I need to replace the starter on a 1991 chevrolet truck. I could really use some help.|||They can be difficult to remove. Disconnect the positive terminal to the battery. Gm is pretty good about placing the starter underneath and to the front of the truck. Disconnect the 2 wires to the solenoid and starter. Unbolt the starter/solenoid(2 bolts). May take some effort to slide it out, finding the right angle to do so. Re-install in reverse. Be careful not to drop the new starter. Many of the new have permanent magnets that are ceramic, and will break if dropped.|||Need more info on truck...make, model, engine size.|||C.. what do you want to know? How familiar are you with mechanics and tools and so forth?
Ok let%26#039;s start from the top. I will assume that you know a little about working on a engine. Do you know where the starter is located? On a Chevy truck it is usually on the engine passenger side bottom in the rear of the engine block. You will need to get under the truck.
The engine starter has a thing called the solenoid attached to it. If you are changing the starter, it is a good idea to change the solenoid also.
Here are the functions of both the solenoid and the starter. The starter is the motor that cranks your engine over. The starter looks a small motor, cylinder shaped about the size if a juicy juice can. The one end of the starter has a gear on a shaft. The gear moves back and forth on the shaft or in and out depending on how you look at the starter. When you turn on your key, the starter motor energizes (spins) and the gear rotates. However the gear must engage with the engine flywheel. The flywheel is a large gear (basketball size in circumference) that is bolted to the internal parts of you engine. To start the engine, the flywheel must turn.
Back to the starter... so you turn your key on, the starter rotates and to get the starter gear to engage with the flywheel, that is the job of the solenoid. The solenoid %26quot;kicks%26quot; the rotating gear into the flywheel and the engine turns over and should start.
Now on to replacing your starter. Here we go!
The first thing that you must do is to disconnect the battery connections/ cables on your battery. Make sure that they are away from the battery and do not touch the battery poles after you have removed them.
You then need to be able to get under the truck. Jack it up and place jack stands under the frame of the truck. make sure to brace it on the frame and not the body or oil pan. The frame is the large metal beams that run from the front of the truck to the rear. Jack it and block it here.
The starter is held in place with two bolts ( the bolt heads are usually pointing down and easily accessible) and a small bolt located up by the solenoid. The solenoid will have three wires connected to it. One, a large red cable which comes from the battery and two smaller wires. Please note where these small wires hook up. It is important that they go back together the same way that they were taken off.
All three wires need to be removed off of the solenoid and the starter bolts must be removed (two large bolts most likely 9/16 or 16 mm wrench is needed). Be careful as the starter is heavy 20-25 lbs. The top smaller bolt also needs to be removed but all that needs removed is the nut on the bolt shaft. This usually takes a small wrench approximately 3/8 or 10 mm in size. The solenoid is bolted right on to your starter and will come out with the starter.
Most car parts stores will give you a core credit for your used starter so make sure you take it with you along with the old solenoid. This way you can compare the new starter with the older one. Make sure that they are identical.
Once you have the new starter, just place it up in the cavity that the old one was removed from. It is not easy to do as it may be heavy to hold it up there and get the bolts started here is a hint: use a jack to help you install the motor. Make sure that you do not cross thread the bolts. Tighten the bolts up really well. Re connect all of the wires including the heavier wire/cable from the battery. Place the nut onto the top bolt shaft.
Wipe the battery poles and re-place the battery cables onto the battery posts. Remember Red goes to + and black goes to -- .
You should be good to go.
