Hi All,

Been searching and reading the forums and can't seem to find a definite answer. While I realize every car is different, would like to have your opinion on this.

Currently car has a problem starting. Originally thinking it was the battery, I replaced the battery. Also there was a ton of corrosion on the battery line. I cleaned it up. I have tested the lines and at rest it reads @ 12v, when the car is running it has 14v. What does worries me is during the storm, I drove through ~ a foot of water (110N was flooded ). From the threads I have read, many have solved this issue by tightening down the connectors. I am hoping driving through the foot of water didnt corrode my lines, but assume if the battery is getting 14v back (while on), the lines should be okay.

When you "start" the car it will either 1) Start normally or 2) you hear a click, and the fuel prime.

If it just clicks, I attempt to start the car again 2-4 times (never switching the key to the off position) and it starts. There are no CEL/VSC/etc warnings or codes. If it does start, its either a very slow/weak start OR it starts normally (1-2 whirls and the engine kicks over).

In your experience, does this mean the starter is bad OR do i have something an "electrical gremlin" zapping power?

 

Clicking is typically starter related when ruling out the simple issues like the battery and cables. In the 1UZ for us 400 owners, it is the plunger that exhibits wear. As the 430's get up in age, we'll see how starters fare compared to the 400's. The LS400's is a pretty common occurrence but not with every car. YMMV.

This is a good thread:
https://www.clublexus.com/forums/ls4...os-inside.html

 

One suggestion - buy one the the very cheap LED voltmeters that plugs into a cigarette lighter socket. I just ordered 5 for under $3.00 each.
Watch it closely while cranking - if it drops below about 9 V, you don't have enough "juice" to run the starter motor. Then, you can check for a bad battery, low charge, and bad connections.
Or, you can load the system by turning on the headlights (which draw a fair amount of current).
14 V indicates the alternator is working OK (with the engine running), and 12.6 V indicates that the battery is good (with the engine off for an hour or two). However, these are under no-load conditions, and are not conclusive.

 

its the starter. You have a handful of starts before you won't be able to start it at all.

 

I agree with this. I had to repair my starter a week ago. Sometimes it would just click and I would have to attempt a few times. Then it would start and act fine. I knew it wasn't the battery since it was fairly new so I figured my starter was going bad. I was hoping it wasn't since I had paid Lexus $550 5.5 years ago to change the starter. I ordered some copper contacts off of ebay for it. Well it died a day or two before they arrived. It's a pain to get out of a GS300 as it's right by the trans tunnel. I just sanded the plunger and replaced the copper contacts and my problem was solved. It's probably your contacts that need replacing because they are a wear item.

 

It very well may be the contact points in the solenoid.
However, replacing the starter is an expensive (or painful if you do it yourself) job. Of course replacing the points is much easier, but still not as quick or cheap as on the old Volkswagen.
My point was that it will take less than 10 minutes to check some simple things that could save quite a bit of hassle.

 

I figure if i'm going to take off the intake manifold might as well get a brand new starter. Hope it gets from Sewell to my house by Friday. I'll update you guys after i swap it this weekend. Thanks for all your help!

 

Many of the plastic connectors on the engine wiring harnesses were brittle and cracked when I had my starter replaced recently. They had to be secured with plastic zip ties when re-assembling everything, so make sure you have some handy. Last thing you want to do is get everything buttoned up and have to take the manifold off again because a wiring connector came loose.

 

I just had this problem on my Nissan Maxima. It was a melted through ground cable. Even though you are supposedly charging the battery when engine is running, it could still be your wires. Starting an engine requires a large amount of current and if you only have half the wire burned out, it won't start but all accessories can still work. My wire "looked" okay but when I took it out, it fell apart in my hands as I bent it back and forth. As the resistance in the wire increases due to corrosion/burning it will start to melt because the remaining strands have to try and carry more current. Before buying a new starter, I would check the cables again but that's just me. Good luck man

 

Thanks for the heads up! I figure no matter what I have remove the intake manifold. I'll check the lines before I swap in the new starter, but better to have extra parts and not use them than wait another week before I can get to it.

My uncle was telling me to check the ground cable from the battery. From the other posts it seems its usually the contacts on the starter itself. Do you recommend any other problem areas?

 

So it was the starter. On my 01, I ended up cracking hoses and breaking brittle connectors. I had quite a bit of trouble attempting to remove the intake manifold and ended up taking it to a shop.

I've heard at the dealerships they sometimes drop the transmission out a bit to help with reaching the screws on the back of the starter.

 

Bingo. Thank you for posting an update...

 

Sounds like a starter job on these cars is a *****. Intake manifold having to come off:thumbd can't imagine what a dealer wants for that job.

 

called my local dealership twice and no service advisor picked up the phone called a few local places and labor alone was ~$440