My starter went out on me. I had a good battery but the car would not crank at all. When I would tap the starter it would crank over a few times then stop. So I knew the starter was bad at that point.
These pics were taken when Installing the new starter, but for the sake of the write up I will post pics so that it shows steps for removal.
Tools Needed: 10mm socket, 14mm socket, 12mm socket, 13mm socket, 2 or 3" Socket extension. Small hands and a colorful vocabulary are helpful but not necessary. :)
The basic removal procedure is Remove the battery, battery box, and battery tray. remove the two 14mm mounting bolts from the transmission bell housing. Disconnect the electrical connections at the starter, and yank it out.
Step one : Remove the battery. There are two 10mm bolts that hold the battery tie down. Then remove the terminals. My battery terminal connections took a 13mm socket to loosen. Disconnect them and place them to the side. The pull the entire battery out. You should be left with an empty box.
http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/atta...1&d=1222317198
Remove the box and underneath it is the battery tray. It's supposed to have four 12mm bolts that hold it to the battery support. Mine only had 3. Guess the PO ( previous owner ) lost one heh. Also there will be a few electrical lines tied to the tray. You can remove the zip tie clips by pushing them in on the backside, or go my route and just clip them off with cutters. Those extra ounces tossed out will help with your E/T's at the track.
http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/atta...1&d=1222317198
With the tray out you will see the support left. The manual says to remove it but you will have enough room if you leave it in.
http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/atta...d=87653&stc=1&
d=1222317198
Now, you will be staring at a rats nest of emission lines, vacuum lines, and various cables. But you have to keep the faith and believe somewhere in there is a starter...
http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/atta...1&d=1222317198
Your first order of business is to find the two 14mm mounting bolts. They are right on the housing for the transmission. Look about a foot below the throttle body. Make careful note one has a ground wire attached to it. Be sure to re-install it when replacing everything. Socket extension helps at this point.
http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/atta...1&d=1222317198
http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/atta...1&d=1222317198
Now will be to remove the electrical connections to the starter itself. This is probably the most time consuming part of it all. The starter, now unbolted, can be maneuvered into a sideways position to remove the clip that goes the solenoid. Lastly there is one 12mm bolt the attached a large wire with a bracket on the end. It may have a red boot cover over it that will have to be slid back. The connections are shown below while on the starter and also with them removed, for reference.
http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/atta...1&d=1222317198
http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/atta...1&d=1222317198
With those removed you can wiggle the starter out. I also disconnected the green wire going to the Throttle body just as a precaution so it wouldn't get snagged.
http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/atta...1&d=1222317198
Here is a pic of the new starter from Autozone, cost me $70 dollars and works great. Your starter will most likely look like a black rusted paper weight, which your parts store will gladly accept as a core charge rebate.
http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/atta...1&d=1222317198
To install simply reverse the steps. I recommend putting the starter in position under the intake, connecting the electrical connectors then installing the mounting bolts. Wrap it all up by putting the tray and box back in and throw on the battery.
I took the time to grab a can of spray paint and give the battery tray and the battery tie down a quick coat of paint since they were out of the car anyways.
Cheers and good luck.
Starter Swap / Install
