Starter or ? Problems
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Cross-Country
Joined: Feb 2012
Posts: 62
Likes: 13
From: Southern Illinois
Starter or ? Problems
1994 E150 with 5.0 engine.....
noticed the starting was draggy for a couple days then would do nothing but click the relay when turning the key....battery was 8 years old so started there....new battery, same problem....removed starter...bench checked and also had parts store check...all is good....replaced relay with new one....still nothing but a click....got underneath the van and turn engine by had to make sure it hadn't locked up....engine turns....so now what? Note...I did notice when I replaced the cable there was spark at the negative when I installed it last...any help would be appreciated.
noticed the starting was draggy for a couple days then would do nothing but click the relay when turning the key....battery was 8 years old so started there....new battery, same problem....removed starter...bench checked and also had parts store check...all is good....replaced relay with new one....still nothing but a click....got underneath the van and turn engine by had to make sure it hadn't locked up....engine turns....so now what? Note...I did notice when I replaced the cable there was spark at the negative when I installed it last...any help would be appreciated.
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Cross-Country
Joined: Feb 2012
Posts: 62
Likes: 13
From: Southern Illinois
I did notice a growling sound once when the starter tried to turn....the test at the parts stores are basically like mine...just sees if it will engage the drive and turn the motor...no real load on the starter...wondering if it might have bad bearings...
Post Fiend
Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 19,311
Likes: 97
From: Waterloo, Iowa
If you compare a new starter with a horked, worn out starter/junk reman etc, the bad starter will usually have quite a bit of resistance to turning over by hand. A failing starter will often draw a lot more amps, eventually it just fails. Often a couple good love taps with a BFH will get at least another start outta the deal.
You can sort of get an idea of this by measuring the voltage drop while cranking if you have something to compare it to, another trick is crank while the headlights are on. If they really dim hard, that's an indication too. The manual for my Y block says 155-195 amps for example so any loose or corroded clamps, poor engine ground, bad cables will cause trouble.
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You can sort of get an idea of this by measuring the voltage drop while cranking if you have something to compare it to, another trick is crank while the headlights are on. If they really dim hard, that's an indication too. The manual for my Y block says 155-195 amps for example so any loose or corroded clamps, poor engine ground, bad cables will cause trouble.
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Fleet Owner
Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 21,254
Likes: 1,656
From: Reynoldsburg, Ohio
I've very rarely had any sort of casual bench test of a starter reveal anything reliable in the real world or once it was actually installed. Most parts stores can't really test a starter---this sort of thing needs to be done in-vehicle if you're not yet convinced the starter itself is at fault or failing.
Were this me and the quick test of headlights on while cranking showed any significant drain I'd just install a new starter. Your symptoms could be a battery going bad, loose connections as Ted mentions or just a starter about to fail.
Were this me and the quick test of headlights on while cranking showed any significant drain I'd just install a new starter. Your symptoms could be a battery going bad, loose connections as Ted mentions or just a starter about to fail.
Post Fiend
Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 19,311
Likes: 97
From: Waterloo, Iowa
The "spark when connecting cable" isn't what you want to see either.
What torques me is the quality of remans, am on my third starter in maybe 20k miles. Didn't wait for this last one to fail, though. Bought a "new" starter from DB electrical, NOS bendix and solenoid. I may have to learn how to rebuild them, can't be too tough.
What torques me is the quality of remans, am on my third starter in maybe 20k miles. Didn't wait for this last one to fail, though. Bought a "new" starter from DB electrical, NOS bendix and solenoid. I may have to learn how to rebuild them, can't be too tough.
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Fleet Owner
Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 21,254
Likes: 1,656
From: Reynoldsburg, Ohio
Same can be said of brain surgery----the pro's always make it look sooooooooo easy right!? 
Instead of wasting a ton of time or money on a cheap reman'd part at least look into a new Ford or NAPA part. Sure they're not $29.95 exchange but for me I'd rather install it once and not worry about for another 200K miles.
I've also found nearly new take off OEM starters on eBay---once bought one for like $30 shipped. Of course I've not seen them that cheap again but great deals still exist.........
Instead of wasting a ton of time or money on a cheap reman'd part at least look into a new Ford or NAPA part. Sure they're not $29.95 exchange but for me I'd rather install it once and not worry about for another 200K miles.
I've also found nearly new take off OEM starters on eBay---once bought one for like $30 shipped. Of course I've not seen them that cheap again but great deals still exist.........
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Post Fiend
Joined: Apr 2002
Posts: 19,311
Likes: 97
From: Waterloo, Iowa
I did buy a new starter, from DB electrical? Seems to be good stuff. See previous post. Replaced bendix and solenoid with good NOS at the same time. Now, what I was referring to was the old Ford type starter for the Y block - the remans work, but they don't last particularly long. They shouldn't be too tough to rebuild the innards I wouldn't think.
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