by any chance are you buying autozone or kragen rebuilds

 

Did they put the rear engine plate back on when they changed the motor ? If it's not there the starter drive will be forced into the flywheel & burn up quickly

 

Yes, the last couple were from autozone, the one with the lifetime warranty.
this last time they were out, so they gave me a refund and I got an Autolite from Checker. Are the autozone ones not good?

 

thats a good point, I don't know, and its something I will have to check.

 

Just thought I would give an update on my starter problem.
I took it to the tech school (free labor!!!), and they concluded the flexplate is bad. One of the starter bolts was stripped out and wasn't holding it tight, and therefore chewed up the teeth on the flexplate. Hopefully this will fix my problem.

 

I agree that the rebuilt starters you get today aren't worth a dime. I purchased mine flast year from a KOI store, (Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana) I guess they are a tri-state company. I had some problems with it in August, so I took it out for testing. When I did, I noticed the bolts holding the starter together were loose, not the bolts holding the starter in. I tighted them and reinstalled the starter, it started working again. Last week, the thing acted up again, natuarlly when it too darn cold to work on it. This time, its the bendix. Anyway, I took the starter off and replaced it. It works good now. I wish I had purchased the Autozone starter. At least they are open late and on the weekends. It may be a pain to take off and take back, but they always have the part in and don't hassel you when you do bring them back.

My problem was a bad rebuilt starter, however, the auto store manager does have a point. If your rear seal is leaking, it will displace the greese in the starter bendix and cause it to fail prematurely. If this happens the starter will wine, but will not turn the engine over. If the starter turns slowly, or not at all, I don't think oil is an issue.

A loose or mis-aligned starter is best guess. However, since you said the engine was new or rebuilt, is there a chance that someone put incorrectly sized bearings in the lower end? If these are too tight, this will cause hard starting. Can you trun the engine over by hand, using the fan?

Placing a clamp on ampmeter on the starter wire will show how much current the starter is pulling. You could compart this to the spec to see if the engine is ok. How does it act when you put the new starters on it?

Please write back and let us know what you find.
John24255

 

I have an Autozone starter on my truck that has been there for years. I have replaced it 3 times, I think over the last 10 years. I dont' really mind that much because it is easy to get to, has only 2 bolts, and is free when I take it back to them. They never really hassle me about it at all. Their parts may be a little cheaper than NAPA or IAPA, but for a lifetime warranty, I keep dealing with them.

 

I can't say enough good things about Autozone. I maintain my car, my wife's, both son's cars, who are now in college, my daughter's car, and my two trucks. As you probably guessed, I almost live there! I think I have bought enough parts from them that I should qualify as part-owner!

Anyway, they treat me good when I go in. Of course, I go so often they know me by my first name. I like them because they offer many services that others don't. The NAPA where I live won't tell you your engine fault code, or what parts to replace to correct it. Heck, Ford and GM charge over $80 just to do that. Try getting NAPA to loan you a tool for replacing an O2 sensor, for free! They also have a great website.

I do wish they still turned brake components. Where I live, only NAPA does this. It is hard to catch them when they are in since they close early on Saturdays and are not open at all on Sundays.

Thanks,
John24255