I hadn't driven the beater for about 2 months, so when I went to start it I wasn't surprised that the battery was dead.

I jumped it, and eventually got it to start, but the battery wouldn't hold a charge and it was dead again a day later.

So I took my battery to Autozone <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/barf.gif" alt="" />, they tested it and said it was bad (11.2 volts/1amp after an hour on the charger. The battery was a 36 month old 60 month battery). I didn't have any choice but to take their diagnosis, so I picked up a new one.

Threw it in the truck, dash lights come on, but when I try to start it, I get either a click or a ratcheting sound. I gave it a few tries, then gave up. Looking back, there were a few episodes where I would try to start the truck, even just after a shutdown, and would get no response from the starter.

I'm assuming this is a dead starter, though I've never had one die before. I see I can get a remanufactured unit for about $60. What's the time investment and level of difficulty in swapping this out?

My starter did this on my 2.6 about a year or so ago turned out the reduction gears inside the unit were eating themselves up. As for the 2.8 I beleive its 2 bolts and it should fall straight down, install is reverse.



Madcat <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/kewl.gif" alt="" />

I'm trying to decide if it's even worth fixing. The motor is on it's last legs. I haven't decided if I want to commit to the ongoing maintenence of a 16 year old vehicle, or if I want to dump it and get something new(ish).

Either way, I'd probably fix the starter, as long as it isn't too labor intensive.

Yes, it's worth it to keep old cars on the road!

The average car in the US has a life cycle of 12 years, according to randomly googled info... so by keeping yours 16 years you've recycled 1/3 of your vehicle already!

replacing the starter on a 2.8 is very easy... if that's even what you need - check electrical and ground connections first. if those check out, drop the starter and test it on the bench - it may just need cleaning.

Did you charge the replacement battery you got?

New batteries, contrary to belief, do not come with a full
charge.. and if they've sat on the shelf of the parts store
very long, who knows how much of a charge it has.

Before you go looking at the starter, I'd put a trickle
charger on it over-night(12hrs) and see if that solves your
problem.
Also, be sure to check your battery cables for corrosion,
loose grounds, etc.. make sure your cables are all tight.

Then, if you still have a problem, start looking at the
starter.

Just wanted to add my .02 - I had searched the forums for help with my 2.8 starter problem & found this thread.

It started with a distinct grinding sound when I'd use the starter. It would come and go, sometimes real bad, sometimes it would start with no fuss. But it got progressively worse. I had visions of the flywheel gear being ground smooth, and lots of metal filings trailing behind my truck (especially since I just put a new clutch in it 6 mo. back could have screwed up the work).

I took a chance that it was just the starter - and thankfully it was. The internal gears were grinding - so $44 later it was fixed. All I needed to swap it was a socket set (14mm & 15mm I think, and a 3" & 8" extension), a couple of pairs of pliers (to bend the heavy + lead from the battery a bit for easy re-installation), and some open end wrenches. Removed the bash plate (duh) and the crossmember to make it easy. The starter did not come with shim - but one shim was already on my starter..so I just put it back on with the new one. FYI to those who have never done this (this was my first starter) -the shims are made so that you can have the new starter on, held by the inboard bolt, put the new shim on, and the 2nd bolt. In other words- you don't have to take the whole mess off again to add a shim. It's a 5 minute process.

I was able to install/remove the wires AFTER removing the starter - they were just long enough to get on and of with the starter hanging. It was not much fun, but was probably easier than trying to get a wrench up by the starter.

Watch the plug-in lead under the oil filter - I knocked it out accidentally during the process.

I was "on the road" when it broke - found a vacant parking lot, put one wheel up on a curb and swapped it out - about 2 hours (would have been easier at home!). The trickiest part was getting the wires on and off & the assembled unit back up in place. Took a bit of...finesse and extreme violence. But easy enough to do at home if you have basic tools and a couple of hours.

Of our three Troopers that are on the road, one starter has been replaced at 250K mils as used up. The one with 189K was starting slow and I found the battery cable to the starter nut loose. After tightening it down operation went back to normal. While changing the clutch on Trooper number three I found that the battery cable nut to the starter had fallen off somewhere. It never had an effect on the starters ability to crank the engine to full speed.

Good Luck, John in LV