just finished replacing the battery in my car, the starter is still shot but just for the hell of it i tried starting my car in case the person who told me my starter was broken was wrong.. for a moment i thought i had it running but a second after i stopped holding the key forward it died again.

after that i tried starting it again but it wouldnt kick over. how exactly do i know the starter is the problem? are there any tell-tale signs, sounds, anything on the starter itself i should see, etc? any help would be greatly appreciated. thanks

 

Pull the starter, take it to Advance/Autozone, and have them test it. You want under 150amps being pulled.

 

well i already have a replacement starter n would have replaced it already if one of the bolts didnt need one of those air compressed drill things. so either way im gonna take it to a shop sometime next week n have them do it along with a couple other things.

i was just wondering if there was a way of knowing without having to take it out, out of curiosity

 

dont need an impact to get the bolt out. Buy some solvent and spray on it . let it soak for about 10 minutes then get a breaker bar and try it. if that doesnt work a 1/2 ratchet and a cheater bar works.

 

that should do it! then, don't tighten them back up quite so tight. they need to be tight but i just tighten them up with my 3/8 ratchet, no cheater bar.

 

Go get another starter.
These starters are nothing special to them
What you probably do have is very loose aged damaged wiring down there.
To loosen that one bolt, reinsert the other (taking tension off stuck one). Spray with with something to ease removal.
NOW go search all wiring for a problem. Including your steering column switch.
IF at end you still have problem, get the other starter first, then swap and test to be sure your "problem is fixed". Then return the core.
You want AC Delco starter & solinoids.
Disconnect battery to reduce sparks.
I still run my origial starters from 1985. That's how good is a GM starter. My 1974 Corvette also has orignal starter with new AC Delco solinoid and fresh grease & brushes. These starters can last a very long time with proper no abused wiring.
PS My Corvette one?
Yes it does run by headers, too. Factory heat shields & factory cables, too. That back support brace makes all the difference (taking weight off that heavy starter nose!). Starters are date coded, so ya know.

 

well the bolt thats stuck was the second of two bolts attempted to be removed. after i loosened the first one i didnt remove it. AND i freakin drenched that second bolt in WD40 like 4 days in a row. and we did try using a breaker bar.

whats a cheater bar?

i dont know what any of the wires are called or wut they lead to either, right now they're marked with tape that say "left, right, top, bottom" on them. could somebody make a brief picture depicting the part of the starter that the wiring connects to, what theyre called n wut they do? if thats asking too much then dont worry about it.

when i get back home on tuesday ill make another attempt at removing the starter.

 

WD40 alot of the times wont work.You'll have to get a solvent that will actually disolve the buildup around the bolt. a cheater bar is just a long pipe you put over the handle of the ratchet and use it for leverage by pushing or pulling on the end of it. Had to do that to my 91 RS then i put the bolts after i removed them into a bowl of solvent overnight and brush cleaned them the next morning before putting the new starter back on. Also make sure you get a few shims for the new starter 99% of the time the new starter wont line up right and will have to be shimmed for proper alignment. I dont remember the name of the solvent i used. You can go to any hardware store and tell them you need a strong solvent to get a bolt out and they should know what to give you.

 

wd40 is mainly just a lubricant. pb blaster or 'zepreserve' (i think that's what its called) are penetrating oils. they will penetrate the build up that has the bolt stuck and dissolve that build up so you can loosen the nut or bolt.

 

As a buddy said to me, "It wasn't born there".