Thursday, May 29, 2008 - 11:52 am, by: Mike Bradberry(Halflife)
Some time ago I started a thread regarding lubricating the starter pinion and it was suggested this was not possible without removing the starter. However, I have just found that you can lubricate the ring gear and thereby lubricate the pinion on the starter. You will need to get under your car to do this. On the front of your transmission (bell housing?) you will find a small plate held in with two 12mm bolts. Remove these bolts and the plate can be removed exposing the ring gear. You are now able to lubricate this gear. I used spray grease. If you are fortunate enough to have a hoist or a pit you could start the car and spray onto the gear whilst in motion. Might be a good idea to be wearing goggles when you are doing this, and don't overdo it either or it will be dripping for weeks. Hope this helps out those that were curious at the time of the other post.
Thursday, May 29, 2008 - 12:05 pm, by: Wess McManus(Bar)
BRILLIANT!! would you recommend doing this as a precautionary measure to prevent wear and tear on starter? I know its big bucks for labour to gain access to it.
Great work!! I'll be trying this over the coming weekend as I've been having issues with my starter motor for a while now. The main one being that sometimes is just clicks when I try to start the car and I have to turn the key over and over before it actually engages. I'm hoping your lubrication method will help resolve this.
Friday, May 30, 2008 - 01:17 pm, by: Mike Bradberry(Halflife)
I'm disagreeing with Matt on this one as the plate which needs to be removed is acting as a dust cover and dirt should not be able to enter this area so I don't feel there will be any 'grinding paste'. Also the number of times the starter is engaged is minimal and therefore of little consequence regarding wear. Usually when the starter is clicking it indicates either poor earthing or a degraded battery. I'd be checking these before pulling anything down.