Starter motor repair

Sluggish usually means either tight bearings or electric current leakage.

If the shaft turns OK, then you are looking at the second option. Otherwise, lubricate.

Try buying an aerosol can of ColdKleen or other switch cleaner (any RadioSpares dealer should stock something) Clean out the commutator grooves with it (outdoors - you don't want to breathe in too much of that stuff) and dry with a fluff-free cloth. If the cloth looks black afterwards, do it again.

Jim

Thanks for the tips. I'll give it a try. Part of the problem is that Citroen fitted a pathetically thin lead from battery to starter motor, so any added resistance at the starter end really matters.

Ian

Some are simply marginal at the best of times. Starters can be the same over a wide range of engine sizes, and obviously struggle more at the top end of the range.

However, the insulation on the windings can fail resulting in shorted turns. Doesn't make *that* much difference to the current drawn but does to the torque output. Might be worth getting it checked out by a firm that specialises in this sort of repair if there's nothing obviously wrong.

Thanks for that. Still hoping that someone might be able to recommend a suitable company ... ?

Ian

If thats the case then fitting a relay into the start wire may help.

Sorry, I wasn't being clear. The wire I'm talking about is the main supply from the battery to the starter. As it happens there is a relay on the activating wire as well, so turning the key operates the relay which sends the juice to the solenoid to operate the starter.

It's because on a semiautomatic DS the engine is started by pulling the end of the gear lever, and since it's easy to do that with the engine running there is a cut-out system. The intermediate relay will only work when the ignition warning light is on. Complicated? Yes, but I suppose we should be thankful they didn't do it with hydraulics.

Mind you, it's annoying on my car as it's a manual and shouldn;t have the cutout system at all. However, it was - as far as I can tell - assembled by Citreon in SA after production had officially stopped (*) and they used whatever bits they could find, like the wrong loom.

Ian

(*) Which makes mine possibly the most recently built DS in the world still in use. And before anyone mentions Alan Clarke's decap, that was a conversion of a much earlier estate (73?) so doesn't count!

Well they say Citreon's, travel in pairs and always carry a tow rope :)

After a while the AA withdrew my membership card ... and gave me a loyalty card instead.

Ian

If you have a local Lucas service point near you, give it a try: they can at least put it on a test rig and tell you if the starter is at fault. I found the one in Carlisle very helpful.

If the wire to the starter is thin, do the obvious: get a thicker one and clean ALL the contacts/terminals between the battery and starter, including the earthing strap and its attachment at the other side of the battery! (You might do well to replace that in any case if it is the woven type).

J,

Good idea - there's an LSUK place in Dumfries, fairly near, so I'll ask them.

The earth strap was equally weeny, but I replaced it with a cable capable of taking the output of a modestly sized nuclear power station ...

Ian

The gauge of wire needed depends on the length as well as the current since the idea is to avoid excessive voltage drop. This is easily tested with a decent DVM set to the 2 volt range. Connect to the battery end of the lead and the main starter terminal. Then operate the starter. The meter will read the voltage drop across the cable under actual operating conditions. Do the same for the earth side. Can be quite revealing on an old car. The total between both should be no more than 0.5 volts.

The supply lead is about three feet long on mine. On a LHD DS the battery is right beside the starter motor - they don't seem to have seen any need to increase the wire gauge when they tripled the length.

Bless them. At least they were good at hydraulics.

Ian

and get a decent thick bit of cable and whatever fittings you need. The starter cable on my Minis runs the length of the car! Mind you' the '78 model has such high compression that even with the 306 diesel spec new battery I've fitted, it will barely turn over on a cold day. Fortunately it sparks and starts so easily that half a turn of the engine is all it takes!

:-)

Good one...

Actually a relative of mine was somewhat instrumental in starting the AA. The yellow background colour, being his, from the time.

He had another car (of the same type) following, so if the first broke down he used the second. This was one of the reasons it started.

rm

Arc Welding cable makes wonderful jump leads too...

Jim

Used the stuff for years - rubber covered - easy to coil up - decent amount of core.

But there heavy to carry around :)