i have an 87 dodge ram van with a 318. i have had it for 2 years .it runs better than anything i have ever owned.about 6 months ago it slowly got a problem starting after the engine warms up. it got to the point that every time it warms, it wouldnt restart until it cooled. i changed the starter 4 times with a new one. i have 12 volts to both wires on the starter.the timing is on.the flywheel is good, i bought a new 100 amp alt, a 1000 cranking amp battery,new battery terminals, new wire lugs for the connections on the starter,for 6 months no one can tell me whats wrong.seems everyone is puzzled.any ideas would be appreciated.

 

u could just have a problem with the wiring somewhere....have u tried taking it to a electric shop.. i am a mechanic and we see wiring problems all the time....also how are ur motor mounts......i have had a bunch of autos come in and since their mounts are shot there engine moves alot when u crank it causing something to touch metal which shorts it out......n e way let me know if u have n e luck.

 

it cant be wiring because i have 12 volts to both wires to the starter. i did find out what it is, about an hour after i posted this ad. the fly wheel is 2 piece which i didnt know. one peice has the teeth on in for the starter to grab, and the other piece is bolted to the crank. when the engine heats up the metal expands and the 2 pieces dont fit so tight together. and they slip. when it cools the metal must shrink and fit together enough to turn the engine. i noticed that the teeth on my flywheel were turning but the crank wasn't when it was hot.

 

Whiskey, Tango, Foxtrot

 

Have you at least taken the coil off and checked the ohms? Pep-Boys or AutoZone does that rather easy for you.

I once had a bad cap-n-rotor that when the engine heated up, the engine would die. This was on a 1992 Plymouth Acclaim with the 2.5L 4cly. All I had to do was replace the cap and everything ran fine again.

Have you check to see what codes the engine is giving you? Do the on-off-on-off-on trick with the key in the ignition without starting the van. Then count the engine light blinks. The codes run in pairs for the numbers. 55 is end of codes.

Hopes this helps some.