god hates me.. worst day EVER

[TType84]

so i go to leave work today and when i start the car the starter sounds funny.. im like WTF?? so i pull it up on the curb halfway and turn it off... i figure the starter is loose for some reason.

WELL... i get under there and ONE BOLT IS COMPLETELY MISSING and the other one is REALLY loose.. i can push the starter up and there is like an inch of play.. holy ****!


so i was like alright.. ill just tighten the one bolt and hope i make it home.. i work 30 mins from my house and i have like 3 wrenches in the car for changing propane jets and removing the tank to get it filled.. i figure if i can tighten it and make it home ill be okay... as long as im near real tools i can do this in 30 mins

i tighten it and try to start it.. and it sounds like its binding.. so i take off the inspection cover to see.... THE MOTHER F'IN NOSE CONE IS LYING IN THE BOTTOM OF THE COVER..

thats two in 1 year that have cracked / fallen off completely.. and i always shim the starter so i know its not my fault.. crappy autozone starter BS.

so i think okay whatever ill just take it off.. I go to loosen it a little so i can get to the battery cable to take it off and *CRACK* the long bolt breaks off in the freakin block, the starter falls onto the tranny cooler lines and slides forward into the f'in frame rail and SPAAASRRRKKRKRKYM%$OYM#$!!!!!!!!!!

my car is 100% dead.. no power at all now.

and its dark outside. my friend finally gets there and we tow my car home.

wtf.... this crap always happens to me. alternators just give up on me, this is like the 5th starter in 3 years, same with batteries (it had two duralast golds on it.. and i think 3 autozone specials), 2 mafs and 3 coil packs/ modules, 2 stock turbos, and one brand new turbo...

my car is CURSED!!!

so anyone know what that spark blew? hopefully the fusible links or something right?

 

[GN One Day...]

You and equalizer442 need to go get a beer. Never heard anything good about AZ starters, alternators and some batteries. Good luck with it all. Fun weekend ahead, huh?

 

[equalizer442]

tell me about it.

 

[SilverSleeper]

Man I have been there. No place to work on my Buick, so I drive to my dads house to work on it. Problem is, it was my only car, so it had to run so I could get home. I remember plenty of days like that. Heck, just before I put her up for the winter, I ended up driving it there (all of 45minutes) with a badly leaking fuel line back by the filter.
Sounds like fusible links. Been in that spot.
I kept loosing bolts on my starters too. I would drive around for awhile, only to find out I was missing one all the time.
Could be worse. You didnt blow a headgasket, and you didnt drive over the crank.
I finally learned the secret. 16 year old cars dont make good daily dependable transportation! lol.
I have had my share of problems with crappy starters and alternators too. I went through 2 alt's with advance auto, the second one seized, wrapped the belt up, and caused the motor to overheat, and it blew a HG.
Just vent. It always helps. Oh yeah, have a beer too!

 

[JFH]

Seems to me that you have a warped flywheel. I was breaking noses of my starter in my 84 n/a found out it was a warped flywheel.
John

 

[Two Lane]

Originally posted by JFH
Seems to me that you have a warped flywheel. I was breaking noses of my starter in my 84 n/a found out it was a warped flywheel.
John

If he didn't have one before, he does now!

 

[TurboJim]

Originally posted by JFH
Seems to me that you have a warped flywheel. I was breaking noses of my starter in my 84 n/a found out it was a warped flywheel.
John

Its prolly a broken tooth doing that

You mean to tell me you dont disconnect the battery when changing the starter? Yeesh...ever see a battery explode?

 

[Red Regal T]

SOUNDS TO ME LIKE A LOT MORE PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE AND INSPECTIONS NEED TO BE DONE. YOU DIDN'T START WITH A NEW CAR AND IT'S PUSHING 20 YEARS OLD. NEEDS LOTS OF CARE TO BRING IT UP TO RELIABLE.

 

[JFH]

Originally posted by TurboJim
Its prolly a broken tooth doing that

You mean to tell me you dont disconnect the battery when changing the starter? Yeesh...ever see a battery explode?

