Notices
1999 - 2003 7.3L Power Stroke Diesel  
Sponsored by:
Sponsored by: DP Tuner

Seems like the starter....

Thread Tools
 
Search this Thread
 
Old Feb 4, 2016 | 11:43 AM
  #1  
BillyBob69's Avatar
BillyBob69
Thread Starter
|
Lead Driver
20 Year Member
Liked
Loved
Community Favorite
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 7,404
Likes: 52
From: Wheatland, Mo
Club FTE Silver Member

Seems like the starter....

E99, F350
Had one battery die right at 5yrs old about 2 weeks ago so I replaced both.
Ran to get hay and while in the hay barn loading up...I had to move the truck a few more feet. I had just backed it in and shut it off. Only this time when I tried to start it..nothing. Just a click and nothing. Hit the key a couple more times real quick and got an attempted half crank but then nothing.
Got up underneath with a hammer and tapped the starter while my wife held the key in the START position and I could hear it kind of try to turn... like a half revolution...sounded like metal on metal scraping.
But still no start. Batteries still giving plenty of power. Never showed any signs of failing...just decided not to crank. Tried crossing the solenoid on the fender but no joy. Same results.
Had it towed home and once the snow melts some, I will replace the starter but I wanted confirmation.

Thoughts?

Thanks all!
 
Reply
Old Feb 4, 2016 | 11:49 AM
  #2  
Sous's Avatar
Sous
FTE Leadership Emeritus
Veteran: Air Force
Community Builder
Top Answer: 1
Top Answer: 3
Joined: May 2014
Posts: 27,352
Likes: 5,946
From: Lake Hartwell, GA
FTE Emeritus
Sounds like you are on the right track. I would be looking at the starter as well. Maybe check the grounds, battery connections and starter connections just to be sure before buying a new starter.
 
Reply
Old Feb 4, 2016 | 12:51 PM
  #3  
HKusp's Avatar
HKusp
Lead Driver
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 7,760
Likes: 27
From: Hampton, Maryland.
Club FTE Gold Member
Check that the bolts are good and tight holding it in first. You were under there looking at it and I would think it would stand out to you if it was loose, but you never know. I rebuilt my 5.0 notchback Mustang motor once, totally due to the fact that the starter was loose and banging against the flywheel. I heard and felt this huge banging and thought for sure it had dropped a valve or spun a main bearing. I got in there pulling everything down to the heads before I realized it was just the starter bolts had backed out. Superduty had the same thing happen in the middle of a snowstorm back in 2010. Pulled the threads with it. Ended up having to heli-coil the block on that one.

If it's in good and tight, then yeah, certainly sounds like starter went bad on you.
 
Reply
Old Feb 4, 2016 | 12:58 PM
  #4  
BillyBob69's Avatar
BillyBob69
Thread Starter
|
Lead Driver
20 Year Member
Liked
Loved
Community Favorite
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 7,404
Likes: 52
From: Wheatland, Mo
Club FTE Silver Member

I did check for the bolts and they were all good.
Battery terminals are all good and tight. That was actually my first check since I had recently replaced the batteries.
Something I found odd...
Reman'd requires $110 core charge and cost $170
New is $185 and no core charge.... WTH? Seems odd to me.
 
Reply
Old Feb 4, 2016 | 01:49 PM
  #5  
HKusp's Avatar
HKusp
Lead Driver
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 7,760
Likes: 27
From: Hampton, Maryland.
Club FTE Gold Member
If you have a reputable shop around you, get the old one out, have it rebuilt as opposed to the chinese junk O'Rellys and AutoZone, etc. are selling. If not, get the one with the lifetime replacement warranty...
 
Reply
Old Feb 4, 2016 | 02:03 PM
  #6  
BillyBob69's Avatar
BillyBob69
Thread Starter
|
Lead Driver
20 Year Member
Liked
Loved
Community Favorite
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 7,404
Likes: 52
From: Wheatland, Mo
Club FTE Silver Member

Originally Posted by HKusp
If you have a reputable shop around you, get the old one out, have it rebuilt as opposed to the chinese junk O'Rellys and AutoZone, etc. are selling. If not, get the one with the lifetime replacement warranty...
Yep...already checking on a good shop. Hoping to avoid the stuff sold at the local part stores and paying the high price of disposable parts.
Then again....how tough is it to rebuild one?
 
