Need Help/advise with a starter on 02 Hawk....brand suggest?

**~Firehawk~** · 12-26-2011, 07:46 AM

Hey guys I need some help/advise with a starter for my 02 Hawk. Actually I am quite surprised that my starter is going bad as the car only has just over 19k on it, though it is the original factory starter.
It has happened several times now that I went to start the car and nothing happened. I turn the ignition off, then back on and the car started right up. The first time it happened I hoped it was a fluke but now it has happened 3x since Thanksgiving and I don't want to get stuck somewhere.
Anyhow my main question is about the brand. I always put Delco parts in my car unless they are a upgrade performance part (or batteries since Delco battery's suck) but Delco starters are very expensive. I was thinking Bosch since I hear they have a good reputation but I have never used them before so I want to see if you guys have any advise/suggestions regarding this. I want to hear your suggestions as to what brands are good, should I just stick with Delco or am I just paying a premium for the brand name by going Delco?
If anyone has any suggestions or experiences you can share with me to help me make a decision I would greatly appreciate it.

One last thing.....I have done lots of work and customization on my vehicles but I never replaced a starter. I do have the factory service manual for instructions but if there are any tips/trick I need to look out for or should know about I would appreciate if you would share with me your knowledge.

thanks

**redbird555** · 12-26-2011, 08:02 AM

I cant really help you out in the brand department lol but I just had the same thing happen with my car, I just went and got the generic parts store brand with the lifetime warranty and it seems to be working great.

I would recommend however you get the truck version of the ls starter because it has a thicker mounting base on one side than the factory ls1 starter, I have seen a few people crack their block due to the smaller mounting boss on one side of the factory starter putting uneven torque on the block. With that said the starter is pretty straight forward underneath the car you must unplug the oil level sensor then remove the 2 starter bolts and undo the two power wires on the back of the solenoid and reinstall it. Overall it takes about 20 minutes including jacking the car up lol of course i have headers so that may make it a bit easier.

**JayTA98** · 12-26-2011, 10:26 AM

I heard good things about the bosch ones but the quality control in alot of todays parts is not what it used to be. Like Red mentioned is fairly easy to remove. Make sure you DISCONNECT THE BATTERY before messing with it. I had good luck with the starters and alternators from autozone but again don't qoute me on it. Must of the places offer lifetime warranty and if you can afford it buy a brand new one vs a remanufactured one.

**~Firehawk~** · 12-27-2011, 06:10 AM

Thanks for the reply's. I'll hit autozone and see what they got. Unfortunately I still have the stock exhaust manifolds and cats which I read I need to remove the passenger side cat to gain access to the starter so I'm guessing this wont be too much fun. Time to let wd40 work its magic

**RedSuperSport** · 12-27-2011, 06:39 AM

Is the car turning over when you turn the key

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**redbird555** · 12-27-2011, 06:42 AM

Originally Posted by ~Firehawk~

Thanks for the reply's. I'll hit autozone and see what they got. Unfortunately I still have the stock exhaust manifolds and cats which I read I need to remove the passenger side cat to gain access to the starter so I'm guessing this wont be too much fun. Time to let wd40 work its magic

Just remove the cats with the manifolds and replace them with a set of LT's lol you'll thanks me later

**~Firehawk~** · 12-27-2011, 06:57 AM

Originally Posted by RedSuperSport

Is the car turning over when you turn the key

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No, it sounds like the starter starts to engage but nothing happens, if i turn key off and then try to start again she turns over and starts

**~Firehawk~** · 12-27-2011, 07:01 AM

Originally Posted by redbird555

Just remove the cats with the manifolds and replace them with a set of LT's lol you'll thanks me later

I know, I had long tubes but sold them with plans to purchase new ones....then the wife went and quit her job back in October....now we are poor. If she still had her job I would have purchased a new delco starter without a thought, now I am on a budget.
Looking back at this now make it all very clear.....its all her fault

**Firebirdjones** · 12-27-2011, 07:24 AM

The starters are sold as remans at your local stores. I've used them a few times, converting a couple of my BBC's to the small starters. So far so good, been 5-6 years now. The reman's however aren't cheap either, at about $120 a pop.
I most recently had to install one on a 6.0 truck engine I had bought to do a swap with. The original GM starter quit with 85,000 miles on the clock. So far that reman starter is working fine.

My only caution I throw out on the reman's is to make sure it's at least a GM casing that is rebuilt. There are so many chinese made starters that use an aftermarket case. I ran into that little issue recently when I swapped the 6.0 truck starter. The reproduction case was clocked slightly different and the battery cable wouldn't reach the terminal. I ended up going through boxes of reman starters at the store before I finally found one that matched the original. I was lucky they still had my core.

I'm guessing as fewer people turn in original cores, that original cases are drying up, so the aftermarket has resorted to aftermarket castings that aren't "EXACLTY" like the originals and just that slight difference gave me fits on that 6.0 install..the only way to know for sure is to buy a genuine GM starter for more $$$,,,or go through the boxes at your local parts store....they just love it when you do that

..Just something to keep in mind.