Starter disengage noise

A new gremlin. My starter starts the motor no problem, especially after replacing my old battery with a yellowtop and new cables. The problem comes after the motor fires, it sounds like the starter drive gear is still engaged with the flywheel for a second or two. Not a good noise. Is there a spring in the starter that pulls the drive gear back from the ring gear? Magnetic retraction, maybe? The starter spins fine, so I hope I don't have to replace the whole thing. Can just the defective part be replaced, or will I need a whole new starter. I sure don't want to tear up the ring gear.

 

Crawled under the thing, checked the starter mounting bolts for tightness. Top one was ok, the bottom is stripped, methinks. Takes a wrench to turn it, but it won't tighten up. Even though I can't wiggle the starter with my hands, could this be part of the problem?

If so, has anybody used the Permatex thread repair epoxy? Permatex claims it will hold up to 128 ft lbs of torque, and the torque spec for the starter attachment bolts is 15 - 20 ft lbs. I've got a really bad back, really bad, working under the jeep kills me for a few days, so I really don't want to drill and tap for a helicoil if I don't have to. Do you think the Permatex is a reasonable repair for this application?

 

Bad back? That's sad. Jeeps like people to work up-side/down. It is possible that nose cone on starter is broken and causing housing to rake against bendix. The solenoid on top of starter (delco type) has a spring in the plunger that retracts the bendix once power has been removed.

 

Helicoil is the best fix, but can you put a longer bolt and a nut on it? Seems to me that's possible and the cheapest / easiest way to fix that problem.

As to the starter hanging, how clean is the starter? If it's full of caked on oil, it could be hanging just due to dirt. The triangular cover (Motorcraft style starter) on the motor covers the pull in solenoid. You may be able to pull that cover without removing the starter to see if the linkage is clear. It's only held on with one screw, the other end slips under the nose piece. With the cover off, you can push the solenoid armature and see if the starter gear is sticking or if the return spring is weak or broke.

 

Thanks all, I went ahead and ordered a new starter. In the daylight, with the crud cleaned off of the bellhousing, I think the long bolt/nut repair method will work. Seems that the PO installed a bolt with metric threads in the bottom hole. Of course as it loosened up from the starting torque, it started to tear things up a bit. It should be a federal crime (as if we need more federal crimes) for some people to posses or operate a wrench.

 

Maybe JB Weld a stud in the stripped hole? Can't remember what the bolt fastens into. Bellhousing? Or does the bolt run thru bellhousing and thread into starter flange?

 

Good morning!

A friend of mine in college had a 1977 Olds cutless that had this same problem. We replaced the starter, it worked for awhile and then it continued. Eventually the thing fried....

The problem? Wiring. Make sure the wires you are using to connect the starter are insulated against heat. It seems that over time some wires not insulated can actually melt agains the block due to heat and cause a short, or the darn thing to keep spinning the fly wheel. I am not sure if this is your problem, but it's worth a check.

 

Sheesh! Now I know why you should never start two threads on the same issue! #%*@ meds! I'm gonna reply to both posts with a cut/paste.

Went to napa, they were proud of their 2 year warranty reman starter, 70.00. My buddy owns the local CarQuest, 2yr warranty reman 35. He said he can “extend” the warranty for good customers (me) if necessary. Got it installed, what a difference! Very, very quiet, amazing.

The starter has always sounded funny on the heep since I got it, but the new noise was an obvious bad thing, glad I pulled it, no damage to the ring gear. I now believe that ever since I've owned the thing, the starter was a little goofy. The new noise started almost immediately after I installed a new Optimia Yellow Top, new 4ga cables, cleaned all the contacts, etc. When I take a look at the old starter (you can kind of see a litle of the damage in the “Is it Toast” thread picture posted) you can see that the new battery completely blew out the retaining ring and allowed the starter gear to extend far enough forward to start chewing up the housing on the nosepiece, and the end of the starter gear itself. Pulled a few chunks out of the bellhousing with a magnet before I installed the reman.

So it looks like the common jeep upgrade strory, upgrades always cost you more than you anticipate. I'm a happy boy though, jeep starts in ½ revolution from dead cold. Humdy!

Thanks for all your help and suggestions, this board is awesome!