Reply
Old Feb 4, 2016 | 02:05 PM
  #7  
HKusp's Avatar
HKusp
Lead Driver
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 7,760
Likes: 27
From: Hampton, Maryland.
Club FTE Gold Member
I think it is pretty basic. The starter is magic to me though, never had one apart, but I think it's just brushes, a bearing and some windings. The thing with electricity, to me it's magic and it hurts when it gets on you. Anything beyond that and I am pretty lost. LOL.
 
Reply
Old Feb 4, 2016 | 02:09 PM
  #8  
BillyBob69's Avatar
BillyBob69
Thread Starter
|
Lead Driver
20 Year Member
Liked
Loved
Community Favorite
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 7,404
Likes: 52
From: Wheatland, Mo
Club FTE Silver Member

Originally Posted by HKusp
I think it is pretty basic. The starter is magic to me though, never had one apart, but I think it's just brushes, a bearing and some windings. The thing with electricity, to me it's magic and it hurts when it gets on you. Anything beyond that and I am pretty lost. LOL.
LMAO!! Great way to explain it!
I will dig around. Luckily it is my hay and trailer truck so I am not dead in the water. Will look into a rebuild kit or a rebuild shop.
Either way I still have to wait for the snow to melt and the concrete pad to dry up just to pull it so...


Thanks!
 
Reply
FTE Stories

Ford Trucks for Ford Truck Enthusiasts

story-0

10 Things Every Truck Owner NEEDS (2026 Edition)

 Michael S. Palmer
story-1

Rezvani's Latest Post-Apocalytic Monster Is a Ford F-150 Raptor Underneath

 Verdad Gallardo
story-2

Top 10 Most Expensive Ford Trucks Ever Sold on Bring a Trailer

 Joe Kucinski
story-3

2027 Ford Super Duty Buyer's Guide (Every Model, Engine, & Package)

 Brett Foote
story-4

Top 10 Ford Truck Tragedies

 Joe Kucinski
story-5

AEV FXL Super Duty - the Super Duty Raptor Ford Doesn't Make

 Brett Foote
story-6

Lobo Vs Lobo: Proof the F-150 Lobo Should Be Even Lower!

 Michael S. Palmer
story-7

Ford's 2001 Explorer Sportsman Concept Looks For a New Home

 Verdad Gallardo
story-8

10 Best Ford Truck Engines We Miss the Most!

 Joe Kucinski
story-9

2026 Shelby F-150 Off-Road: Better Than a Raptor R?

 Brett Foote
Old Feb 4, 2016 | 02:18 PM
  #9  
HKusp's Avatar
HKusp
Lead Driver
Joined: Jun 2007
Posts: 7,760
Likes: 27
From: Hampton, Maryland.
Club FTE Gold Member
Yeah, I heard you guys got hit hard this week like we did last weekend. Have fun, let me know if you find a good rebuild kit. I would like to have that in the back of the toolkit...
 
Reply
Old Feb 4, 2016 | 04:09 PM
  #10  
Walleye Hunter's Avatar
Walleye Hunter
Hotshot
10 Year Member
Liked
Loved
Community Favorite
Joined: Mar 2014
Posts: 10,750
Likes: 1,065
From: Douglassville, PA
I never heard of a starter rebuild kit so if you find one please share it. I never had one of them apart but I do not think that there are many moving parts in there. I have disassembled a couple of electric motors though and the principle is the same. I have a basic idea of how it works but explaining it is not easy for me. The copper winding is intertwined through a steel piece around the outer edge of the starter body with a large round hole in the center (it might be called an armature). Inside of that is the piece that spins and I'd call it a rotor but there could be a different term for it. The flow of electricity around that steel outer piece creates a magnetic force (an electromagnet), which in turn pulls the rotor around. I surmise that there are bushings in the ends of that rotor to hold it in place that will eventually go bad as well as a couple of other things. If one was to crank too much on that starter the innards could be damaged by the heat.

 
Reply
Old Feb 4, 2016 | 04:16 PM
  #11  
Whitey Ford's Avatar
Whitey Ford
FTE-Spread The Knowledge
15 Year Member
Liked
Loved
Community Favorite
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 2,285
Likes: 240
Club FTE Silver Member

Have you checked battery voltage?
 
