The Joy Of Replacing The Starter In A 1997 Ford F-150

                                      Installing the new Starter...one half turn at a time.

Sunday evening the truck wouldn't turn over. Unfortunately I was up at Brad's feeding his dogs, so I had to walk down the hill to my house. It was late, so I figured I'd just get up in the morning and go up and give it a jump and all would be well with the world.

Bro Tom drove up to Brad's with me Monday morning. He suggested I try turning it over before we bothered with the cables, so I did. It started right up! I drove home, all the while thinking that it was weird that the truck had turned right over, as I did go through the bother of checking the battery connections last night and, assured they were tight, turned the key in the ignition one last time (to no avail) before walking home.

It must have been a loose connection and for whatever reason it wasn't all that loose this morning was all I could conclude as I drove home. Stranger things have happened.

I worked on a painting for a bit before having to get ready for work, not thinking there would be any further trouble with the truck.

I hopped in the truck to go to work, turned the key and...nothing. Radio worked, and so did the AC, but the truck wouldn't turn over. It didn't even make the clicking noise that usually indicates a dead battery. Turning the key resulted in...nothing.

Mechanic neighbor Josh was in his garage, so I called him over to take a look. He brought his voltage meter, checked the battery, found it to be charged, and then said, "It's your Starter."

Oh yay. 

Josh told me to get him a hammer, so I grabbed one out of the garage. He crawled under the truck, banged the Starter a few times, then told me to turn it over. I did, and it did. 

Problem solved? Josh seemed to think so. He did say I should probably replace the Starter as soon as I could, but he also said I probably would be fine for awhile.

So I hauled off to work. However, I had to stop at King Soopers first, which I didn't think would be a problem. 

Unfortunately, it was, The truck wouldn't turn over. Again.

So I called Josh, he drove over with the hammer, crawled under the truck and hammered away. I turned the key and the truck started right up. 

Josh handed me the hammer and said for me to just bang the Starter a couple times as he had if it happened again, and I headed off to work.

'cept I had to make one more stop, at Coors Field to pick up the tickets for Monday nights game (Rockies vs. the new look Dodgers, Section 140, Row 1, Seats 9 through 12. Sweeeeeeet). As I pulled up in front of the box office along Blake, I told myself "Don't shut off the engine, let it idle." I'm sure I said that to myself three or four times as I was parking...then I shut off the engine.

Damn. I hoped the truck would start right up after I got the tickets, but if not, well, I had the hammer.

After I got the tickets, I hopped in the truck, turned the key and...you guessed it.

Grabbing the hammer and a furniture blanket I had, I walked around to the passenger side (next to the curb), threw the blanket down, crawled under, hammered on the Starter, then got up and climbed back into the truck. Started right up.

After stowing the blanket and hammer, I headed to work. However, as I was driving along I-25, the low fuel light came on. Damn.

I knew I had enough gas to get to work, but I would have to go to a gas station sometime that afternoon to get gas. That meant starting and shutting off the truck at least three times before I would leave work for the game that night.

About four hours into work, I decided it was time to go get gas. As luck would have it, the truck started right up when I left for the station, and it started right up after I filled up. 

Shouldn't have pushed that luck though. Thinking everything was hunky-dory, I decided to stop at King Soopers again to grab some lunch. The parking lot at this particular King Soopers is something of a hill though, and I did had the foresight to park at the very top.

When I got back to the truck, sure enough it wouldn't start. I
got out the blanket and the hammer, crawled under the truck, Bang! bang! Bang! Got back into the cab...nothing,

Repeat the procedure. Nothing. Repeat again. Nothing.

I parked at the top of the hill for a reason. It would be a beast to turn the wheel, as the power steering wouldn't function without the engine turning over, but I could manage.

I opened the driver's side door and with one hand on the wheel and the other on the cab pillar, I pushed for all I was worth.

Ten feet down the hill I jumped in the cab, popped the clutch, and the engine turned over. Whew! 

Back at work, I parked on the the top of the very small hill of our store's parking lot too (actually, a small rise) just in case...

Hours later I climbed in the truck to leave for the game...and the truck wouldn't turn over. I didn't want to crawl under the truck, so I asked manager Tom to get behind the wheel as I pushed and pop the clutch for me. Worked like a charm.

Met up with Double Play Dave and his wife Janet at Jackson's before heading over to the game, and after the 10-0 shelling of the Dodgers by the Rockies, asked Dave to follow me to my truck to help me pop the clutch to get it started. He did, I popped the clutch, and drove on home.

Which is where this story actually begins.

