help: starter problems, it spins and throws but does not contact flywheel
 

help, im having some weird starter problems. i though my solonoid was going dead but i found out that it was ok when i had it tested at 2 different places. i decided to put it back in and the starter seems to just spin around without contacting the flywheel. i then disconnected the starter's spinning power but left the solonide power still on and tried to start it, i could hear it throwing, so i hooked up the starter's power again and tried again, again i can hear the starter spinning but it not contacting the flywheel. anyone know what is going on here? have i hooked up the starter wrong over 15 times in a row??? (that's how many times i have taken it apart, put it back together and tested).

oh and i tested the starter to see if it was throwing far enuf and indeed, it is with in spec and all the teeth on the shaft is just fine

im sure many of you guys have taken your engines apart much less starter on and off multipul times. any help would be great.

thanks

P.S. is there some kinda trick to lining it up? the starter seems flush to the bell housing. is it too high? the bolts seem to not leave that much room to move the starter around.

ttt

strange. :confused: it is throwing all the way out? and not touching? hmmm... i dont know man. :(

yep, it is throwing all the way out. i checked the clearence/gap and its correct

what do you hear when you try to start it?

are you sure its contacting the flywheel?

i would check again, has to be a mounting issue...

how are the teeth on the flywheel? if they are shot it will have nothing to engage with.

i check the teeth wheni removed it and they are fine. i added more grounding straps and even hooked up jumpercables straight to the body/bolts of the starter adn that did not do anything at all. i hear a click as it throws and the whining of the starter as it spins super fast but the engine does not crank at all. i think its also a mounting problem but cant understand what it could be as the holes do not give for a lot of adjustment. currently im trying to get my hands on a Colonoscope/Sigmoidoscopy to see if the pinoin gear is actually touching the flywheel right at all. (note: cost of this instrument=5-6k... lucky thing is that i got hookups :))

just put some paint on the very tips of it and see if it scuffs off.

The starter motor could just be shot.
It may have enough power to spin itself but not the engine.

i can hear the starter spinning though, could it be spinning itself inside but not the pinoin gear? then again, when i checked it out, it was spinning the pinoin gear quite fast.

Note: I did mention I had it tested at napa and checkers and their diagonstic macheines said the starter was ok.

hmmm did you mean paint on the pinoin gear of the starter or on the flywheel. i can see that there is dust on the flywheel and its undisturbed

ok, i did get my hands on a Colonoscope/Sigmoidoscopy and can see that the pinoin gear is matching up perfectly to the flywheel ring (i mean its fricken dead on matching up)... that means the spinning noise i am hearing is comming just inside the starter, hence the starter is internally spinning and the pinoin gear is not. ok soemone tell me what the hell i did wrong here. i have it opened up again (the starter) and it is not stripped in side (the gearing). the only thing i can think of is some how i got the order of assebly wrong adn teh starter is spinning in reverse which is wrong, the starter has a one way gear in it which prevents the spinning of the engine in the wrong direction which i think is what is wrong, can someone tell me what direction the engine is suppose to be spinning? as of right now, when the starter spins, its theortically trying to spin the engine when looking back to front in a clockwise direction i think, as in the starter is spinning counterclockwise when looking from the back (and by that, i mean the part with the eletrical hook ups) to the front where it meets the flywheel ring. some one tell me what i did wrong here, did i some how put the brushs on wrong? is there some kinda polarity thing here which is screwing me up? is my starter blown?

ok, i fixed it!

Turns out it was turning in the worng direction because of the housing for the starter was 180 degrees out of sync. thanks for hte suggestions guys :)

i guess the thing ot remember is to mark everything before you take it all apart :)

where he hell is the starter? I started my car today and only got a click, second turn of the key, click, 3rd turn of the key it cranked and car started. then again its snowing today in NYC so maybe battery discharged but it also happened this past saturday on a bright and sunny/warmish day. is my starter busted? thanks

no its your ignition switch, try taking it apart and cleaning it

how ? where? step by step plz!

your ignition switch is what you put you key into :) in anycase, you might also wanna check the clutch switch right in front of your clutch pedal as well. i guess taking out your starter and cleaning it out would not hurt as well.