Reply
Old Feb 5, 2016 | 07:40 PM
  #12  
F350-6's Avatar
F350-6
Post Fiend
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 26,966
Likes: 50
From: Texas
Recently had my starter go out. When cold in the mornings, turn the key and I got nothing. Thought it was the clutch sensor at first so I changed it. No joy. If I held it to start for 5 or 6 seconds, it would finally start to turn over.

Stopped by Oreilly's and bought a brand new ($10 core) chinese 3 bolt starter. All I can say is wow. Turns over as fast as the new 6.7 at work does now.
 
Reply
Old Feb 5, 2016 | 08:02 PM
  #13  
dn29626's Avatar
dn29626
Cargo Master
Joined: Oct 2009
Posts: 2,500
Likes: 14
From: South Carolina
Originally Posted by F350-6
...Oreilly's and bought a brand new ($10 core) chinese 3 bolt starter. All I can say is wow...
In 2015 I did this too because I could not have the truck down...then dropped the OEM starter off at a rebuilder. About $100 for the rebuild. On the shelf waiting...
 
Reply
Old Feb 8, 2016 | 03:10 PM
  #14  
BillyBob69's Avatar
BillyBob69
Thread Starter
|
Lead Driver
20 Year Member
Liked
Loved
Community Favorite
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 7,404
Likes: 52
From: Wheatland, Mo
Club FTE Silver Member

Originally Posted by Whitey Ford
Have you checked battery voltage?
Yep 13.4 on each battery... separated.
Replaced those about 2 weeks ago.
 
Reply
Old Feb 8, 2016 | 03:59 PM
  #15  
Whitey Ford's Avatar
Whitey Ford
FTE-Spread The Knowledge
15 Year Member
Liked
Loved
Community Favorite
Joined: Feb 2008
Posts: 2,285
Likes: 240
Club FTE Silver Member

Originally Posted by BillyBob69
Yep 13.4 on each battery... separated.
Replaced those about 2 weeks ago.
I missed the part you said about recently replacing them. When the starter gets that bad it's usually to late to rebuild. I second what Chris said.
 
Reply



All times are GMT -5. The time now is 03:46 AM.

story-0
10 Things Every Truck Owner NEEDS (2026 Edition)

Slideshow: the best gifts for dads & grads

By Michael S. Palmer | 2026-06-02 21:45:57


VIEW MORE
story-1
Rezvani's Latest Post-Apocalytic Monster Is a Ford F-150 Raptor Underneath

Slideshow: Called the Fortress, the 850-horsepower pickup combines Raptor underpinnings with military-inspired features, survival equipment, and a starting price of $285,000.

By Verdad Gallardo | 2026-05-30 18:33:59


VIEW MORE
story-2
Top 10 Most Expensive Ford Trucks Ever Sold on Bring a Trailer

Slideshow: 10 most expensive Ford trucks ever sold on Bring a Trailer.

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-05-27 16:24:34


VIEW MORE
story-3
2027 Ford Super Duty Buyer's Guide (Every Model, Engine, & Package)

Here's everything that has changed for the latest model year.

By Brett Foote | 2026-05-27 16:17:28


VIEW MORE
story-4
Top 10 Ford Truck Tragedies

Slideshow: Top 10 Ford truck tragedies.

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-05-18 19:34:33


VIEW MORE
story-5
AEV FXL Super Duty - the Super Duty Raptor Ford Doesn't Make

And it might be even better than that.

By Brett Foote | 2026-05-18 19:26:42


VIEW MORE
story-6
Lobo Vs Lobo: Proof the F-150 Lobo Should Be Even Lower!

Slideshow: Does lowering an F-150 Lobo RUIN the ride quality?

By Michael S. Palmer | 2026-05-18 19:20:37


VIEW MORE
story-7
Ford's 2001 Explorer Sportsman Concept Looks For a New Home

Slideshow: Ford's bizarre fishing-themed Explorer concept has resurfaced after spending decades largely forgotten.

By Verdad Gallardo | 2026-05-12 18:07:46


VIEW MORE
story-8
10 Best Ford Truck Engines We Miss the Most!

Slideshow: The 10 best Ford truck engines we miss the most.

By Joe Kucinski | 2026-05-12 13:09:47


VIEW MORE
story-9
2026 Shelby F-150 Off-Road: Better Than a Raptor R?

Slideshow: first look at the 810 hp 2026 Shelby F-150 Off-Road!

By Brett Foote | 2026-05-12 12:50:07


VIEW MORE