Starter quickly spins but does not engage.

fredski

fredski

Senior Member
This happens only occasionally . Should I be concerned?
What is the cause of this and how to fix if I do.

Fredski
 
Sounds like the Bendix drive needs a cleaning and a light oiling. See the Ford Service Bulletins page 512, below is the text.

BENDIX DRIVE SERVICE
SUGGESTIONS
Failure of Pinion Gear to Mesh
If stepping on the starter motor merely re-
sults in spinning of the starter motor,
the trouble is caused by failure of the pinion gear
to mesh with the flywheel ring gear. This
condition is usually the result of gummy or
rusted Bendix screw shaft threads. The
remedy is to thoroughly clean the pinion gear
and threaded shaft portion with kerosene,
then carefully dry the parts and reoil with
a very light grade of oil. Do not use even a
medium oil or any kind of grease inasmuch as
such lubricants congeal in the threads in cold
weather and will again result in failure of the
pinion gear to properly mesh with the fly-
wheel.
Lubricants
Lubrication of the Bendix drive IS not
necessary unless it is noted that the drive is
rusted or exceedingly dry, or unless the drive
has been cleaned with kerosene.

 
Last edited:
When I was in high school, I used to take the starter out and keep it in the house to stay warm over night. Lots of frozen fingers in the morning, working out in the driveway to get us ready to go to school. There was just too much oil flying around to keep that Bendix from getting gummed up.

Steve
 
steve s said:
When I was in high school, I used to take the starter out and keep it in the house to stay warm over night. Lots of frozen fingers in the morning, working out in the driveway to get us ready to go to school. There was just too much oil flying around to keep that Bendix from getting gummed up.

Steve
Click to expand...

Way too much work, and cold fingers. What a person could try is to hit the starter quickly with the key off, after you stop the car. Just a quick touch of the starter. Hopefully this would have left the pinion engaged with the flywheel and ready for the cold morning start.
 
My starter was doing the same thing. I was thinking the Bendix too. After thinking about it a little, I figured that a slow starter might also cause the same thing. Because I was going to disconnect the battery before removing the starter, why not clean the battery terminals first and give it a try. While the terminals looked clean, I cleaned them anyway. It did the trick for me. No more sluggish starter! The Bendix engages just fine now. Just another option. Do the simple things first.
 
On REALLY cold, frozen mornings, Chief would put a pan of hot coals, from the fireplace, under the engine, about 2 hours before work time.
Bill W.
 
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