DIY Starter Repair. How-to: Remove, Disassemble, Grease, Reinstall (w/pics)

[5thElement]

Thanks for this write up. It helped me complete this task today. Took me quite a while because of difficulty getting it back together but I can tell, this winter 30 below will be smoother starts without that crazy grinding noise. No pictures because OP had that covered.

[Shik]

I commend you guys for tearing into the starter and rebuilding it, but after a half-hearted attempt at greasing with no results, I figured, hey, my starter is 130K and 10 years old, it owes me nothing.

 

Advance Auto wanted $220 for a Denso reman, I think retail on a OEM reman(also Denso) from Subaru was around $230. I got a discount from the Subaru Dealer so it was under $200 so that's the route I went.

 

I was pretty pumped on how "new" the starter sounded. I know it sounds obvious, but it sounds like a new car starting Right in time for 5 months of cold morning starts!

 

 

Good luck to those attempting the disassemble/re-grease!

[bucko3the7man]

I commend you guys for tearing into the starter and rebuilding it, but after a half-hearted attempt at greasing with no results, I figured, hey, my starter is 130K and 10 years old, it owes me nothing.

 

Advance Auto wanted $220 for a Denso reman, I think retail on a OEM reman(also Denso) from Subaru was around $230. I got a discount from the Subaru Dealer so it was under $200 so that's the route I went.

 

I was pretty pumped on how "new" the starter sounded. I know it sounds obvious, but it sounds like a new car starting Right in time for 5 months of cold morning starts!

 

 

Good luck to those attempting the disassemble/re-grease!

 

Thank you! Your post has made me want to rebuild mine even more than before. That's crazy $$ for a starter.

[SubOperator]

I need to do this also before the winter comes. Have spare used starter that I want to use for rebuild with minimal (hopefully) downtime.

[SubOperator]

Thanks for part # for reman OEM starter, found it at below $200 but with shipping will likely be around same $200.

[Shik]

Thank you! Your post has made me want to rebuild mine even more than before. That's crazy $$ for a starter.

 

You're welcome, brother

 

Everyone looks at it differently. After thinking I was going to do the whole disassemble/re-grease this fall, I thought about even if I did it successfully and was able to put everything back together without messing something up, how worn is everything else in there?

 

It's my daily and I absolutely cannot be without a car, even for a day. In the winter months, I go to work in the dark and come home in the dark. If I could help it, I'd rather not have to repair a starter when it's 15 degrees outside, because you just know it would not quit when it's warm and sunny until 9:00pm in the middle of summer!

 

So, lets say hypothetically this starter lasts another 130,000 miles. That would be 260,000 miles between two starters and I have less than $200 wrapped up into it over that span and 45 minutes of my time....AND...I will never worry about it again. No listening for it to see if it's getting noisy again, no wondering when it's 0 degrees at 5am if my repair job was perfect. To me, absolutely worth it.

 

Like I said, best of luck to those doing the repair work. I hope it lasts as long as a Subaru reman and costs virtually nothing but your time. Everyone has their point of view when deciding which route to go.

[SBT]

After 155K miles, my starter looked almost new on tear-down. Slight surface oxidation on the outside, but everything inside looked great as did the flywheel engagement gear. Spring and internal gears all had plenty of life in them.

[RustyRuu]

Now do this carefully, there are some tiny needle bearings at the very end of the starter shaft that if lost, will pretty much mean you are buying a new starter.

 

sort of concered about this part but i'm just gonna go for it. it seems pretty strait forward and will help a lot. funny how it started in -21 but when it comes to a calm 60 degree day in colorado in February it gives up and needs a couple wacks from a hammer.

[LegacyUpNorth]

After 12 months of hearing a squeeling noise on startup I got the courage on Friday night to take it out and regrease the bendix. I also decided to go the extra mile and open it up to clean and regrease the pinion gears. Put it all back together and installed it back in the engine.

 

It started up like brand new.

 

If it starts squeeling again I will most likely just bite the bullet and purchase a reman one. For now it's back to sounding nice and quiet.

[compsurge]

If you used the proper grease it should last a while.

[Max Capacity]

After buying a rebuilt starter for my 09 Spec B from Advance for $120 and not sending the core back for the $30.00 I finally got around to taking the two long screws out and the nut off that wire. Pulled that part of the starter off then took the two 10mm nuts of the solenoid and the gears come out easy.

 

Reference pictures in post 63

 

Remember how that rubber piece fits in, it only goes in one way.

 

I was able to use my grease gun and put some wheel bearing grease on the spiral gear and on the end of the shaft where it goes into the stater housing. Took me about 15 minutes to do that and put it back together.

 

Next time one of the trannys is out of either car, I'll put this starter in.

 

Putting the pictures back in after the site upgrade.

[bucko3the7man]

Last year I just sprayed a bunch of white lithium grease into the hole at the bottom and it was fine. Going to repeat this year as it's just started to do it again with the cold. Way easier than the remove/rebuild.

