Alright, I'm in a bit of a pickle, kind of. What I thought was my starter appears to be something else, hopefully not something god awful.

A single click with humming. I'm a delivery driver in Arizona so I start my car nearly 20-30 times a day in 95F+ heat. I jumped the gun and bought a re-manufactured Denso starter, all nice and shiny, 6 hours of driving later, suddenly I'm back to clicking with a hum, thankfully at my house because I seriously couldn't get it to start, probably not the starter or the solenoid, I banged on it with a hammer but to no avail it would not start until I pulled the battery terminals, which were tight and clean, and suddenly it fired right back up. Which leads me to ask; could it be my starter relay, the battery, or the wires from the starter, somewhere along the line they're damaged?

The starter relay itself is kind of crusty, and bleached in color, no real markings or brand name, looks generic. it's recently had trouble starting, always after plenty of driving, never cold.

Could I have literally cooked the relay from all the driving and heat-soak of Arizona?

Would appreciate some help from the guru's, or anyone really. Sadly the only way to replicate this is after plenty of driving so I'll never know until it happens again, say after replacing the relay or something.

Thanks if anyone's got something to say, I'm a bit stumped and tired after working.

 

I'm really an 'anyone' rather than a guru.

First question. Where is the click and the hum coming from? I'll bet the click is coming from the relay and the hum from the starter motor. If so, you are delivering power to the starter but not enough current to get it to turn.

Interfering with the battery terminal made it work and that is a big clue.

Sounds to me that you have a resistance somewhere (at starting current you only need a few ohms) and I suspect that battery connection. Easy way to pinpoint it is when you try to start something will get quite hot. It's acting like a toaster element!

I have a suspicion that the earth connection from the battery is poor. Even if it looks OK it may be corroded - I have had this before but not on a Lexus.

Good luck!

 

It sounded like the click was from the starter solenoid, and the hum itself I'm not sure where itself, I can't exactly figure it out right now because the car is cold and I can't replicate it. At one point I turned the key to start and nothing happened, but as I turned the key again it fired right up, however I was working and could not hear what was happening outside because of course, my radio was on.

I had someone else turn the key while listening, but you're right, taking the terminals off and cleaning them was a big key in this. You think cleaning off the grounds on the starter would help or would it be something else? I'm not very knowledgeable in electronics, apologies.

 

If my 'shot in the dark' theory is right, the earth (negative) cable from the battery should be checked out. Does it get hot after starting attempts? Can you inspect the cable and its connections for corrosion?

 

Connections are perfectly fine and not corroded, however the shielding of the wires near the terminals are slightly damaged as some of the cable wiring has come off, and corrosion might have penetrated underneath? Either way, I've been unable to replicate the no-start problem as of right now, even after delivering about on a hot humid day for 6~ hours, suppose that's what makes intermittent problems aggravating. I however discovered after testing the battery that the voltage regulator on the alternator is totally done for, which I'll replace soon. I've only had the car a year and the alternator was replaced not even 3 years ago! This is why you don't cheap out on parts.

 

Alright guys, I have an 08 ISF WITH 126k and my starter just went out. Dealership wants 2100 for labor to replace it. They claim both engine and transmission need to come out.

Any else have this issue?
anyone replace it themselves?

anyone in the LA area that are willing to fix it for me lol

 

Wow, that's more than I would've expected for a starter replacement, even from a dealer. I'm at 130K on my 04 and worry about this happening as well. There's a lot of good info on these forums about how to replace but it appears to be a nightmare job with taking off the entire top of the engine to get to it. I'd inquire at a independent private repair shop next and see what that would cost. Should be considerably less but I haven't priced this work out - yet thankfully.

 

You'll want to check the IS forum.

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/is-models-5/