a cold engine than a hot/warn engine? i didnt think so.

related info - i have 2 new (last winter) Deka batteries, and the starter is new as of last winter as well - though it is a DB Electrical SuperDuty. ...i know, i know - made in china junk - but money was/is tight and it hasnt given me any trouble to date.

 

Sounds like a warranty situation.

 

I have probably the same starter from DB Electric and (knock on wood) I am going on about a year and a half with no issues. The truck starts FAST too. I was in teh same boat, limited time and funds and needed the truck running. So far I don't regret it.

One other variable to throw into the equation is the starter "relay" on the inside of the passenger side fender. The next time it does this, leave the key in the "on" position and jump the two big terminals on the relay with a big screwdriver or wrench. If the relay is bad, it will "click" but won't actually send power to the starter. If you jump those terminals and the truck starts fine, you probably just need a new relay. It's a cheaper fix than the other options...

 

good point, both of you - i assumed it was out of warranty, but now that i think of it, it could be a 2 year warranty. either way, i contacted them to see what they say.

good point about the starter relay. i assumed that since i heard a click, it had to be working, but it could be bad contacts inside. i'll definitely try that if it happens again. and yes, i've had no problems with the starter until now and the truck does start very fast. it was like night and day compared to my old (perhaps original) starter.

thanks guys.

 

From DB Electrical Returns department: "This starter does not come with atwo year warranty. The warranty on this starter expired on 11/14/2012."

I guess its on to testing the starter relay and checking terminal connections. i guess cleaning the connections is free, so that'll come first. then, i've been meaning to do the stancor GP relay upgrade, so maybe i'll finally buy it and try it as a starter relay first to see if it helps at all...

in the meantime, if anyone else has experienced this 'delayed starter starting', i'd love to hear about it and if/how it was eventually resolved.

thanks.

 

Mine has done that a couple times and it was always a loose connection at the starter relay. Specifically the small connection. It seems like it loses connection and won't keep the relay in.

 

I just recently tore mine down and cleaned it.

The brushes and contacts were good.
What was happening is the copper particles were falling between the coils and making it harder for it to turn.

After cleaning the brushes and everything else. a good grease job and what not has made it run like a champ yet again.

 

good to know - it hesitated longer than normal this morning, but did start on the first turn of the key. once i get a spot in the barn cleared out so i don't have to work in the cold/snow this weekend i'll pull it in and have a look at all those connections for any obvious culprits.

...my steering column just took a crap last night, though - dumped all ***** from the upper bearing on my knees while pulling into the grocery store parking lot. so, now i need to be able to start it consistently, then steer it without tons of effort. ...and to think i previously had no plans this weekend.

 

Ooh, that steering column can be a bear from what I hear. Good luck with the repairs.

 

yeah, that's what my reading last night revealed pretty quickly. i think i'm going to spend my time finding a decent used one in a junk yard rather than tearing apart and rebuilding mine.

the annoying part is that i'll be doing my auto to manual trans swap soon, so i could just scrap all the shift lever parts on the column while tearing it apart. if i do the column work now, though i need to keep the shifter functional so that i continue to use the automatic for the next couple of months. ...so, i think i'll just try to live the busted column until i do the trans, then just replace it wholesale with an manual column - hopefully with better bearings...

aaaaaanyway...