[Max Capacity]

The only problem with doing that is, the lube is not getting put directly where it needs to be. See post #63 and the 5th and 6th photos.

 

When you slide the gear forward, when you engage the starter, that is the only time that spiral gear is exposed. It really is simple to remove the two nuts and slide the starter apart.

 

With the tmic off and a floor jack the starter is easy to remove. I know those with a stock type tmic and that TB hose...may not like to remove the tmic.

Edited October 3, 2016 by Max Capacity

[Max Capacity]

Ok It's been 25 minutes since I went out to the shed, took the starter apart, took pictures, assembled the starter, downloaded the photos to photobucket.

 

Hint, make sure you reassemble the plunger in picture 4 correctly.

 

You can test the starter with jumper cables. Just ask Google, how to test a starter with jumper cables.

 

In the first photo, that's the two nuts you remove, after you remove the two long bolts the starter will slide apart very easy. You can see where I put red wheel bearing grease down on the spiral gear and some other grease on the three small gears, those come out with a light pulling on them with your fingers. I also wiped them down and put some different wheel bearing grease on them, that's because that was all that tube had left, I used a new tube of wheel bearing grease for the spiral gears. The different colors of grease is because one was marine wheel bearing grease.

 

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x40/92Si/DSCN7330_zpstyril2fj.jpg

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x40/92Si/DSCN7331_zps7et6bu5h.jpg

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x40/92Si/DSCN7332_zps5e1k1wur.jpg

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x40/92Si/DSCN7333_zpstflvnpln.jpg

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x40/92Si/DSCN7334_zpsqjsypu7l.jpg

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x40/92Si/DSCN7335_zpsdgnbr2s9.jpg

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x40/92Si/DSCN7337_zpspzu96gvy.jpg

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x40/92Si/DSCN7338_zps1py12aeb.jpg

Edited July 22, 2020 by Max Capacity
Loaded pictures to the site's server for posterity

[bucko3the7man]

Ok It's been 25 minutes since I went out to the shed, took the starter apart, took pictures, assembled the starter, downloaded the photos to photobucket.

 

In the first photo, that's the two nuts you remove, after you remove the two long bolts the starter will slide apart very easy. You can see where I put red wheel bearing grease down on the spiral gear and some other grease on the three small gears, those come out with a light pulling on them with your fingers. I also wiped them down and put some different wheel bearing grease on them, that's because that was all that tube had left, I used a new tube of wheel bearing grease for the spiral gears. The different colors of grease is because one was marine wheel bearing grease.

 

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x40/92Si/DSCN7330_zpstyril2fj.jpg

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x40/92Si/DSCN7331_zps7et6bu5h.jpg

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x40/92Si/DSCN7332_zps5e1k1wur.jpg

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x40/92Si/DSCN7333_zpstflvnpln.jpg

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x40/92Si/DSCN7334_zpsqjsypu7l.jpg

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x40/92Si/DSCN7335_zpsdgnbr2s9.jpg

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x40/92Si/DSCN7337_zpspzu96gvy.jpg

http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x40/92Si/DSCN7338_zps1py12aeb.jpg

 

Fine, fine, I'll do it right this time.

[outahere]

I got a small tub of mobil 1 synth grease. You guys think it will be ok to use? Prefer not to buy more unneeded stuff if possible

 

Maybe. The starter motor contains a large "plastic" gear that can be damaged by incompatible lubricants.

[Max Capacity]

If you take the two nuts off and slide it apart, its real easy to put the grease down on the spiral gear and keep it off the big plastic parts.

[axisofevol]

this seems like a good option for high-quality lubricants of various types: https://www.amazon.com/PolySi-G-MAN-Lubricants/b/ref=w_bl_hsx_s_hi_web_14562583011?ie=UTF8&node=14562583011&field-lbr_brands_browse-bin=PolySi+G-MAN+Lubricants

 

I found it referenced here, which is obviously a shill-site for this brand, but still: https://askthegreaseman.wordpress.com/2015/01/22/stater-motor-grease/

 

They have an extreme low-temperature one, PST-433 G-MAN Low Temperature Grease, which also has a high-temp rating of 400 degrees F, and it's not crazy expensive either.

[bluesuby]

Great post. I was working on removing it 2 weeks ago when I had the TMIC off, but when I got to removing to the bottom bolt, I gave up. Very difficult to get a good angle from the top and be able to apply the torque needed to break loose the bolt. Didn't have the time to jack the car up either. Definitely something I'll work on next time around.

 

I found that reaching the bottom bolt was virtually impossible from above. I supported the front drivers side with a jack stand and was able to use a long extension on a 6 point 14mm socket. These bolts look soft and I didn't want to round off the head. Removal of the starter can easily be done from up top contrary to some reports that the starter must be dropped out the bottom. When refitting the new starter you can insert the bottom bolt from up top (insert the top bolt first so the starter is secured) and just go underneath briefly to put the final torque on that bottom bolt.

