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High torque starter on a '89 K5?

AJMBLAZER

Better to be lucky than good.
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I know the 6.5L's got the high torque starters. Just wondering if the ZZZZZZWHIR noise I hear every time I start the K5 when it's warm is normal?:confused:
 
can you take a vid? and your k5 has a 6.5? isnt it a 6.2? i know you have one of those already so your guess is as good as mine..
 
ZZZZZZZWhirrrr, at least in My experience is a starter that needs to be shimmed out because it is staying engaged to the flywheel/Flexplate to long. I have used both the gear reduction(hi torque) and normal starters. I didnt notice much of a difference in noise.
 
Sorry, I'm not posting clearly...6 hours or so of sleep in the past two days.

It's a regular C-code 6.2L that a '89 would have. Starter cranks right over and starts the truck well but when it's warm and it doesn't take much to start the engine I hear a ZZZZZZwhizzzzzz right after the engine catches.
 
Okay...shims...can you get those from the parts store alone? Only changed a starter once on a TBI 350 and that was 8 years ago. I think I just threw the shims that were already there back in with the new starter.
 
Okay...shims...can you get those from the parts store alone? Only changed a starter once on a TBI 350 and that was 8 years ago. I think I just threw the shims that were already there back in with the new starter.

The parts stores should have shim packs for the starters sold seperately. Shouldnt be more than a couple of dollars.

If it is only doing it while warm it could also be that the "Bendix" in the starter is getting heat soaked and going bad not properly disengaging the gears from the flywheel as well. This used to be a common problem on the older gas motors since the exhaust gases were so hot. How old is the starter in question?
 
No clue. I've had the K5 in my possession since Wednesday.
 
Id try shims first, because they are the cheapest, If they dont work I would probably say a rebuild is in order in the future. If it is the Bendix Eventually it will stick either completely out or in. If this happens a couple of whacks with a hammer can sometimes alleviate the problem until you can replace it.
 
Yeah, that's what the one on my 350 did years ago.
 
If your starter looks like this then you have the gear reduction starter (28 MT)...

6468.JPG


If the body of the starter is larger then it is the older 27 MT. Either way it does sound like it's hanging a bit.

Rene
 
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Red x?:D


How bad is this? Fix it now bad or fix it when I get time in a few weeks? So much crap going on right now...
 
My '90 came with the larger gear reduction starter from the factory. It has never made any zzzzwhrring noises, and it's on the 3rd one (too much mud and water on the trail around here), so have to assume yours is bad.
 
I'd at least try shimming it now if $$ is tight. If you got a few extra bucks kicking around might want to try the shims first anyways...and if that doesn't take care of it look into a decent reman.

The only crappy part is potentially re&re'ing the starter multiple times. It may be obvious, but I disconnect the batt and drop the starter down with wires still attached, then remove wires. Access to the wiring is a problem with the starter mounted.

Rene
 
Replacing the starter on the 6.2 doesn't seem to be any worse than a gas version. The only thing is the gear reduction is heavier and therefore slightly harder to hold in place while you get the bolts started.
 
Does the gear reduction starter need a different brace than the standard one?


I haven't even had a chance to look at mine yet but it just occurred to me that the transmission was replaced late last year. Wondering if someone did a rush job putting the starter back in...
 
Does the gear reduction starter need a different brace than the standard one?

:whistle:




If I go for a new starter I think I heard folks say to just order one for a 1995 or so diesel pickup. Sound right?
For a '89 K5 with a 6.2L NAPA lists two starters that look like the old one and Rock Auto has a zillion fricking starters that are a PITA to sort through.:doah:
 
The gear reduction starter uses a different brace than the original. But a piece of angle iron and two holes and you can make your own... probably easier to buy the correct one than build if you don't have the motor out though.

There are only two possibilities when it comes to starters. Don't know why they would list more than that unless they are also showing the V6 and V8 gas motor starters for the same and surrounding years as well. It is either gear reduction or not.
 
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