I believe my pilot bearing went out my car wont start when i turn he key it just sounds like my transmission is spinning hearing metal almost like something is dragging. Thought it could be my bearing in the transmission but i just replaced the tranny. Hoping to avoid a rebuild. Want to try to figure out the problem before i start tearing **** apart.. 1987 na fc

 

Sounds more like a bad starter.. like the bendix is not extending fully or at all. Easy part to replace.

 

Indeed it does and it's certainly worth checking the ring gear while the starter is out, too.
Not only is this the easiest thing to check first, but by doing so you can manually spin over the engine and see if there's any problem, non starter related.

 

will do any steps on this or a thread? Cant seem to find much. This tbe first car im working on all by myself.

 

Most people just buy a whole new starter. Bendix is what us old people call them. It's just what others may call a solenoid. It's all the same thing. I don't know if just replacing the solenoid is even done commonly anymore.

 

ohhhh okay ya im on my way to get a new starter as we speak. gonna replace it tomorrow will update thanks

 

To clarify, The solenoid is separate from the actual starter motor.

 

so buying a new starter will not fix my problem?

 

I can't answer that. It will surely guarantee you most likely have a good starter. But then you're just part swapping.

 

The solenoid IS ON the starter. It's that other cylindrical thing. Google is your friend my man.

 

i cant fing anything about the Bendix if i were to purchase this starter the bendix is a whole separate part ?

 

okay thats what i thought
you threw me off on the wording on the other post i feel bad i was doing research and that threw me totally off lol . misunderstanding sorry

 

It may not be available, didn't mean to come off wrong. You used to be able to replace the solenoid (Bendix). Try Rockauto or something but, if it's not available, it's new starter, if it's bad and it's not something else..

 

yea im on the way to the auto parts store my local has a starter for cheap so im just gonna go with the guarantee of having a whole new starter

 

when you take the starter off,check the ring gear on the flywheel.

 

Pulled my starter off today and went to order the replacement since nowhere was carrying one. Idk what a bad starter looks like just by looking at it. The teeth looked to be in decent shape. I guess ill find out tomorrow when i install the new one.

 

bench testing a starter isn't rocket science, and there is a thing called youtube that has walkthroughs on just about everything.

jumper cables, attach ground to the starter case and temporarily attach power to the starter motor post off the solenoid to test the motor/bendix, spade connector to test the solenoid actuation.

 

This! Too bad the post came a lil' late. Don't swap the part without testing first.

(Not all parts can be tested easily, but this is one of them)

Word of advice since you're new to working on cars: Always diagnose properly (you'll have to do some research, but it's much easier nowadays), don't just start throwing parts when a problem comes up. You'll save much money this way.

 

The thing is even if the starter works when you bench check it. It could still turn out to be bad. I pulled my starter on my car and left it hanging there while I checked it with jumper cables and battery. Everything worked but it was still was bad. I took it to the place that checks them next and they replaced some of the insides and it worked like a champ after that. It was old and rusty in there and needed freshened up. It would have been cheaper for me to just replace the starter though, then having them rebuild that one. Just food for though.

 

Don't be cheap... Just spend the $60 and replace the starter...

 

way ahead of you i want the peace of mind knowing its new ant that its not the problem anymore.

 

Just make sure you're installing it correctly, and buying the starter that is matched for the bellhousing/flywheel setup you have on the car.

When you swapped transmissions, did you stay within the same series and engine? S4 NA to S4 NA for example.

 

Yes I stayed with the same transmission when I was replacing the starter and putting it in the flywheel that was in side the transmission seemed really loose I don't know if that's normal or not I'm hoping this works

 

The flywheel or the ring feels loose?

 

I'm assuming the flywheel the starter was fine I installed it and now I have a short somewhere I'm stumped