samwilliams
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| posted on 23/7/06 at 08:02 AM |
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Which starter motor?
Hi,
I think the starter motor on my sylva phoenix has broken - basically, when you try and start it, it whirrs, rather than actually turning the engine
over at all. It's been a little bit dodgy for a while. Never been sure whether to put it down to a dodgy battery or dodgy starter motor, but it
certainly appears to be properly buggered now.
A few things I'd really appreciate help on:
Firstly, does it definitely sound like the starter motor's broken?
Secondly, is it likely to be easily repairable, or simpler to get a replacement?
Finally, what type should it be replaced with - it's a 1600 crossflow. I know that it would probably be simpler to have a look and get the same
again, but the car is at my parent's house, and I'm only going to be going back home once before needing the car to work for a week to get
me places, so could do with having the replacement ready for me to try and fit it when I get back!!!
Thank you very much. As much as I enjoy pushing myself over the edge of hills and trying to jump in before it rolls off into the distance, I think
I'd rather just sit in it!
Sam
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David Jenkins
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| posted on 23/7/06 at 08:34 AM |
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Sounds very much like a stuck pinion on an inertia starter - a very common problem on x-flow engines.
Take the starter out - if all you can see is the motor shaft sticking out, with a pinion gear and a short but heavy spring then you have an inertia
starter. If the starter has a gear half-covered by an aluminium housing then ignore what I'm about to say - that's a different sort of
starter!
The idea with an inertia starter is that the motor starts to turn, the pinion winds up the shaft and crashes into the ring gear on the flywheel -
crude, but effective most of the time. The common fault is that the pinion sticks on the shaft and won't spin up into the ring gear - you get a
fast whirr as the motor spins, but no cranking. If you try to move the pinion you may find it well and truly stuck (it should move down its spiral
really easily) or it'll be stuck for a second then it'll move. In the second case it will then work OK for a while, but jam at another
inconvenient time!
You can either play around with the pinion, getting rid of burrs, lubricating it, or whatever, but in my own experience, once it starts to play up
that's it - it'll happen over and over. In the end I part-exchanged mine for a recon job at my local Partco... about £30 - £40 exchange.
Touch wood, it's worked perfectly ever since.
David
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rusty nuts
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| posted on 23/7/06 at 08:48 AM |
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If you have the inertia type you may be able to clean the pinion using something like brake cleaner , work the pinion by hand until it is free . DO
NOT lubricate , this will cause dust from the clutch to stick to the pinion and the fault to return in no time. If you must lubricate use
graphite(pencil lead)
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zilspeed
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| posted on 23/7/06 at 11:31 AM |
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I replaced the inertia starter on my Xflow about a fortnight ago. The original starter seemed ok when tested, but I was suspicious enough to
want to try a new one. A quinton Hazell recon job was less than 30 quid exchange and made a huge difference. I recommend this course of action - even
the parts bloke couldn't believe how cheap it was.
John F - Sylva apologiste
Forgot to say - it's a 3 bolt Ford inertia starter out of a late 70s Escort you'r looking for.
[Edited on 23/7/06 by zilspeed]
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David Jenkins
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| posted on 23/7/06 at 01:24 PM |
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I totally agree - you can faff around with the inertia mechanism 'til the cows come home, but it'll fail you when it's most
inconvenient. Far better to get a recon replacement.
David
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