That could do it to. But in my case it was a warped flywheel If he sees all his teeth there he should check the flywheel.
John

 

[TType84]

Originally posted by TurboJim
You mean to tell me you dont disconnect the battery when changing the starter? Yeesh...ever see a battery explode?

yea i was trying to loosen it so i could actually see the cable, it was dark and i could barely see anything..

and id agree with you red.. but this crap i fix is the same crap every time.. the starter and batteries are always less than 1 yr old when they go out... the alternator seems to be lasting this time... maybe cause i got a 120 amp LT1 alternator instead of that hotair crap.. and all the hotair mafs die eventually.. they just suck compared to the 86/87 ones... i know this because i had to borrow a maf and a chip (same chip just for an 87 maf) and my car idled so much better.. no off throttle hesitation..

theres also no reason for coil packs and modules to just up and die.. but that crap happens to me too.. not to mention the brand new turbo with a broken carbon ring seal... thats why i dont get used stuff anymore.. everyone else has good luck except me. the only safe things to buy used is like a stay-down filler door or a lighted rearview mirror

 

[Russ Merritt]

God doesn't hate you, he's tryin to make you learn something.

 

[phil conrad]

I will not buy a starter, alt. water pump etc. from a "big box" auto parts chain. The lifetime guarantee means you will spend the rest of your life changing the same part again and again
I have had good luck with parts from Napa or AC Delco. They seem to cost more but you get what you pay for IMO.

 

[ThikStik]

You shouldnt have hurt any fusible links as the amperes did not pass thru them. The amps did try alittle arc welding on the clooler lines. Hopefully they dont have holes now. As far as alternators go always follow this rule-When jumping some one off, never run your car while the other is being cranked. Its ok to charge their batt but not when they hit starter switch. This is like a dead short for alternator.

 

[n20junkie]

if the flywheel is bend, a mini starter might help, ith no nose they seem to tolerate stuff like you have, i tore the starter bolt threads threads out of a sbc 100 miles from home at a race while restarting in the staging lanes, after i drove the car there, that was a bad day, the big man doesn't hater you yet, but when you have a starter laying on the ground becasue the conecting rod busted it off after it broke in two, thats a bad day.
Grant

 

[xlr8ngn]

My advice is never buy a rebuilt alternator or starter from chain stores. ALWAYS, get your OEM one rebuilt by a quality rebuilder. It will last again just as long as it did the first time or longer. Also, with the starter the bendix will be broken in with the flywheel. Also, never work on your car without unhooking the battery

 

[8UWITH6]

Haha, welcome to the world of 15 year old cars. My T-type was a dream for over a year and 15K miles, but in the past 3 months things are breaking or causing problems left and right! Gotta love it......I know I do! (Not sarcastic)

 

[TTA89]

Go to www.turbobuicks.com and order a Mini-Starter for $125 bucks, comes with a Warranty and I think they have had 1 returned out of 200+ or something. Save some wieght and get a better starter

 

[TType85]

Stay away from the parts stores "lifetime" warranty crap. As much as it hurts, spend the money on either a good AC or a mini starter. Same with the alternator. I had mine rebuilt by my friend who worked at a buick dealership not long after I got the car and it was fine for the 40K miles I put on it.....

Good Luck Nick

 

[wagon]

This is my opinion only, and do what you want, but I would not buy a mini starter to fix a bent fly wheel. If you do have a bent flywheel, I would replace that, instead of hoping that a different starter would be more forgiving. You might just ruin a more expensive starter. Then you would still have a bent flywheel, and another bad starter.

Brian

 

[d0n_3d]

Originally posted by Red Regal T
SOUNDS TO ME LIKE A LOT MORE PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE AND INSPECTIONS NEED TO BE DONE. YOU DIDN'T START WITH A NEW CAR AND IT'S PUSHING 20 YEARS OLD. NEEDS LOTS OF CARE TO BRING IT UP TO RELIABLE.

yeah tell me about it...i replace things whenever i have the money and time and i don't care what it is...if it looks old replace it!