I had called Dave W. over at Stevinson parts to get a new Starter Monday afternoon. All I needed to do this morning was crawl under the truck, take off the old Starter, drive over to Golden to give it to Dave for the core charge and pick up the new one from him.

Simple. According to the Internet, taking out the old starter was a three step process - three bolts, 5 minutes tops.

I had to put the truck on ramps first though, as my pushing-270-how-god-awful-is-that-ass wasn't going to fit under the truck (much less be able to use tools under there as well) unless the front end was on ramps.

So I got the neighbors Fred & Josh to help me push Tom in the truck in order to pop start it one more time. After that was accomplished, I backed into the driveway, got out the ramps, and drove up 'em. Perfect. Tires blocked and I'm ready to go.

I grabbed all the tools I'd need (1/2 and 9/16 inch sockets, small socket to disengage the negative cable, wire cutters), and opened the hood up. 

Step 1) Disengage negative battery cable. Easy breezy.

Step 2) Crawl under the truck, locate the Starter. Using the 1/2 inch socket, unbolt the ground wire and wiring harness.

Not quite. The ground wire is easy enough, as it's connected to the lower bolt that holds the Starter in place. The wiring harness however, is on the opposite side, and it is in a tiny, tiny place. A place much to tiny for my banana hands to get into.

Looking at how everything was configured, I knew I wouldn't be able to get to the wiring harness until after I got both of the mounting bolts undone. So I proceeded to unbolt those. One. Half. Turn. At. A. Time.  

Between the oil pan and parts of the frame, moving a tool of any sort is difficult. Getting enough leverage to break the bolt from it's seat to begin with was a pain. It took at least 10 minutes for the bottom bolt to be removed, and at least twenty for the top bolt - the top bolt took longer because I had to find the longest 9/16 inch socket I had, plus an extension, just to get the socket over the bolt head in the tight little recess where it was placed.

Five minute job my ass.

The two bolts, top and bottom are two different sizes by the way. the bottom one is 1/2 inch, and the top is 9/16 inch. Seriously. Why are the bolts not the same size? Is this a conspiracy on the part of the socket manufacturers? 

The official instructions will tell you to hold the body of the Starter with one hand while removing the two mounting bolts with the other. Since I do not have the secret third arm professional mechanics have, I just removed the bottom bolt first, then the top bolt, all the while hoping the wiring harness would keep the Starter from falling on me.

Step 3) Once the Starter is out of it's mount, turn it so the bolt holding the wiring harness in place is visible. Unbolt the wiring harness and clip the solenoid wire behind the spade terminal.

That wasn't the actual third step from the instructions, but it is actually how the job gets done.

The wiring harness is a whole heck of lot more accessible when the Starter is out and you can see the wiring harness bolt, so I used the 1/2 inch socket to get it off. Then I cut the solenoid wire just behind the spade terminal as instructed by ye olde Internet. 

There you go, one old Starter removed. I put it in a plastic bag and borrowed Josh's truck and headed over to Stevinson.

It was good to see Dave, Kenny, Michelle, Maurice and all the crew in the Stevinson Parts Debt. Since John passed, I haven't seen much of those cats. Maybe once or twice a year, at the memorial and such.

I picked up some oil and a filter while I was there, too, as I figured I may as well change the oil while the truck was on the ramps. Not good thinking on my part, that. Not good at all.

But that's a story for another time. 

I drove back to the house with the new Starter and the oil change fixin's. After putting on a fresh pair of latex gloves, I crawled under the truck once more (this time with two of Josh's ratchet wrenches though, in the hope they would be easier to use than the sockets).

I cleaned all the mounting surfaces, then attached the wiring harness. With the wiring harness secure, I attached the solenoid wire with the crimp splice. The crimp splice and heat-sealing of the weather-guard sleeve went smoothly.

Placing the Starter in the mount, I located the top bolt and contorting my hands in ways I never would have thought possible, managed to get the top bolt a little more than half way in using my fingers. Then I started the bottom bolt, but the best I could do with my fingers was three or four turns. 

I grabbed the 1/2 inch ratchet wrench I borrowed from Josh and went to town on the bottom bolt. Only took 9 minutes using that tool one half turn at a time.

The top bolt would not accommodate the 9/16 ratchet wrench, so I had to use the long 9/16 socket with the extension again. About fifteen minutes later I was done. The new Starter was installed!

I attached the negative cable to the battery, crawled up into the cab of the truck, inserted the key into the ignition, turned it...and viola! The truck started right up! I'm a damn fine mechanic!

Right. 

Then I tackled changing the oil. I've had less painful divorces.

But that's a story for another time.