Starter trouble: repair or replace

[DuckRyder]

my wife's bff whose husband is a Toyota employee and a Lexus tech, stated to ALWAYS rebuild what came with the car.

I agree with that guy.

 

[bullwinkle]

The Corolla in my sig had a slow cranking issue, so I ordered a new TYC off eBay-it showed up with the solenoid terminal half cracked off. Seller gave me my money back, told me to keep it. JB Welded the solenoid wire on, it's been fine ever since!

 

[mrbreezeet1]

FWIW I used this starter {New from Amazon} for my 2001 Grand Prix. Going on 2 years all has been well!
Not sure if they sell one for your car though?

Amazon.com

 

[ragtoplvr]

I have never rebuilt a starter myself, but my wife's bff whose husband is a Toyota employee and a Lexus tech, stated to ALWAYS rebuild what came with the car. Not only is it not expensive, it's the best quality job you'll ever have....keeping the OE is great advice. Often there is little to no core (which actually is a hint that maybe the rebuild isn't fantastic--AC Delco had no core and at the time, lifetime warranty which I had to use 2X)...

The best warranty is the one you never have to use.

 

[dfarr67]

I just bought a take off alternator- off of a Jaguar.....Denso and fits my Toyota application exactly. Kudos to the guy that figured that one out.

 

[PandaBear]

I would buy rebuild kit and rebuild the OEM one on the Mazda. It is likely Denso and super well build. If you can find the same starter on a Toyota they sell rebuild kit (brush, contact, etc).

 

[ctechbob]

I keep a spare starter and alt on the shelf- keep and repair the oe.

I do the same thing. Replace the OE and then rebuild it and stick it on the shelf for a rainy day.

 

[windeye]

Closure:

1. New starter arrived 7 days later, installed, all good. Fired up on first try. Cleaned all electric connections.
2. Found out the heater hose and quick connectors needed attention, replaced them as well.
3. Wrapped the EGR tube so the nearby heater hoses can live better.
4. Saved the OE starter as the unit itself is good except for the wire between the M terminal and motor. It is part of brush hholder assembly, not readily available.
5. Learned first hand on internals of the starter as well as the starter circuit on the van. It does not have a starter relay.
6. Thanks again for everyone's responses.

 

[repairman54]

Get some corrosion preventer on the braided solenoid connection. I had that happen on a '99 Yukon and a '11 Tahoe.
NYS salt corroded both of my starter motor leads.

 

[windeye]

Thanks fornyour note...I applied battery red spray after dry/clean connection, and after it dried, applied fluidfilm.

 

[mrbreezeet1]

I find it makes more sense to buy new from rockauto as you'll need to mail the core back for re-manufactured and the cost of postage makes it not worth it.

Oh, RA makes us pay for the core return?

 

[ripcord]

Thanks for the follow-up, windeye.

 

[mrbreezeet1]

Sept 21, 2019, I took a chance on a starter from Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00T9ORWIG/ref=ppx_od_dt_b_asin_title_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1. It is odd that the price has gone down. I paid $102.95 back in 2019 pre-covid.
Cross my fingers, it is still working. I rebuilt the old, oe starter with ebay brush and bench tested it. Changing the starter on Honda 4 cyl is a pain. I had to take exhaust manifold out to get to the starter.

I got this one from Amazon 2 + years ago, still going strong. {Last purchased May 23, 2021}
Same seller as above,

Amazon.com

 

[mrbreezeet1]

The TYC new starters have proven to be reliable and priced right on Rockauto. Only used one BBB and that was fine as well.

OK... thanks! rockauto has both reman and new from BBB Industries. I am thinking to get a new one. what do you think?

Anyone have experience with a reman Denso Alternator from BBB Industries from Rock Auto?
Guessing I would have to pay to ship back the old one?

 

[Donald]

Local starter rebuild shop?

 

[John105]

Oh, RA makes us pay for the core return?

If there is a core, you can ship it back via ra’s FedEx acct. a starter cost me $6–with my own ups acct would have been about $18. They’ll deduct the $6 from the core refund. Pretty reasonable.

 

[paulo57509]

If you have a RA core return, save the shipping box it came in.

I packed a starter core in the Denso box with the same dunnage it came in, used filament tape to secure the box and brought it to FedEx. FedEx told me that because of the weight, the item needs to be double boxed (FedEx policy). I had to buy a $7 box but they re-packed it for free.

Yeah, the FedEx return label and the cost of the box cut into my refund but I'm not tripping over a worn out starter that I'll never, ever have a need for.

I used to work at a parts supply place that used to double as an auto-electric shop. The owner closed the shop but still had his equipment in the repair shop; comm lathe, mica cutter, distributor machine, etc.

You can rebuild them yourself but you're limited to just slapping parts and finding OEM quality parts to install.

 

[mrbreezeet1]

If there is a core, you can ship it back via ra’s FedEx acct. a starter cost me $6–with my own ups acct would have been about $18. They’ll deduct the $6 from the core refund. Pretty reasonable.

That's very reasonable.

 

[mrbreezeet1]

If you have a RA core return, save the shipping box it came in.

I packed a starter core in the Denso box with the same dunnage it came in, used filament tape to secure the box and brought it to FedEx. FedEx told me that because of the weight, the item needs to be double boxed (FedEx policy). I had to buy a $7 box but they re-packed it for free.

Yeah, the FedEx return label and the cost of the box cut into my refund but I'm not tripping over a worn out starter that I'll never, ever have a need for.

I used to work at a parts supply place that used to double as an auto-electric shop. The owner closed the shop but still had his equipment in the repair shop; comm lathe, mica cutter, distributor machine, etc.

You can rebuild them yourself, but you're limited to just slapping parts and finding OEM quality parts to install.

Maybe I got lucky, but the Alero's alternator just needed brushes and bearings. I knew the bearings were bad but had to drive it for a while. {long story} Then it quit charging and broke down.
Again, brushes and bearings= good to go!