Starter Questions
06-11-2019
#1
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Starter Questions
Hey there, fellow Civic owners,
A few months ago, when the weather was still cold, I noticed that my 05 EX Coupe would not start. The starter had always been rather sluggish since I bought it, but when the temperature dropped, while it would -sort of- crank, it would not turn over. I initially thought it needed a new battery. I could not get one over 550 CCA, but I replaced it anyhow; no change--if it was too cold, the car refused to start. Shortly after that, I pulled a starter from a donor at the local pull n pay. This, too, had problems, so I bought a brand new Denso replacement starter. Now, the weather has been warming up, but I have noticed that the starter is still kind of sluggish. The car always turns over, but it's working for it. Any ideas on this? I have been reading through the forums and picked up on dirty/corroded grounding wiring being possibly a problem. What should I be looking for? TIA...
A few months ago, when the weather was still cold, I noticed that my 05 EX Coupe would not start. The starter had always been rather sluggish since I bought it, but when the temperature dropped, while it would -sort of- crank, it would not turn over. I initially thought it needed a new battery. I could not get one over 550 CCA, but I replaced it anyhow; no change--if it was too cold, the car refused to start. Shortly after that, I pulled a starter from a donor at the local pull n pay. This, too, had problems, so I bought a brand new Denso replacement starter. Now, the weather has been warming up, but I have noticed that the starter is still kind of sluggish. The car always turns over, but it's working for it. Any ideas on this? I have been reading through the forums and picked up on dirty/corroded grounding wiring being possibly a problem. What should I be looking for? TIA...
06-11-2019
#2
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Re: Starter Questions
Definitely try cleaning all of your connections. Especially where the starter fits in the bellhousing because it grounds through the case of the starter, clean all the engine grounds. Can also feels the wires as someone else cranks the engine to see if you can feel any wires are getting warm, the points to a bad connection.
06-12-2019
#4
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Re: Starter Questions
Also fully remove the negative battery cable and the engine ground strap (by the hood release). And give a through cleaning to cable contact and bolts.
06-12-2019
#5
If you think a good mechanic is expensive, try hiring a bad one
Re: Starter Questions
Slow cranking speed........A series of voltage drop tests could lead to pinpointing an exact cause......
You could take a jumper cable and clamp one lead to the battery neg post and the other end of the same lead to clean bare metal on the block/trans/starter (creating a redundant ground path) and see if that makes it crank better.....If that helps that would indicate a problem with the grounds from battery to body and engine
Follow the neg cable from battery to body and from there to the transmission, remove and clean all contact points to clean shiny metal for good electrical contact
You could take a jumper cable and clamp one lead to the battery neg post and the other end of the same lead to clean bare metal on the block/trans/starter (creating a redundant ground path) and see if that makes it crank better.....If that helps that would indicate a problem with the grounds from battery to body and engine
Follow the neg cable from battery to body and from there to the transmission, remove and clean all contact points to clean shiny metal for good electrical contact
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