so i bought my 98 about 2 weeks ago and its been great - i love it. however, recently when ive tried to start the car it grinds like im trying to start it in gear. when i had an inspection on saturday the mechanic said that the stick could slightly slide into gear if the car has been sitting for a little while. is this something i should try to get fixed or is it no big deal. if i start the car and kinda wiggle the stick around in neutral it doesnt make that grinding noise, anways lemme know what you guys think.

 

its just good habit to wiggle the stick each time b4 you start. I do this, and it prevents you from startin it in gear. As long as you do that, it will ensure your not in gear and you wont get that problem. As long as it doesnt bother you or affect your car/driving, i would say just leave it

 

yea, thats what i figured - it just happens at that instant i turn the key and sometime stalls before i get a chance to move the stick ( this is after ive already moved it around before starting the car )

 

It shouldn't do this because you need to have your clutch down to start your car. Therefore, even if you start your car in gear the clutch should be disengaged.

 

thats what i thought, but the clutch is fully pressed down when i start the car

 

It shouldn't grind for any reason if you start the car, even in gear. At most, the car would jump a bit if you start it. Like what azianjiu said, the clutch would have to be disengaged before you can start.

 

all i know is that i fully press the clutch in, the stick is in the neutral position, i turn the key and theres this terrible grinding/screeching noise which sometimes causes a stall unless i move the stick around in neutral quick enough....?

 

Does the engine attempt to turnover after this grinding noise? if not, you should check your starter. Your post is kind of confusing though.

 

yea it turns over, but the second it does it makes that noise - and if i can move the stick around in time in neutral it will stop and be fine, but sometimes it stalls before i can do it. i know it doesnt make much sense bc the clutch is pressed in, thats why im confused...............

 

bump - anyone got an idea or should i just not worry about it

 

Do you have any probs with getting the car into gear after its started? Maybe you need to bleed the clutch?

 

nope - everythings fine once its started

 

methinks starter

 

im thinking the same thing

 

My buddy's tranny had a slight grind one night when we were driving it, wasn't that loud but it was definitly there. 2 weeks later his tranny locked up, so beware :/

 

Can't be the starter, all is well as soon as he moves the shifter left and right. Unless its some sort of wierd couinsedence.

 

i say is the starter...

 

alrite guys thanks for all the input - im pretty sure you are right about it being the starter. anyone know what a new one costs by chance?

 

does the car do this the first time you start it only or every time you start it? only in the morning?

 

I dont know about the starter. Basically this is what you are saying

Car is in Gear. Clutch is floored

You start the car

It grinds

If you shift into neutral it stops

If you leave it in gear the engine stalls.

Is this correct?

If it was the starter, the shifting into neutral would not change anything because the gearbox has nothing to do with the starter.

This leads me to think its a problem with the clutch. Check your clutch fluid. Might be a little low.

The slave cylinder might not be pushing/retracting fully, especially when cold.

Am I correct about the sequence?

 

almost - sorry for the confusion
1.car is in nuetral
2.clutch is fully pressed down
3.key is turned and car makes a grinding noise and stalls unless i give it some gas. once i give it gas (pretty immediately after i turn the key) the noise stops, the car is started and everything is fine. now this only happens when the car has been sitting for awhile. if i come back to start the car say 5-10 minutes after ive turned it off, it starts up fine.

 

then it cant be your starter casue the starter would make the same noise every time the car is started. thinking something with tranny?

 

is your check engine lights is on?

 

Does it grind after you release the key or while you are holding the key at the start position?

If it grinds after you release the starter may not be disengaging properly. If it grinds right off the bat, then you may have missing teeth on the flywheel. If for any reason the position of the transmission effects this grinding then you have a hydraulic problem where the clutch is not fully disengaging. You can start the car in any gear with the clutch depressed - it should make no difference. If it does, start looking at the clutch master, clutch slave and the hydraulic line connecting the two.

I'd also pull the starter and inspect the pinion teeth to make sure that the starter isn't missing any teeth and that the snout of the starter is not damaged or cracked. For that matter the starter could be loose.

 

oh yes. i wiggle my stick all the time.

 

no my check engine light doesnt come on. it grinds as i turn the key and gets a little louder after ive released it. the past couple times ive done it out of experiment, i didnt give it gas and it either stalled as the sound stopped or the RPMs drop really low and theres kind of a gurgling noise as it tries to stay alive (sometimes it does "save itself just barely" and rise back up to idle speed. My dad thinks its the starter not disengaging properly as you said.

 

but once it starts up, idle is okay?

 

yea idle is fine once the sound stops.

 

Like the man said. Pull-o the starter-o.

This is like King of the Hill where everyone stands around an engine and says "yup"