I couldn't start my 99 yesterday in a parking lot near walmart. A guy helped me do jump start, but it didn't work. And apparently the battery was good and gave a lot of sparks. I was going to call AAA, but I remember last time when I did engine swap in a shop, the mechanic told me the starter was not good. He struck the starter with a wrench while I was turning the key. It worked! So I did the same thing yesterday and it worked again!

Has this starter gone bad or something else? How long it can last before it totally fails? The starter is kind of pricey, around 200 bucks, plus 100 labor fee. I want to use it to the end if I don't have to replace it now.

Thanks in advance!

 

Replace solenoid and regrease starter. Search for regrease threads. You will save ~$80.00.

 

Thanks, I checked that how-to article. Re-grease seems to be useful when the grease dried out and making the high pitched "vvveeeh" sound. But I didn't hear any sound when I turned the key. After striking the starter with a wrench while turning the key, it started.

by the way, I saw ebay has some starters with one year warranty. Do you guys buy starter from ebay? Is there any difference between the re-manufactured one and brand new one. the brand new ones seem to be cheaper on ebay

 

When you can make the starter work by tapping/hitting it, most of the time it is because the brushes in the motor aren't making a good contact with the communtator. Maybe the brushes are worn out, maybe they are dirty and stick so that the spring can't push them against the communtator. It's your choice if you want to take the starter apart and clean/fix it or replace it.

A rebuilt starter can be just as good as a brand new one or it can be almost as bad as the one you are replacing. It all depends on the shop that is rebuilding it and you will probably never be able to find out who rebuilt it.

Fortunately, most rebuilt starters are pretty good. It ain't rocket science, cars have had starters for around 90 years and they haven't changed much. But one thing holds true for anything you buy - you get what you pay for. If you buy the cheapest thing out there, I don't want to hear about it dying a week, a month, or 3 months later.

 

If you heard no click but it started fine after tapping it then it sounds like the solenoid switch needs replacement. I had the same exact problem 2 weeks ago:

defective starter solenoid?

I purchased this solenoid switch from autozone and it's worked fine:

http://www.autozone.com/autozone/par...ier=195561_0_0_

 

The solenoid is your problem, thats why I recomended replacing it. Greasing is prevenative maintenance. For the small financial investment you can get another 10 years from a starter you know fits and works.

Reman might be from a mexican sweatshop where the bad part is replaced and shiped out with other wise worn out parts. On top of this, you run the chance of getting the wrong pinion gear and messed up clerances.

Solenoid, grease, and possibly brushes and your golden.

 

Being you have to hit it with a hammer to get it working, IT's DONE.

rockauto.com has the starter starting at $77 bucks.
The 10 tooth one is only $110.

They are easy to replace if your handy.

 

Save the $200 and get it from the dealership for $230 which may last you another 10 to 15 years...unless you get an aftermarket one temporarily!

 

hey a have a nissan starter that works only 2 years old. converted to a 6speed so i no longer need mine. pm me if you want it

 

thanks. Probably I wont tear it apart and regrease it. too much work to do.

60 dollar starter from Ebay is the "cheap" one you mentioned that only last for months? like this one:

 

a 6 speed doesn't need starter? I will pm you

 

jholley, I read your post. It sounds that the problem with my starter is quite similar to yours.

A question, is it easy to replace the switch? I mean do I need to take off the whole starter?

 

Yes to replace that switch you first need to remove the starter. Download this manaul and read page EL-27:

http://www.nicoclub.com/FSM/maxima/1998/EL.pdf

That page tells you the 4 easy steps of removing the starter. In the top diagram of that page the solenoid switch is named the 'Magnetic Switch Assembly'. On the bottom left diagram it's the small rounded peice on the left with the wired connector.

To remove the starter to replace that switch you just need to remove the air duct, disconect a harness, and then remove 2 bolts.

 

Hi jholley:
Thanks a lot for the instructions. After reading the FSM page and my Haynes manual, I think it won't be hard to do it myself. Two more questions:
1, After I take off the starter, I want to re-grease it, If I tear the motor gears apart, do you think if it is easy to put it back?
2, how do you clean the dry grease? with break cleaner?

 

The only gear I took out was the main gear that the solenoid switch slides with the lever. I sprayed it with engine degreaser, dryed it with a lint-free rag, then threw on some lithium grease. Brake cleaner is safe to use if you don't have degreaser. Those small planetary gears had very little dry grease so I just moved them around while I cleaned it with degreaser then added the grease. Remove the 2 small screws on the rear cover then take off the washer and brush set. If the brushes springs aren't holding them snug against the motor then you'll need to replace those along with the solenoid switch. You'll also want to clean up those magnetic brushes.

In the HowTo's sticky you'll find this link to a motorvate site describing this task in detail:

http://web.archive.org/web/200806210...ca/mvp.php/516

 

Its very easy to reassemble. The gears arent directional, and you can mix up the locations. just indext the plastcc outer ring gear, motor housing and starter nose cone correctly. use a marker before dissassembly.

Ive been told not to grease the bendix assembly cause it will cause sticking down the road, motor oil might not be a bad Idea tho.

 

thanks a lot! I'll find a time to do it myself.

 

The starter is probably one of things that scare alot of people until they do it themselves and thought, "wow, would i of been a schmuck to pay someone $100+ to do it for me". Take apart your intake box and your maf sensor, and you'll have access to the starter bolts. Just make sure you disconnect your battery terminal first and don't lose the bolts to the starter. While doing so, get yourself a new air filter if you haven't changed it recently

On a side note. As for a diy'er, i find it more simple to replace whole components while spending a lil more money than to try and save little $$$ and causing a lot of headaches. Like replacing a cv boot. While it does save you a lil $, the headache of having to regrease the cv boot and making sure you do it correctly isn't worth saving the extra $70-$80 to get a whole new axle from raxles themselves. You've already saved a crap ton by tackling it yourself, you can afford to replace the whole axles instead of the boot itself taking care other problems that you might need to address again.