Hi gents,

I have a 8 year old/less than 10k mile Bosch starter in my XJS that will sometimes make a screeching noise at the first start up. I tried to tap it lightly with metal tool, and it did not make that noise. The car gets driven once every week, or sometimes, when the weather is bad once every two to three weeks, so I imagine something gets stuck. This seems to be fairly common in the X300 section. I don’t want to go tapping the starter every time before I turn the car on, but I also don’t want to buy another Bosch starter that will eventually do the same thing because it does not get enough “exercise” …. Is there a better option, or is there something I can do to the existing starter to lubricate the pinion?

thanks

 

Viscous fan coupling starting to seize? Or worn fanbelt screeching on one of the pulleys?

Paul

 

Hi Paul, thanks for your reply….

based on the fact the starter does not make the noise of its tapped prior to starting, and that the belt Is not too old and neither is the fan clutch, I am as certain as someone can be it’s the starter. I think it “sticks” from lack of use. I would simply like to get a new one and call it a day, but perhaps this one just needs lubrication. Not entirely sure

 

I recently put a reman BOSCH SR491X starter on my 96 and have no issues with it. Rock Auto $119 plus core.