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Bear with me, the last time I replaced a starter motor was over 30 years ago.
The coupe starter is an OEM Lucas one I overhauled at that time.
Nothing seriously wrong with it except the solenoid contact area was pitted.
I just stripped and cleaned the whole thing and it has been fine up to now
The coupe starter does not crank the engine too smartly even with a brand new fully charged battery.
It also keeps cranking for 2 or 3 seconds after turning off the key.
I doubt the key is the problem, more likely the solenoid is sticking.
This car has a manual 5 speed so is slightly different to the average around the bell housing.
Looking at the ROM to jog the memory it suggests disconnecting the rack feed pipes, then dropping the rack.
I can see the need to drop the rack but I think the feed pipes can stay provided they are not subject to strain.
Any comment on that ?
This time up the car is on a hoist. Oh what luxury compared with bygone years lying on your back to deal with undercarriage problems.
Also this time might be wise to invest in a gear reduction starter.
Yep, lower the rack, let it hand on the tie rods. Hoses/pipes should be OK, but my memory is the same.
Check the starter relay FIRST, they are known for the internal contacts to stick closed, starter run on.
Crappy engine earth strap/s is also high on the list.
I got the starter motor out.
I found the nut on the battery cable to the solenoid was not very tight and that could cause the symptoms of poor cranking power and running on after the start relay turned off.
So I suspect the starter motor and solenoid are probably O.K. I did overhaul them thoroughly about 30 odd years ago and the car is usually driven no more than 12 times a year.
Of course it is impossible to get at that nut unless you go to a lot of trouble removing all the things you usually need to for a complete removal.
To make life easy I bought a couple of adjustable stands to handle the heavy exhaust system, the rack and the starter motor itself.
Took a while to find them but eventually turned up these at US$160 the pair including freight. Well worth it if you have a hoist.
I have a set of new bushes for the convertible and the stands will make rack removal and replacement easier.
I did not need to drop the rack to get the starter motor out. See the photos.
The bell housing is for manual box. It does not need the special 12 point bolt, just a standard hex head bolt.
I had to release the rack U/V joint and remove the starter heatshield plus the little bracket heatshield to solenoid.
Then I could just manage to cajole the starter motor out onto the stand. There was enough slack in the battery cable to do this.
Then I noticed the nut holding that cable to the solenoid was not real tight.
I bought a Titan brand geared starter, which is basically a Chinese product.
The company selling it is in Brisbane and they cast and machine the nose themselves to fit the bell housing of a variety of classic cars, including the 5.3L V12.
Fits perfectly into the Dellows bell housing for a manual box.
I bought a sheet of aluminium heatshield material which is stamped/formed in such a way you can bend it into virtually any shape.
Heatshield around new geared starter
Not sure if this idea popped up before. I have owned this 79 coupe since 1984, 41 years of ownership.
I know I had to refit the downpipes at least twice before and it is always awkward to get the flanges up the pipe and on to the studs.
This time I used a couple of 2" hose clamps mounted just under the flanges to keep them in place while I wrestled with getting everything lined up.
Made things much easier, just make sure the screw head of the hose clamp is not near where you need put a spanner on the stud nuts.
V12 starter motor - memory recall
