werewolf

Couple of things I wish I knew before I did this DIY

1) The starter is very difficult to take out (the bolts that hold it to the flywheel and engine bay are very hard to get to) but you can remove the solenoid (i.e. the part with the contacts and plunger) w/o removing the entire starter. This helps b/c you do not have to resit the starter on the flywheel. This saves money and time. Remanned starters don't really provide any advantage over just replacing the contacts and plunger
3) Be careful of the knock sensors. The plastic gets brittle over time
2) This is a tiring one-man job. Have a friend to help you when removing the intake manifold
3) You need an extension to get the bolts which hold the manifold down. Use a tighten pattern similar to a wheel. Hand thread and then torque down to spec in a star-like pattern. The bolts towards the firewall are hard to get good torque on; do not strip them
4) The throttle cable comes off but it is a easy removal.
5) You cannot take off the throttle body off the manifold until you have taken the intake manifold bolts off. Good time to clean the throttle body
6) You will spill coolant

Chumacher

I had this problem for a month. Turned out to be a loose battery terminal. I tightened it up and it never happened again.

samster

sometimes we just wished it was a loose battery terminal! and sometimes starters take a while before they go so you wouldn't even know why it misses a start or two but actaully starts up, and the fact starters are weaker in the cold than in the warmer seasons.

CarreraS

iTrader: (1)

Great write up and information. My car just did it once last year with "Click" I thought it was the battery so I replaced it and now today the same "click". Went online and after I read this I went back out to the car and turned the key 5-6 continual times then the car finally started.

Question how long do you think I have before the starter goes completely dead? Is this a intermitten problem that will get worst overtime and can go like this for a month or so before changing the starter out? I know this sounds stupid and I should replace it right away. But I'm wondering if folks have just delt with the annoyance of having to turn the key a few times until car finally fires and starts.

TIA

Scott

DeezyLF

mannn, i think i have do this to my 98 gs400 too... it just start doing the clickin sound and takes 5-10 clickes to start.... dammm should i do it my self, or take it to a shop so i dont have 2 deal with it....

ar15guy

Thanx for the write up, and the pics were great!!!
Bigger is better!

DeezyLF

wassup yall... i just changed my starter on my car and i had to unbolt the coolant rail off to take my starter off. i put everything back on it starts perfectly. but now its leaking coolant and overheating from the rail area... can anyone help me out?
jondeezy92510@gmail.com thanks!

werewolf

Not really sure what you're asking. Where is the coolant leaking? photo
How bad is the leak?

There are two kinds of leaks here--one you can fix without taking the manifold off (hoses / clamps) and one where you need to take the manifold off

DeezyLF

DeezyLF

i took the pic from page 2...circle in RED

my drove it around the block and it started to over heat and check engine light came on.

it was hard to take the manifold off and put on for me...

willhickey

iTrader: (1)

have to take off the manifold to replace the gaskets at least i had to i had the same problem on our ls400 when i reused the 2.00 gaskets like an idiot lol

DeezyLF

gaskets for the the manifold? or the Coolant rail in my picture that i circled?
cuz i put new gaskets fo my manifold. but had to take the rail off so i can take the starter off... i put it back on and it leaking from the bottom but looks like it coming from that area i circled.

werewolf

There are two gaskets for the coolant bar (the metal piece in the red circle). I would replace these if you have the mani off already

There is also a coolant pipe that runs north / south in the engine bay below the mani in the V8 valley. It doesn't have gaskets but make sure it is seated properly

DeezyLF

[QUOTE=werewolf;5675615]There are two gaskets for the coolant bar (the metal piece in the red circle). I would replace these if you have the mani off already

i have pics now, top is spraying out from the blue line and bolt.

and picture of where it drips on the bottom...

it starts to drip from the bottom hose under the car and stops dripping. then sprays from the coolant bar

what do u reccomend??? take the manifold back off and try 2 reset the coolant bar? or u think maybe i bent the bar and buy a new one and gaskets???

werewolf

i have pics now, top is spraying out from the blue line and bolt.

and picture of where it drips on the bottom...

it starts to drip from the bottom hose under the car and stops dripping. then sprays from the coolant bar

what do u reccomend??? take the manifold back off and try 2 reset the coolant bar? or u think maybe i bent the bar and buy a new one and gaskets???

Dunno, I am assuming those photos are not of your car currently. (i.e. the intake manifold is on the car right now). If it was me, I would pull off the manifold and take a crack myself. I think it would be really hard to bend the bar by accident. I find it strange it would leak from the bolt. Maybe there is an obstruction in the coolant system?

when the coolant bar comes off, there are two gaskets where the bar bolts down. They are a 3 layer design (metal, rubber?, metal). There should be no bend to the gaskets. When you pull the bar off, the gaskets need to be inspected. If they are stuck into place, when you pull them off chances are you will damage them.

Even if you can't fix it yourself, if you can tow it into a shop with the manifold off, you should save some money b/c half the manifold labor is done already