Procedure for replacing 100 series(98 and up) starter contacts (1 Viewer)

[ponytl]

Thanks to the OP for the instructions and many others for the tips. Got to this point in about 30 minutes... Now having coffee and contemplating how to best work on getting the starter out with minimal back pain. I'm thinking of going with the plank procedure.

congrats... 30 min is making good time... I have used the board and a boat seat cushion approach all my tools lined up on the windshield cowl and an led light clipped to the brim of my hat... a bright light helps when you you can't see.... good luck

 

[Slickspawn]

All done. The manifold removal and reinstall is definitely the easiest part with the starter itself just being a fiddly process. The hardest part for me was the starter bolt under the plastic cover. The two starter mounting bolts were not a big deal at all, flex head ratchet and a short socket and short extension worked for me.

I did use the plank procedure. Getting the manifold back in was super smooth by using a step stool for my chest to rest upon as I lowered the manifold back in to its home.

The fuel pressure regulator needs a 24mm wrench and it is much easier to take that off than snake the fuel line under the driver side harness. Those that have an interference with the engine hoist hook most likely left the fuel line attached at the regulator.

Photos of my plank setup. Makes it so easy to work around the manifold bolts.

 

[ponytl]

congrats... well done

 

[2001LC]

Not much mention of intake gasket. Who's keep old in, and who has replaced with new?

 

[Slickspawn]

Not much mention of intake gasket. Who's keep old in, and who has replaced with new?

I kept the old one. It's a great design.

 

[ponytl]

Not much mention of intake gasket. Who's keep old in, and who has replaced with new?

the only time I did new was my first engine swap... in a former life I built race engines and high quality gaskets with a thin coat of sealant on both sides was SOP... which is fine... until I forgot to clip on the small wire to the starter and had to take the manifold BACK off and it was GLUED on I had to pry it off and ruined the new gaskets and spent an extra 45 min scraping the remains of the gaskets off the intake and heads and cleaning it all up... only to be replaced with the old used NO sealant gaskets that came off... the factory gaskets are made to be reused and are pretty nice gaskets as are the exhaust manifold to head gaskets... I think you are fine either way but if your stock ones are good... I'd re use em

 

[2001LC]

... the factory gaskets are made to be reused

FSM states not reusable.

Not trying to dispute you, only pointing out what Toyota FSM states.

FYI; I too used new gaskets and sealants with all RR in the 60's & 70's as SOP. Today I only use Toyota sealants and only where recommended by FSM.

 

[daveedoe]

Thank you guys so much for all of the info! I became a first time TLC owner 2 weeks ago, and was bummed when it didn't start yesterday morning. After a brief wave of anxiety, I jumped on the forum and was pleased to find such a wonderful guide! Getting the manifold off was fairly easy (with a second person's assistance), but getting the starter out proved to be a remarkably difficult task for me. For whatever reason, I just couldn't get my socket to get a grip on the bolt under the wire harness. Well, after 8 hours, a few moments of contemplating lighting my ride on fire, and plenty of reassurance from my wife (it's her car), the job is done, and the 100 is not a pile of ashes! Oh, and I have a great sense of accomplishment to lean on when the next task comes up. Thanks again!

 

[Clead]

Amazing info here. You guys are awesome. I can't figure out whether to replace my starter or just my contacts.. Still starts great, when it starts. Last week I had several dead silences when I turned the key. Nothing, no click.. nada. Since then it has been 100%. Battery is good, about 3 years old. The truck has 190K on it and I have no idea what's in there now, reman or original. Sounds like the original starter is built for the long haul. I have to take it to a shop unfortunately since I'm a 1-banana kinda guy and it's my DD. Is there anything the shop can check for to determine if they should just do contacts or replace with a reman'd Toyota unit?
Thanks guys.

 

[Jacques Villeneuve]

Get a reman'd unit from Cruiser Dan at American Toyota in Albuquerque. I did my last one about five years ago - not very difficult.
I have to do another one of these next week in a similar unit I have (an '03 LS 430) and it looks very much the same.

 

[Ok29445]

I'll be replacing my 2000 LX470 starter this weekend. My local Toyota dealer offered a discounted price of $215 on their remanufactured starter. I guess they guy understood my not wanting to spend another $1100 just 3 years later! I fault the solenoids design, its just not a good design.

I sure appreciate the wealth of shared information and low drama on this forum!

 

[PabloCruise]

So it's been a few months since I posted a question about this -- I ended up not worrying about that hole I was asking about.

Here is a video of my starter replacement -- less than 2 minutes! Actually it took me about three evenings for a total of 7-8 hours. I was working by myself and trying not to break anything. I hope I never have to find out if it's faster the second time.

You changed shirts in the middle of the project?

Cool video...

