Starter Problem/ Now Solved.

[Neon4Life]

11.5 volts is plenty to crank. It might be getting drained from attempting to start. The 14 volts would be from the other car? that was jumping it.

If the voltage is dropping to say 10 or less just from spinning the starter without engaging the flywheel, then it might need a good overnight charge, or replaced.

The third bolt/wire, does it go from the solenoid to inside the starter?

If so, it is the power to the starter motor.

so something is suppose to go wired there.. i didnt have any connections left after being done.


oh and yes the wire goes from it to the starter from what i can tell.

Should've just waited for the dealer instead of dealing with parts store reman junk...

yeah i know.

[occasional demons]

If you wired the battery cable to the wrong side of the solenoid posts, it would spin as soon as the battery was connected. My guess is, if the starter motor spins when you hit the key, the solenoid is moving, so the starter gear should be moving out with the solenoid switch. It has to move to make the motor contacts. The overrun clutch on the starter gear may just be bad. The gear would engage the flywheel, but the shaft inside will just spin and the gear will not. If the '03 starter uses the solenoid to move the gear out.

I know the older ford starters used a helical slide to move the gear out, as the starter motor wound up. Then the engine starting, moving faster would kick it back, as the starter stopped. Being the '03 is the cheapest, and I don't know what it looks like, I can only speculate.

[Neon4Life]

I see what your saying..

Oh & I'm using a 01 RT starter if that makes any diff. =)

[NickKo]

Should've just waited for the dealer instead of dealing with parts store reman junk...

So this was a rebuilt starter, not a 'new' one.

well everyone.. got a new problem.. i bought the new starter & bolted it on and nothing.

I wouldn't call this a 'new' starter, then.
I would call it a 'replacement' starter.


My poor brother went through this crap years ago, with cheap remanufactured /rebuilt starters.
He needed a starter for his '71 Ply. Fury. He got a cheap piece of crap rebuilt unit from Trak Auto. (remember them ? Basically what AutoStoned is today)
The 1st replacement starter, wouldn't even turn over, it acted like it was seized.
So he went back and exchanged it, for another cheap piece of crap from Trak.
The 2nd replacement starter turned over, all right, but wouldn't disengage !

He finally gave up on the cheap peice of Trak Auto starter, and got a better one from NAPA, for a few more dollars.
It was also a reman unit, but more expensive, and much better quality.
It actually worked !!


Moral of the story:
Rebuilt /remanufactured starters from the cheap chain stores, are suspect, since they use the cheapest, low-rent, low-pay, flat-rate, mass-production rebuild shops..... where they 'rebuild' starters, in between their mota-and-ganja-smoking breaks.


- Nick

[occasional demons]

Well if you pull it back out, and just plug in the small wire to the solenoid, but leave the battery to starter cable off, and ground the starter body, wrap the big cable end in tape to be safe, the gear should pop in and out with the key put in start/let off. With the big wire off it will not spin, and jump around.

You could also do this if you have a way to make contact with the solenoid pin in the connector. You would just need jumpers from the battery to the starter. At least 18 gauge wire for just testing the solenoid action. Just Vise grip the ground wire to the starter flange.

[Neon4Life]

Yeah nikko- I got it from advanceautoparts..reman wit lifetime warranty. I just couldn't wait 4 days for the dealer to get me a new one. But if the one I'm getting tomorrow doesn't work then ill just order the one from the dealer. Advance usually is good on parts but just my luck it wasn't good. Live & learn. My fault. We don't have a napa.. we used to but it left town & the closest napa was like 45min away & they also had to order it. Well see what happens tomorrow.


OD- ehh well just see what happens wit the other one tomorrow. Ill test that one before leaving the store..I shoulda done it wit this one but I was dumb.

[00Neon RCR]

i got power. lights horn etc. starter isnt engaging the flywheel. im assuming i got a bad starter..? cause i hear it spin but not ingage.

I bet that the starter solenoid got 'stuck' from sitting in the box so long, unless it was defective to begin with.

I'd try carefully rapping it with a hammer (disconnect your battery terminals first) and see if it engages afterward.


- Nick

I disagree Nick. It has to be with wiring, I had this problem and I took a starter off a perfectly fine car that would start up and go; however I had the SAME problem. I thought maybe the wire that shoots the "Plunger" out was bad or something. So I made a wire long enough to tap it on the battery and shoot the plunger out while someone else turned the key. Still had the same problem. I think if I had spent more time on it, could have figured it out. It's NOT getting enough power somewhere thoughout the wiring. IMO.

Adam

[NickKo]

I disagree Nick. It has to be with wiring, I had this problem and I took a starter off a perfectly fine car that would start up and go; however I had the SAME problem. I thought maybe the wire that shoots the "Plunger" out was bad or something. So I made a wire long enough to tap it on the battery and shoot the plunger out while someone else turned the key. Still had the same problem. I think if I had spent more time on it, could have figured it out. It's NOT getting enough power somewhere thoughout the wiring. IMO.

Adam

Good points.
I'm too quick to condemn starters from AutoStoned and Advanced.

IF it is the wiring, then there's a possibility, that Manny doesn't need a new starter at all !

The solenoid wiring, should be getting current, when the key is turned to the 'crank' position.


- Nick

[Neon4Life]

so in plain inglish.. the 01 RT starter does not work on an 03 RT neon. different connections, thats why the 01 i got wasnt working. so i took it back got my money back. Decided to go next door ( literraly 20 feet away ) to CarQuest and they had an 03 starter in stock. same as the old one i took of. anyways i had to pay their price wich i wont even say what it was. i just wanted the car running and it fired up nicely now. i realize how bad that other starter was before cause when turning the car on now it feels more alive.


well once again: when it comes to the starter you cant interchange them between the 01, to 03 style in the case of the RT neons.

[00Neon RCR]

so in plain inglish.. the 01 RT starter does not work on an 03 RT neon. different connections, thats why the 01 i got wasnt working. so i took it back got my money back. Decided to go next door ( literraly 20 feet away ) to CarQuest and they had an 03 starter in stock. same as the old one i took of. anyways i had to pay their price wich i wont even say what it was. i just wanted the car running and it fired up nicely now. i realize how bad that other starter was before cause when turning the car on now it feels more alive.


well once again: when it comes to the starter you cant interchange them between the 01, to 03 style in the case of the RT neons.

Glad it works for you, but something still tells me there was something else. Cause when I had this problem, I used IDENTICAL part number starters from two 2000 neons. All it would do was "whirl, whirl, whirl"I ended up moving far away for a while so just sold the car as is.