I'm not sure if it's just a fluke and I got a bad starter, but it worked wonderfully for about 4 months. Now I'm only hearing the solenoid engaging and the starter isn't making any noise...

I tried using a screw driver to short the contacts and it just sends the solenoid into a tizzy. I read somewhere that supposedly keeping the key turned off and putting the car in drive, then jumping up and down on the car is somehow supposed to turn the engine over, well instead I put the car in drive and pushed it around my yard to no avail.

I'm using the "nicer" (slightly more expensive) pep-boys generic brand starter (maybe that was my problem?)
EDIT: it was a NEW starter when I bought it, not a refurb...

Any thoughts? I need to get to calculus class tomorrow

 

Getting one from pep boys may very well be your problem. Did it come with a warranty of any kind? I'm sure hoping so.

A buddy of mine got a generic starter from Autozone that only lasted a week (which was maybe about 20 starts total). I learned that I'll never purchase a crappy cheap one

 

My crappy auto zone refurb has lasted me a year. When it dies I am getting a NAPA one but until then its fine

 

I've had a starter I bought at autozone for a few months and it works great and only cost like $80

 

I went through 3 starters in 2 years. The "original" one in there was at least 2 years old and looked to be way older. The first replacement was cheap and lasted about 8-10 months. The next replacement was NAPA and lasted a little over a year. While I was messing with that one, saying to myself "this should have lasted way longer" I realized it looked just as crusty as the one before it but was less than a year old. I found that the oil leak from my oil filter adapter o-ring was dripping directly down and back onto my starter. I drive on dusty dirt roads a lot so the dust was building up in the oil and jamming/overheating the starters. I'm pretty sure that was what was killing my starters because I've now fixed all my oil leaks, put in another NAPA premium starter and it still works and sounds good as new. It's now over a year, so I'm pretty sure my starter problems were directly resulting from the oil filter adapter leak. (That wasn't a terrible fix either, took a bit over 2 hrs, see my build thread for a description & tools used). Good luck!

Also, I noticed the contacts on the starter tend to get dirty & corroded pretty quickly due to their location & exposure so that's always worth a check too!

Oh, and I got a core charge when I returned my old ones, so make sure to give that a try. There is definitely a major difference in quality between price-points when electronics or precision machining are involved (kinda like ammo hehe), in my experience. Things like plastic trim and steering knuckles all seem the same to me, but starters sure do work longer and better for more $$!

 

So I did manage to get her started this morning, using a small sledge and gingerly applying a little percussive maintenance.

however, if this is anything like the last time I had this problem, I'm sure it will persist and I'll have to keep whacking away till I get the money to replace it...

I did find a little bit of oil collecting around the starter, but it wasn't gunked up, I'm about to check your write-up after I hit the submit button

You know, they charged me a core fee the last time I bought a NEW starter, this kind of irked me... but yeah, I agree, cheap ammo can jam your favorite boom stick, I don't know why I didn't think a cheap starter would jam my precious.

You guys think NAPA makes good starters? or should I be looking at Bosch or some other name brand?

 

It may not be your starter. It could very well be your starter wire from the positive terminal is bad. By hitting and jiggling it around you might have moved the wire around enough for it to make contact with itself in the insulatin. It happened to me a few weeks ago. If it happens again, take some jumper cables and run the red clamp from the positive terminal to the main positive contact on the starter and turn the key. If it starts then it's a broken starter wire

 

hmm, not sure, I'll have to pull the starter when I get home. I'll clean it out and check the wires.

 

That's good advice too! I've found some wires that could only be described as totally rotten on my 96.

 

If you want to check the wire you have to pull it out through the harness and its a real PITA, i would suggest if you have a multimeter to do a voltage drop test. i generally don't suggest throwing parts at a problem without diagnosing it first but the new starter wire from advanced cost me $6 and is a definite upgrade as it is much thicker wire and insulation and is a super easy install if you dont run it through the existing harness

 

I didn't get home early enough yesterday to get a chance to work on it, but definitely friday...

This sounds like a good idea, whether or not I need to, I don't see a downside to upgrading the wiring But to do a voltage drop test, what two contacts should I use? Do I run a wire from the positive terminal of the battery to the positive terminal of the starter? I feel like the amperage might burn out my multimeter...

 

There is only 12 volts coming from the battery u should be fine