Cracked Starter Bolt
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Joined: Jun 2010
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From: Illinois
Cracked Starter Bolt Wasn't sure where to put this, but the last time I tried to start my car, I heard basically terrible sounds coming from what seemed the starter. Dropped the starter and the hole where the shorter bolt (bolt closer to the medial part of the block) cracked on the starter AND where the longer bolt goes into the block (the hole further out away from the engine block) has a large crack going up the flange and is being held on by barely any aluminum. My question is, can that piece of aluminum be welded and still be sturdy enough to hold the starter bolt along with the torque of the starter turning over. Also, if I have to drop the motor to get a clean weld on the motor, what are some options in maybe going with a little more cubic inches. I have been looking at 383's, but haven't researched enough into what I will need to convert that way. Any thoughts or opinions are welcomed.
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Joined: Oct 2009
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It can easily be welded. What happened is your starter housing failed and when it broke it twisted the outter bolt which cracked the block. You will need the updated truck style starter with new bolts. The newer starter uses two long bolts and can't break off like yours did.
If you do a search you will find a thread all about this problem. It may be hard to find a welder willing to do it in the car but its no big deal to weld really. Good Luck
If you do a search you will find a thread all about this problem. It may be hard to find a welder willing to do it in the car but its no big deal to weld really. Good Luck
Thread Starter
TECH Enthusiast
Joined: Jun 2010
Posts: 611
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From: Illinois
O2, thanks I actually bought the new starter and threw it in and the motor started right up. there was a weird sound right when the car fired, but I took the car to storage and I plan to build a lq4/9 motor. The search began and there are some decent looking deals on ebay for those types of motors. I plan to check the junkyards around me first, but the simple fix was enough for me to get the car out of the street and to the garage.
