Hey all -
Lately the starter in my 2000 Dakota Sport 2.5 manual has been having issues starting in the morning on the first turn of the key. Battery is fairly new (2019) with new positive cable and the engine was rebuilt just 1 year ago. First crank in the morning gives the sound of almost binding up, sometimes the first sound is similar to the click click of a dead battery. But it always starts on the second turn of the key. Temps lately have hovered in the 30° range overnight. Of course my old arthritic hands woould vote to make this easy so should probably start at the battery, check the cable hasn't come loose and look for the obvious. But how difficult is it to replace the brushes? Granted I have to remove the starter first but it looks like the brush assembly is about a tenth of the price of a starter. Thanks for any guidance.

 

Check battery connections first, keep in mind, I think they go to the PDC, THEN down to the starter motor, so, don't neglect those either. If that doesn't seem to fix it, swap the starter relay (in the PDC) with another one. (horn relay?) See if THAT doesn't deal with it. If it still exhibits undesirable behavior, I would suspect the solenoid on the starter, before the brushes in the motor. That is a BIG amp draw, if if the solenoid connection isn't REALLY good, the starter simply won't have the juice to crank the engine over.

 

Aha - several different things to consider. Last time I had to delve into the starter was in the 70's - things have changed since then!!
Thanks so much for the checklist. My hopes are something on the top side. I can also use an ohm meter on the relays also, correct?

 

Just swapping out the relay is easiest. If your horn works good, then the horn relay works good.

 

Well, I started with swapping relays. Couldn't find the one for the horn so swapped the intermittent wiper relay and that proved that both relays appeared to be working. I took the truck to AutoZone and they tested the battery and charging system and IT all appeared to be without problems. I'm going to try to post an audio file of when I tried to start the engine after driving home from work. It's a 25 minute drive. I stopped to fill the tank and when I got in to drive away, at first turn of the key, there was no sound at all. Turned the key off and back on - tried to turn over but very weak. Off and on with the key a couple of more times and finally on the 5th or 6th try, it turned over. When I got home 5 minutes later, I turned it off, went inside and came out to try it again. Engine fired right up. I really wish this thing would give me a definitive answer!. I did have leakage around the coolant overflow reservoir cap and am replacing that plastic cap. Maybe it was just overheating? But the gauge doesn't show overheating. I'm stumped.

 

I bet the solenoid contacts are internally cooked and arcing

 

Is that repairable or do I replace the solenoid?

 

I had a similar issue on my 87, I went through 3 starters back to back. Exchanged under warranty. Everytime I exchanged them the parts store tested them and they were all good. Same situation new rebuild from Jasper. Hit the key, and click. Just like a dead battery. Everything tested good. Rechecked all the wires, turned out to be the engine ground on the back of head at the firewall. Was all good after I tightened it up. Like you I checked the battery cables, cleaned the terminals. But it's easy to forget that wires have 2 ends, lol. I just assumed the other end of the ground was good, if it was good on the battery. Just a thought.

 

Hmmmm. Something to check into. Thanks!

 

Our starters are not generally servicable. Solenoid, Starter, and gearbox are one big bulky assembly.