[4cylFI]

Thanks for the tutorial to everyone who contributed and especially chato. I did mine this afternoon and the car is starting well with no noise, hopefully that will continue once it gets cold again.

 

I wanted to add a caution when separating the body of the starter. Once I pulled the two long bolts holding the body together (T25 heads on my starter), the end cap over the motor came off as I was separating the body. This happened very easily and the spring loaded brushes moved inward making it a little difficult to get back on. No pictures since I was anxious to get that back together before some other unexpected item happened.

[MajorWood]

Pulled mine out today on a 2007 and it appears that the solenoid is now not the same type that can be repaired for $10-15, but a pressed-metal sealed unit with no access to the contacts, and I have not been able to locate this separate unit for sale yet. I think the new model differs by having screws go into it from the front of the start unit rather and having the screws as a part of the solenoid body. Arrrgggh!

 

Good news and bad news. The bad news is that a similar and usable solenoid piece was found at a local shop, Auto Battery and Electric on Hawthorne in PDX, for about $40, but it is still difficult to locate and requires a slight mod from the factory piece (ignition pin is much smaller) to work. Still pretty annoying that Subaru doesn't make this component available separately from the starter. The good news is that even with the new solenoid, the starter didn't work, and when the clerk popped it open it seriously needed new brushes. So he sold me a brush pack for $30 and I was on my way. Hour and 15 min later the wheels were on the ground, with my original and still working solenoid in place. 30 min of the repair was just trying to get the snap ring on the back end of the rod. Hint, push the front of the geared rod with a 1/4" nutdriver handle while using either the correct tool, or in my case an 8mm open end wrench with one side pressing on the back of the "C" and the other gently pushing the open side over the end of the rod. I knew all that brain surgery training would eventually become useful. ;-) Car started on first crank, also thanks to a new batt to replace the 5 yo one that measured 12.51V. Again, shoutout for ABE for above and beyond the call of duty service. How often do you leave a car place thinking that you didn't pay enough?

 

Reread thread and there are examples of the two types of starters and solenoids. The solenoid which has two long threaded rods out the front is likely the old type which can be rebuilt using new contacts and plunger. ABE had it in stock for $40. My type, the PITA to find model, is the one which is held to the starter body by a couple of 1" long phillips screws. BTW, these screws are soft and were tightly held, so use the appropriate full size screwdriver and apply a lot of force to keep the head from stripping

Edited April 20, 2017 by MajorWood
additional info for repair

[xt2005bonbon]

OP, would it be possible to upload the pics to the LGT forum server? We can no longer view them thanks to Photobucket new policy

[Polo08816]

Pulled mine out today on a 2007 and it appears that the solenoid is now not the same type that can be repaired for $10-15, but a pressed-metal sealed unit with no access to the contacts, and I have not been able to locate this separate unit for sale yet. I think the new model differs by having screws go into it from the front of the start unit rather and having the screws as a part of the solenoid body. Arrrgggh!

 

Good news and bad news. The bad news is that a similar and usable solenoid piece was found at a local shop, Auto Battery and Electric on Hawthorne in PDX, for about $40, but it is still difficult to locate and requires a slight mod from the factory piece (ignition pin is much smaller) to work. Still pretty annoying that Subaru doesn't make this component available separately from the starter. The good news is that even with the new solenoid, the starter didn't work, and when the clerk popped it open it seriously needed new brushes. So he sold me a brush pack for $30 and I was on my way. Hour and 15 min later the wheels were on the ground, with my original and still working solenoid in place. 30 min of the repair was just trying to get the snap ring on the back end of the rod. Hint, push the front of the geared rod with a 1/4" nutdriver handle while using either the correct tool, or in my case an 8mm open end wrench with one side pressing on the back of the "C" and the other gently pushing the open side over the end of the rod. I knew all that brain surgery training would eventually become useful. ;-) Car started on first crank, also thanks to a new batt to replace the 5 yo one that measured 12.51V. Again, shoutout for ABE for above and beyond the call of duty service. How often do you leave a car place thinking that you didn't pay enough?

 

Reread thread and there are examples of the two types of starters and solenoids. The solenoid which has two long threaded rods out the front is likely the old type which can be rebuilt using new contacts and plunger. ABE had it in stock for $40. My type, the PITA to find model, is the one which is held to the starter body by a couple of 1" long phillips screws. BTW, these screws are soft and were tightly held, so use the appropriate full size screwdriver and apply a lot of force to keep the head from stripping

 

Wouldn't it be easier just to buy a new starter assembly from RockAuto and just replace?

 

http://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/subaru,2008,legacy,2.5l+h4+turbocharged,1440457,electrical,starter+motor,4152

 

http://www.rockauto.com/en/moreinfo.php?pk=7946208&cc=1440457&jsn=495

[SBT]

With loss of chato's pictures, loaded the PDF to the first page.

[xt2005bonbon]

Thanks SBT!