Clutch and starter R&R

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Rondel Fan
Posts: 94
Joined: Mon Apr 29, 2019 12:31 pm
Location: North East

Clutch and starter R&R

Post by Rondel Fan »

I have read a number of posts regarding a clutch renewal, none mentioned a starter removal, I'm guessing because someone smarter than me would have assumed that it had to come out!
I have read all of the starter threads I could find including the seemingly mythical 1 hour or less swap!

On my 86 csi, I believe I have an original starter with the semi non accessible mounting bolts. I can not get a wobble socket fully seated on the bottom bolt. I can get the tool kit Heyco 17mm on there but have no leverage to move the bolt.
I can get the Heyco on the top bolt as well, but the head of the wrench barely clears the intake manny by one inch and I fail to see how one gets any leverage there? I'm not frail by any means and can't move the spanner on either bolt a millimeter.

I have resigned my self to removing the intake but now am stymied by the lower intake bolts on cyls 3-6. Any sanity saving BTDTs, especially with pics appreciated. ](*,)
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86_6series
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Re: Clutch and starter R&R

Post by 86_6series »

Starter removal.pdf
(340.15 KiB) Downloaded 309 times
86-635CSi
96-MB C220 SOLD
98-740i
71-Continental MK3
Rondel Fan
Posts: 94
Joined: Mon Apr 29, 2019 12:31 pm
Location: North East

Re: Clutch and starter R&R

Post by Rondel Fan »

Thanks, that is everything I could have hoped for but I may have to chalk it up to variable skills sets. I did go at the top bolt that way. Even with a wobble socket which is only about 2/3rds as deep at the socket shown, I could not get it to seat and grab. Same for the lower bolt BTW.

I'll try again. Having also gone down a tranny swap thread, I saw a picture that still showed the starter remaining in the engine, after the tranny was out. If I can just back the bolts out from the tranny but leave them in the engine, that will be fine for my purposes as the starter has no problems.
Rondel Fan
Posts: 94
Joined: Mon Apr 29, 2019 12:31 pm
Location: North East

Re: Clutch and starter R&R

Post by Rondel Fan »

Hopefully this add to the BOK on starter removal. Having been flummoxed at removing some of the lower intake manni bolts I revisited using the Heyco 17mm box end on the starter bolts as I could not get the articulated sockets to work.

For the top bolt, I seated the Heyco as seen. I bought a hardened 19 mm bolt and stuffed 2, 19 mm nuts onto it. I put one end of the bits into a 3/8s driver set to "tighten" and the other end into the Heyco 19 mm side of the 17 mm box attached to the top starter bolt. This was enough leverage to break it loose followed by the dance of 100 1/8th turns to back it out.
Image
The bottom bolt needed a different attack. The Heyco goes on much easier but there is no room to swing the spanner and with the bolt over head, I could not get enough force on it to budge. If you can imagine the spanner on the bolt at an angle akin to the hour hand on a clock when it is 4 oclock, the spanner was pointing right at the steering turnbuckle. I got a 6' long 2 x 4, put it on my floor jack and raised it to meet the spanner. A few pumps of the handle and the 2 x 4 put plenty of pressure on the Heyco to break the bolt loose and then I just reached in and finished it off.

Long story short, apparently if the stars align, one can get the starter bolts out without removing too much else outside of some wiring around the fuel runner. Hope this helps someone.
Mike
Rondel Fan
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Re: Clutch and starter R&R

Post by Rondel Fan »

Even with an articulated socket I could not get the upper starter bolt out with similar to the poster in the PDF above due to the shoulder built into the original starter's casting.

On reinstall of a smaller later model starter, however I was able to use about 20 inches worth of 3/8s extensions to feed the socket in from the front of the engine entering just under the coolant hose junctions, runs the socket in along the head and down to the upper bolt. With a helper looking down on the bolt through the intake manifold, the guided the socket on with a screwdriver and I was able to tighten it all up with a ratchet held just over the oil filter.

Going forward I can see being able to R&R THIS style starter in roughly an hour. I still don't believe anyone could do so with the original sized unit as it took me nearly that long to extricate an unbolted and free starter from the engine valley given what ancillaries needed to be moved/removed to get its' girth out of the engine bay.
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