Starter shennanigans - 2004 XLT **RESOLVED**

[Juckerz]

Howdy,

I'll start off admitting to being a tool for not fixing this sooner,, so that's out of the way,,,,,

For the past month or so, my 04 Explorer XLT has struggled to start,,, it always started on the 3rd or 4th turn of the key,, but the turn-over of the starter motor seemed slow and labored,, and the speedo & tach would 'dance' a bit.

Today it simply would not start,, not turning over whatsoever,, just some clicking from the relays & ignition switch (i think). It's nice and warm here,,, and it's not the battery,, and using my neighbors 1800 Amp booster made no difference. All the dash lights etc are working fine,,, just no life from the starter.

I checked the relays,,,, no problems there.

I checked/cleaned the fender ground wires & battery terminals etc,, everything OK (I don;t know where the starter ground is to be honest).

I pulled the starter and connected the terminals to a battery booster and the cog thing jumps backward & forward about an inch but does not rotate (I assume it's supposed to?). I'm concerned that the starter didn't engage like this while it was attached to the car.

The car only has 61k Florida old-fart miles on it and this is the first thing I've ever had to deal with except for replacing the front wheel bearings,,, so I guess I'm due something!

You experts,,, can anyone tell me what the starter motor *should* do when activated? The bendix thing shooting backward & forward without rotating seems wrong.

Any help would be most,, err,, helpful.

Cheers!

 

[Turdle]

The starter should have jumped off the bench.IMO replace it.

 

[Juckerz]

The starter should have jumped off the bench.IMO replace it.

Thanks turdle,,,, so why do you think the starter jumps when attached to a booster but not when it's on the car?

Is the cog thing supposed to spin really fast?

 

[Turdle]

Thanks turdle,,,, so why do you think the starter jumps when attached to a booster but not when it's on the car?

Is the cog thing supposed to spin really fast?

It is supposed to jump toward the flywheel, then spin fast, yes.

 

[Number4]

It should throw and immediately spin. Solenoid is okay, something in the starter itself is bad.

 

[Juckerz]

Thanks gents,,, will install a new starter tomorrow,,,, if it doesn't fix the problem,, I'll be back with an update.

Cheers

 

[Juckerz]

OK,,, so I replaced the starter,,, turned the ignition key,,,,, zip,, NADA,, just like before.

Got under the car and jumped the starter with a screwdriver (with the wife turning the ignition key) and it turned over just fine, but the engine still wouldn't fire.

I tried one last time,,, and noticed the little red LED in the middle of the dash blinking rapidly.

Could this be part of the problem? Something to do with the factory security system?

I don't think I'm going to like the answer to this one, am I?

 

[Number4]

Been a couple posts lately regarding the security system. Keys not being recognized.

 

[05XLimited]

OK,,, so I replaced the starter,,, turned the ignition key,,,,, zip,, NADA,, just like before.

Got under the car and jumped the starter with a screwdriver (with the wife turning the ignition key) and it turned over just fine, but the engine still wouldn't fire.

I tried one last time,,, and noticed the little red LED in the middle of the dash blinking rapidly.

Could this be part of the problem? Something to do with the factory security system?

I don't think I'm going to like the answer to this one, am I?

If the dash light is flashing rapidly, then the PATS (Passive Anti-Theft System) is reporting an issue. http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=234975 is where you can find information about the PATS system.
Does it do it with all the keys?

 

[Juckerz]

Does it do it with all the keys?

Yes Sir. I have an Auto Locksmith coming in the morning,,, hopefully that will be the end of it,,,, will update then.

 

[Juckerz]

Welp,,,, I'm $125 poorer but the car is running again. Took the locksmith less than 5 minutes to reprogram the PCM or whatever it is.

 

[Number4]

No more worries though and back on the road. We take our loses and move on.

Did he state how or why it happened?

 

[Juckerz]

He didn't seem to have a clue. I can only think that the AAA guy that came out was too slow when he swapped-in the new battery he was trying very hard to sell me. Of course when it didn't start I told him he could keep it!

Other than that,,, I dunno,,, maybe my constantly cranking a slowly-failing starter over the last few weeks messed the PCM up somehow?

Just glad I'm on the road again,, I had ran out of coffee.