Dealer doesn't know!
 

So i posted in here about a week ago about my car breaking the starters. I towed it to the dealer and they've had it for a week now and they still havent figured out why it's breaking the starters. Any input on why my car is doing this?

Can you put up a link to the OP on this?

and by breaking i mean by the area where the bolt goes in. the casting part breaks off.

A couple of thoughts:

1. Are you absolutely certain that the starter bolts are not bottoming on something, or have some other problem that would keep them from properly holding the starter.

2. Could the starter be hitting something? Far fetched, I know.

3. What's the bolt/bolt hole relationship look like? No excessive slop?

4. Is the bell housing damaged?

This will be interesting once it's figured out!

Could a starter be getting an over-voltage and making the bendix smack the flywheel too hard each time....then after awhile it cracks/breaks the housing????


.

hmmmm... Don't think so, as it's battery voltage regulating this. So, with no alternator input, you'd have to have a battery with more than 6 cells to make it happen. If you did have say a 18v or higher battery, the starter would smoke. BUT...how about squared off Bendix/flywheel teeth so they won't engage smoothly?

I think he has a new flywheel and the starters are all new too.


.

Gee, guess I should read the original post more carefully. You're right, new flywheel. I say again....HMMM! Well, mixed 153 tooth/168 tooth components? I'd expect lots of noise with that though.

Install the updated design starter. The original design used one long and one short bolt. The short bolt goes in the outer ear mount on the block. If you're lucky only the starter breaks. Sometimes the block does. The newer starter (GM doesn't sell it, some aftermarket stores will like CarQuest) uses equal length bolts and is stronger.

A hydrolock condition is the most common reason for this type of failure. Either a leaking injector filling the cylinder with gasoline, or a leaking injector O-ring filling the cylinder with water.

Only a dealer would continus to break off starters without investgating the REAL trouble. GEEZ get your car out of there and find a good shop before the engine gets ruined. Something is filling a cylinder or cylinders with water or fuel causing hydro lock as it tries to start.

ONLY A COMPLETE IDIOT WOULD JUST THROW NEW STARTERS AT IT. Upgrading to the stronger truck starter is probably going to cause a bent connecting rod or WORSE.


TREAD carefully because you are risking destroying the engine!

Here is the quickest way to find the trouble..........PULL all the spark plugs and turn the engine over by hand until you find which cylinders are getting wet...then fix the trouble and move on.

Dam dealer service depts piss me off! Nothing but complete morons.

i have never heard of something like this happening, that is crazy. so it actually is filling the cyl.... i would take these guys advice and go to a real shop. they sound like they know what they are talking about. stealerships only want your money

a small back fire while cranking will break a starter. ive seen it many of times. and also make sure the mesh gap is good on your next one.

Well im going to give em a call monday to see whats up. ONly thing thats keeping me keeping it there is that the old starter and flywheel still have warenty so im trying to get some cheaper service.

When you went a month after replacing one of the starters without any trouble......did the engine run perfectly fine during that month? Or was it running badly, like missing and/or stumbling?


.

Car was working fine. did make a winding noise when it started up but i assumed it was cause of the new starter.

Just gave them a call and they told me that they put a new one in and it was making some wierd noise so they said they have to go in the engine to see whats going on and going to charge me $280! This is becoming a pain!

i've been dealing with the same exact problem for the past hell of a long time. i've been through at least 10 starters (broke all of them the same exact way (look at the pic). i've used new bolts, ruled out water/gas being in the cylinders, threads in holes in block are fine. i've also shimmed these starters many different ways, always the same result. i've tried a couple powermaster starters and although they did not break i have also had this issue...the thing is the starter does not always engage all the way (the teeth of the starter come out and run into the teeth on the flexplate and do not fully engage-i know the flexplate teeth ends are flat and the starter teeth are kind of angled but it almost seems like its not enough). all you get is clicking and sometimes if you click it enough then it will catch and fully engage and crank. i figured shimming would take care of it but when i shim it out that much then its really too much. my next thing is getting a totally diffrerent flexplate. could the flexplate have been the problem? it is autozone FRA-160 (which i guess is just a stardard small block 153 tooth with the weight)

http://mafia-motorsports.com/gallery....php?file=1592

You have a different problem than the original poster. The nose breaking off the starter is caused from improper clearance between the gears.

i've checked the clearance before on a few different starters. i've shimmed it to many different clearances. the thing that gets me is that a lot of the time the gear won't engage all the way it will just click against the flexplate. is it possible that the ignition switch could have anything to do with it (not getting enough voltage/current)?