 

[bharris]

Symptoms started for me last week @ 307k miles. We have had the rig for 11 years and the last 160k miles, and this is the first time we have had it act up. Gonna order contacts and plunger and tackle it ASAP.

Huge thanks to the OP and the contributors!

 

[DTCsk8er]

Just bought my cruiser 3 weeks ago, and it had one instance of clicking no start. Figured I'd rather pull it all apart now rather then when were are out on a trip.

Instructions were helpful. Few comments (might be in one of the many comments before):
1. Be wise when pulling off electrical connectors. A lot of mine were brittle. Same goes for a couple of the brittle hoses going to the air cleaner.
2. I removed the intake no problem, with the hoist bracket installed. Just had to angle it up and slide towards the front of the vehicle.
3. When installing (I did this all by myself). I managed to crack off the connector to the temp sensor. Had to go buy a new one, but could have been avoided if I was looking for it. I was more concerned with keeping everything out of the way.
4. I cleaned the loose carbon in the head/intake by stuffing a clean towels down each passage and going to town with a brush and clean rags with carb cleaner. When I was done cleaning what I could, I then went around with a shop vac before pulling out the clean towels. The intake plenum was fairly clean, but this area was nasty. Worth cleaning it up a bit while you are in there IMO. Just be careful to not get any crap in the injector area.
4. I removed the intake gaskets and cleaned them thoroughly. No need to replace them, as they did not need it.

All and all, not a bad job. Would have knocked it out in 4-5 ish hrs, however the broken sensor took me a while to find locally.

 

[bharris]

Well, I put off the replacement and took the wife's GX on our long vacation to Montana (better gas mileage on GX at least). Tackled the contacts today. Had it all done in less than 4 hours only to hear the dreaded "hum" and no engine kicking over.

The only thing that I didn't have a definite memory of double-checking was the wire harness for the small wire on the side of the starter. Tore it back down to the starter to find the wire not all the way clipped in to the connector. Plugged it in, pulled the EFI fuse, hooked up the battery and SUCCESS. Shame on me for not testing it the first time.

Second time around took me less than an hour.

I am constantly shocked that a 17 year old truck with 300k+ miles is so easy to wrench on. Never had a frozen or rusted bolt, or broken one off. Love this truck.

Next up: AHC delete and OME lift.

 

[bharris]

Forgot to add pics of the contacts and plunger. I higher recommend changing out the plunger with the contacts, mine was in rough shape.

 

[tucson100]

Thanks to everyone's tips. Completed my starter swap today in 6hrson lysine breakfast and lunch, with a couple little helpers nabbing tools from the bench. Lots of tips in here were helpful.

1. Lifting the hood higher = awesome.
2. Boards across the engine bay to sit on / lean on / lay on = completely necessary.
3. Going slow, taking time with connectors so they don't break = tedious but worth while.
4. The instructions from post #1 = perfect.

Mine required a full swap. I was experiencing the nasty grinding sound at startup and waited too long to get in there and do the job. When I pulled the old starter it came out in two pieces. Pics below. No idea where that gasket went that should have helped hold the thing together. Did find plenty of shavings and a bearing at the bottom of the bellboy sing. Inspected the flywheel and luckily it shows some wear as a result of the last couple weeks but overall ok and no missing teeth. Close call.

Only tip: if grinding noise starts, don't delay at all. It's not worth the possible damage and stranding. I waited a couple weeks once it became consistent and then when it went out, it was really toast.

Thanks again everyone for sharing great info and pics on this one. Really wasn't as bad as it looked like many before me have said.

 

[AZBuman]

Alright guys, I am stuck! I have the starter exposed and I have removed the three bolts on the starter. The driver side was a PITA but I got it off. But now the starter won’t budge! Any help or trick on how you guys got it off? I saw somewhere that someone said turn it counterclockwise to get at a nut but I cannot turn it with all my might. It will rock forward about 1/2 inch thats about it. This is frustrating. You all make it sound so easy. I’ve changed my and wife’s timing belt easy, so I figured this would be easy, famous last words.

 

[AZBuman]

Ok got that off, I guess I just needed a different angle. Frustrating to pull and move it for two hours last night, 1 hours this morning and all of a sudden it just moves out of the way no problem However now I noticed another problem. I broke one of the electrical sensors, not sure exactly what it is. I’ll attach a pic. Can anyone tell me what it is, and where to get a new one? Thanks!

Sorry about the pic quality. Ipad while trying to hold light. But if you can see it too well its the sensor in front of the starter. It came off real easy and I am not sure how I broke it. The connector broke off, so it won’t click into place. It slides on fine but I don’t want to leave it incase it comes off later. Thanks!

 

[abuck99]

That will not be a fun repair due to the tight location and corrosion.

If you don't go that replace route, I would get some marine type heat shrink tube (its thicker more heat resistant) and sleeve over the connection. This will keep it from pulling apart.