Starter grinding intermittently

[walther78]

2003 Tahoe Z71. 48,000 miles. I think the starter is acting up but not certain. Wanted opinions before I buy a new one and slap it on there.

I've owned the vehicle for 3,000 miles and this just started within the last 500 miles. The temps are cooling off here into the 40's at night (if that makes any difference). It seems like it grinds about 5-10% of the time I start it up. It starts everytime with no hesitation, but during the cranking process it's a loud metal on metal grind almost like the starter is not fully disengaging after the motor starts. This lasts anywhere from 1-3 seconds.

Could the starter be shot because of the age of the vehicle? It's very low miles and I've never had one go out with under 150k on it.

 

[walther78]

I guess the sound is similar to if the truck was started and I cranked the key again while it was started. That terrible metal on metal noise.

 

[OR VietVet]

First I would check the starter mount and make sure bolts are tight. Then I would pull the starter and check the teeth of the starter drive and all the teeth of the flex plate. If has damage then need to replace the starter and flex plate and check flex plate for cracks radiating out from the center mount bolts. Check the battery cables for being tight and clean and check for corrosion under the insulation. Low voltage, because of voltage drop, can cause the starter to go bad and cause problems.

 

[walther78]

How can you check all the teeth on the flex plate without moving the transmission out? Just hoping it's not a labor intensive ordeal.

 

[OR VietVet]

If it has a cover that can be removed you can use a special tool that grabs the teeth and spans over to another set of teeth and has a handle to pull it around to inspect. If no cover, then remove the starter and go in with a flat blade screwdriver and pry the teeth a little at a time to view them all.

 

[walther78]

Thank you! As soon as I get a chance I'll get under there and have a look.

 

[robb.]

ive had this problem for the last 5 yrs or so....
had the starter changed but it continued. i have not had the problem resolved.