dr.duct_mossburg

iTrader: (1)

I drove to work yesterday without a hiccup or any indication of an issue with the car. Commuting drive and no horse playing, All highway at about 80-85mph. I went in to work and came back out about 10 hours later. I got into my car, turned the key, <Click>. A loud single click coming from the starter area. Try it again... No dice.

I turn my headlights on, Wipers on full speed, Windows up and down, Radio on, interior lights, All work properly. I checked the voltage on the headsup, 12.6 Volts. Hmm? This isn't good. I get someone with jumpers and throw them on; nothing. I grabbed my phone and started searching like a mad man through the various boards on starter issues. Checked all of the things that I was able to in the parking lot at night with no tools. My car is to low to get underneath and fiddle anywhere near the starter. Still no luck. I have someone come pick me up and plan to come back for battle the next morning.

Returning to battle with all of my tools, armed with a brand new (outrageously priced) battery and myself ready for war. I get in, Turn the key and it fires right up as if it missed me all night and was sad, cold, and happy of my return. I let it run for about 20 minutes, drove it about an hour to my g.fs dads shop. Turn it off several times and back on without any issue. I put it up on the lift and took a look at the starter wires. To me they looked burnt to a crisp. Below is a picture of what I saw. I went ahead and ordered the $15 harness and will have a stab at it tomorrow. I also got some heat shield tape that I plan to wrap around the wires and connectors in that area as well.

Take a peak at the picture below and what i've done and let me know what you think.

Trouble shooting.

-Checked battery connection. No corrosion, every things tight.
-Checked grounds. All tight, again no corrosion.
-Checked clutch pedal. (though I feel like if this was faulty I wouldn't get a click.
I moved around the starter and it seems to be secure as should be.

The wiring definitely seems to be burnt, though I don't have another to compare it to.

GoldfishTX

iTrader: (1)

Just had this happen to my 06, but the starter ended up being bad. It would start with a good whack of a hammer.

mitchntx

iTrader: (14)

This time last year at ~60K miles, my starter went out as well. Exact same symptoms.

sod

iTrader: (1)

Same thing happened to me, but it was not the starter in my case. Same symptoms. Wouldn't start one minute, started fine the next.

Local Chevy dealer "repaired the connection" (did not replace the connector) to the starter.

Repair bill says "Intermittent open on starter solenoid" "exhaust heat has slightly deformed connector & lock tab on starter"

I haven't had a problem since the repair.

I think this is a pretty common issue with these cars.

Don't forget, if you are on a hill, or can find someone to push, you can always pop the clutch & at least get it home.

dr.duct_mossburg

iTrader: (1)

I'm going to start with changing the harness. If that doesn't fix it than I will buy the starter. Sod; I ordered the same part you're describing. As you can see from the picture, the rubber insulation on the connector has melted back exposing the clip which has now blued from the heat. I can only assume the terminals are affected as well.

cam3439

Just replaced mine, and I had taken it to the dealer before (they said it was the starter). They wanted $600-$700 to replace it, but that's a whole lot of mula for a starter replacement. I ordered the MSD starter ($250 shipped) and went underneath to do it myself. It turned out that the starter was fine, and it was only the upper-most connection that had corroded and fell apart. So much for them knowing what they were doing.

dr.duct_mossburg

iTrader: (1)

I went ahead and orderd the starter also. I got a new oem starter and wiring for $200. The piece of mind is worth the extra $180 for me vs. finding out when I'm stranded and pay double that or more for towing expenses.

I couldn't get the Starter in With the cat still insalled and when I tried to take the lower bolts out they snapped like twiggs. So I got a buddy that's going to get them out on Saturday. Until the its <fingers crossed> and parking on hills. Lol

-T-

iTrader: (2)

FWIW... I have had my go around with this car and starting issues. My root problem was the connection to the battery. There was no corrosion whatsoever either. The stock red rubber protective boot was too thick to allow for the terminal to sit properly on the battery tab. no matter how tight you think you have the terminal, it just smashed the boot more. I ended up cutting the boot and seating the terminal and all worked, until my many aggressive fits on the cables took its toll on the starter AGAIN and the solenoid loosened it self internally to the starter housing. The starter still worked after I removed it, it was just intermittent due to the solenoid movement.

I replaced solenoid connector and harness, starter(X2) , battery, and clutch safety switch all to be stranded again and again because of the f'n boot. The 3 dollar fix cost me More time than money.

adanieljohnson1

iTrader: (1)

This means it was the starter but they don't have to replace it if they have the tools to refurbish it.. same thing happened to me! Solenoid on the starter somehow melted so I had a friend of a friend refurbish it for $60 to $80 and I never had another issue.... this was about a year or 2 ago...