Gs300 Starter Motor Problem

[gary]

When trying to start my 93 GS300 the starter often will only engage after lots of turns of the key. The solenoid (I assume) clicks every time, and when the car does start often the cranking is slow. It is worse when cold. I have checked the Battery, and the cables and measuered resistance between Battery and engine, and all appear fine. I saw an item relating to a Supra ( I think the engines are almost identical) with a similar problem, and one of the cures was to replace the solenoid magnetic switch contacts, which involved removing the starter itself. Has anyone else had this problem that can help or know how to remove the starter etc.

Thanks

[Mike246]

Gary,

I'll wager that your Battery is duff. Had a similar problem with my GS - you need a load of amps on a cold morning to turn that engine!

If I'm right, you will find that the Battery is not a standard 'Quick'Fit' size and the Lexus dealers like to charge an arm and a leg to supply and fit. If you are willing to DIY, find a local Bosch distributor for their Part No. 570073051. I got mine from Russells Automotive (branches in northern home counties) at £ 52 plus V.A.T.

[zishan]

Gary,

I'll wager that it is defineately your starter motor, I had the same problem a couple of months ago.

What you need to do is to take the starter motor out (which is a hell of a job in itself) then take it to multi-truck who repair starter motor's e.t.c.

They will repair it for you for about £40 quid, after that you have to put it back in.

[gary]

Where do you even start?

Do you have to remove everything above it to get proper access or can it be done from underneath, did you need any special tools, I saw 2 obvious bolts from underneath when checking the +ve cable, but assume that there are more that are even less accessible. any hints or tips?

Thanks Gary

[L3X JG]

Its done from underneath its a bit of a job and its the contacts in the starter it will get worse rapidly and like zishan said it will cost about £40.00 to repair it might be that it only need cleaning up if so it will be cheaper.

[randyreindeer]

Hi Gary.

I had the same problem after my engine was refitted after chassis straightening. It was nothing more serious than a bad connection on the wires at the starter end. They are a bit of a pig to get to but armed with a full bottle of jack Daniels and lots of swear words, you will be able to manage.

Whatever you do don't go down the recon starter road. Do as the other guys have said cos it will work out so much cheaper. I dont wanna imagine a starter price from lexus but I bet it will be an arm and a leg complete with shoes,socks,shirt sleeves and cufflinks thrown in. If ya get stuck and you can find one,fit a supra one. :)

[gary]

Quick update...

The Battery is not perfect, but using a friends garage's jump start equipt. made no difference either, while tapping the starter with a solid piece of metal did.

So, any substantial advice or tips on removing the starter would very much appreciated.

Has anyone replaced the contacts on their starter and if so how much and where did you get them from?

Gary

[gary]

Final Update...

I think what I have done will fix most examples of this problem, and will be quicker and much cheaper than a re-con starter, or getting your own starter repaired by a specialist.

I bought a new Battery which did not make any difference, but it was cheap, at £50 inc from autobits .com in Farnham.

I removed the starter, from underneath, you need to remove the bottom engine cover, the top 1/2 of the dipstick guide (1 bolt then it pulls out) I also removed a couple of brake pipe brackets which you may or may not need to do), the elec. connectors to the starter (make sure you disconnect from the Battery 1st). I used a 14mm ring spanner to remove the 2 bolts, and eventually managed to extract the starter. This is not easy as there is limited room.

Opening the cover of the solenoid reveals the plunger which just pulls out, and the 2 terminals, which were obviously worn. I cleaned the plunger contact up with abrasive paper, and ordered 2 new terminals (< £16 inc ) from Toyota (Lexus only sell the whole solenoid assy).

Tip - If you tell them the car is off the road they deliver to the garage next day (no-one seems to keep them in stock).

My starter mechanism had the Toyota part no on it (you need to quote this, but essentially its the same as on a Supra).

Replacing the contacts takes about 5 mins. and is easy - just make sure you put all the insulators back!

I also tested that the starter motor worked (I recomend you try this in a vice, or clamp it in a work bench). I connected it to the Battery, using jump leads, earth to the motor case, +12v (to the teminal that connects the solenoid to the motor) and it whirred away nicely. Tip - connect to the starter 1st and then to the Battery, this will produce less sparks. Mine was fine but its probably worth finding out before you put it all back in again.

I replaced the starter, easier than getting it out as the practise in finding the exact position you need to be in to get at the bolts when extracting will make a big difference.

I replaced the dipstick guide, the brake fluid pipe brackets, and engine cover, re-connected the Battery and the car now starts perfectly, 1st time every time.

It may be possible to replace the solenoid terminals without removing the starter, but there is not much room, so it would be v difficult to see, there are a couple of very thin wires you could break under the solenoid cover, (1 is attached to one of the teminals) and you need to make sure that that you have put it back together so that nothing is shorted, so I wouldn't recommend it.

Tools I used were

10, 12 and 14mm ring spanners.

10, 12, and 14mm sockets, extension bar and ratchet.

plus a smaller spanner for the solenoid cover plate (I can't remember the size but would guess about 6 mm)

And a cross head screwdriver

I hope this helps someone some day.

If you do try this and get stuck, or this helps you then send me an e-mail!

If you try this and break something - don't blame me!

[Jerry]

Thanks, Gary, for the information on replacing the starter contacts. I think I may do it on my 95 LS400. I began to experience the same problem a few weeks ago. I took it into the dealer and they said they would replace the starter for about $1000.00 (I am in the USA).

You also may not know, but this was the subject of a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) recall in 1998. See the NHTSA website at www.nhtsa.org, select Recalls and follow the links to Lexus, LS400. It applied to LS400s between 1995 and 1997. I am currently fighting with the dealer to get them to fix my starter for free, but they are refusing, saying that my VIN number is not included in the recall.

So, after reading your post Gary, I believe I can fix this myself.

Thanks

[randyreindeer]

well done Gary.

Just goes to show that the quite often it isn't as expensive as most people will have you believe. I bet thats the only problem you will ever have with it because they are just so well put together :D

[Jerry]

After reading Gary's post, I decided to try to fix the problem on my LS400.

No luck. I couldn't even find the damn thing. It seems to be up behind the exaust manifold and I have no idea how to get at it. If anyone knows how to get at the Starter on an LS400, I would love to hear from you.

Jerry