billydpowe

iTrader: (1)

WELL I hate to mess all your dreams up, but my 99LS started the click, click stuff in July 2010, and I went and bought the solenoid kit for it (plus gaskets I didnt even need) and put them in and 7 plus years later, they are still working.... no problem with starter (now 215k) and only cost 35$...
the starter is NOT A HARD JOB...... just time consuming.. lay it out and put it back on..

dicer

No job on an LS is hard, it can just be a pain in the rear. Super difficult clearances to get bolts and hands into, super crusty hoses and wires to disconnect.
And that is why time consuming and by definition something that is very time consuming means the job is very difficult.
And the Oreillys starter is when you need it now not in a week from Rock auto. I've ordered stuff from the dealer that took a week or two, so just depends on when you need it.

fastegg

Yes I've checked out the solenoid kit as i know that's all that's wrong with it... click-click-click... but considering the amount of work required to replace it... i can get a brand newy for $129 with 5 year warranty... if the starter was on the outside, I would do just the solenoid...

jaaa

To me, a warranty is almost useless when it comes to hard to do jobs, or failures that cause the car not to work. They just give you another part, not restitution on all the money it takes to redo it. As an example: buying an O'rielly alternator and having it conk out on the road. I know my vacation was interrupted to the tune of $600 or so, but they do give you another shiny alternator.

oldskewel

iTrader: (1)

Depending on the condition of your original starter, and the quality of the brand new one, even if the new one were free, it might be better to re-use the old one. You can't just assume new means as good as new when it was built. Even if it's OEM.
But given all the effort to R+R I'd definitely want to put the best thing I could back in there, whether it is new or original.

dicer

Any rebuilder will automatically replace all wear items like the contactor ring and contacts or the whole solenoid, also any brushes and such, and bendix or oneway clutches etc.

billydpowe

iTrader: (1)

that is true dicer, but it does not mean his rebuilt starter was as good as the original LS starter... that is the gamble..

fastegg

To be honest.. I'll probably get the local auto elec to recon the stock starter... Even with a 5 year warranty, a Chinese copy most likely would not last 20 years which is what the stock one did as i will keep this car until it dies. (I'm 57 so I'll probably die first)

dicer

And unless the new dealer starter is an NOS, which I don't think so. Do they still make them???? Dealer part could be the same old rebuilt one that O reillys gets, or it could be a nice shiny new one from China. Lexus is just like everyone else things are manufactured on a world market now. An original dealer part just doesn't mean what it did back when the Gen 1's hit the show room floors.