ykp53

just recently i have been having problems starting my car if the temp guage gets over 200. it starts, but its really slowwwwwwww. almost like the battery is dying. if the car cools down it fires right up. is this heat soak? if so what can i do about it? or is my starter starting to go out?

78 Vette

It can be a heat problem but I would check the timing first if it is to far advanced it will do what you explained.

bloodvette80

:withstupid: I mean :iagree: first check the timing. My Trans Am had the same problem (same block and starter). Eventually i switched out the starter and it ran fine. Later i put that bad starter in another car and it did that on THAT car. What happens is that as a starter gets old, the windings have insulation on them that breaks down and shorts to the wire adjacent to it. Then you have a higher Current (amperage) and less magnetism. This causes the starter to get hot very fast, which burns off more insulation and it snowballs until one day you can't start your car at all. If it appears to be the starter, check your battery voltage and if its pretty good, chances are that a brand new starter will solve your problem. Some people say that the starters should have shims and with the heat and expansion, once the engine is hot, the starter is pressing too hard against the ring gear/flywheel and makes for hard starting but i don't believe that. I say, check timing, check battery voltage, if none of the above are the problem, a new starter will do it. Also, when checking battery voltage, be sure that you check it while cranking. I don't know what the borderline is, but if it drops below 8 or 9 volts I'd say you have a problem (which could be, as I noted, a bad starter which is drawing tonnes of current and therefore makes a voltage drop.) If it is pretty low during cranking, switch out the battery. If same thing, then its the starter forsure. :yesnod:

68shark

Also check your battery to starter and ground wiring. Any weakness here will be exposed under hot start conditions. It's best to check all components/wiring much as Bloodvette80 suggests. You don't want to replace the starter only to find you still have the same problem. there are many posts in archives on the same topic.

Rich80

... Same thing happened to me....Mine turned out to be a worn out starter.. :smash: