Mustang - She Lives!! (Starter replacement)

So, you already know the ending - Musty has come back to life!

The story -

About a two weeks ago I met a lovely gentleman from the interwebs who was kind enough to donate one of his spare starters. I had replaced the starter solenoid but it still hadn't turned over, so the next likely issue was the starter...that is, according to the internet. I claim no brilliance here - I'm just crowd sourcing my mechanical advice because I don't have a mechanical background or a regular mechanic.

Last week we cleared out the garage (separate post coming later) and so earlier today D, T, and I moved the car into the garage and got to work. D jacked it and helped me with two of the bolts that were really stuck. I finished the removal and wiggled the big thing out through the bottom. Even though it isn't very big, holding it over your head while on your back under a car makes it feel pretty heavy!

The hardest part was turning the ratchet while inside the car. There really is no room in there! Tons and tons of tiny ticks later and the bolts were back on. D swapped places with me a few times when my arms were tired. Thanks D!

Auto repair in pink house slippers!

After replacing the starter I almost didn't want to turn the key. A little Schrodinger's cat situation - if the car is off can does the car work? Well, you just don't know. So, with a little bit of butterflies in my stomach I got in and turned the key...and it started! Well, it didn't fire right up...it kind of turned, then turned, then started, then rev'd so loud it started to get scary. Then I turned it off. Then I restarted it and put it in reverse and the car lurched back. I had to ride the brake to inch it back toward my daily driver car and it made me nervous it was rev'ing so hard. D says it shouldn't go that high, and that now we have another issue to solve - but it starts! Oh high heaven it starts!

Next up, removing the interior and researching the rev'ing thing. How do you tell when a car is rev'ing too high? Is it bad? Does it rev high and then come down? Musty is a mysterious lady...

Mustang - Starter Solenoid Replacement

My car ate someone!

Well, not really, but it certainly looks that way in the first photo.

 

The story: Musty has an appointment to get...well, less musty. We wake up early with lots to do -first thing being dropping the car off by 8am to the detailer's.

 

T starts the car and everything is perfect. I go to get my purse and T is in the car. Something happens and the ignition key gets pulled out or falls out from the ignition - BANG! The car makes a noise like a cannon going off - duck 'n' cover she's gonna blow!

 

Eventually, once my heart attack is over, T tries to restart the car. Heart attack morphs into heart break as we realize the car will not start. T feels horrible, I feel horrible, D feels horrible - and all of use are tired and cranky as it is so early on a Saturday morning.

 

Resigning ourselves to a very different day than the one we had planned - D changes into yard-work clothes and T calls the detailer, and I pop the hood.

D takes a roll under to see if anything fell or if there is anything obvious on the underside of the engine while I take a snapshot and poke around above the engine looking for things that would be an obvious break.

Unfortunately, we find no snapped cables or hoses. There is nothing clearly screaming at us to say, "hey, I broke just a minute ago!"

T goes to go get breakfast for everyone. Saint.

D and I go through the internet. Check the battery, check the connections, clean the connections, charge it - basically give the thing a backrub and a love letter, but the car will not start.

The battery is not the problem.

Next up, according to the internet, is the starter solenoid.

D and I walk over to the auto shop nearby (I love that there is a auto shop nearby) and pick up the part and I also find a new manual for the car. Yays! We also get drinks which helps to make everyone feel better.

Next, I get to play Dr. Who and fiddle with my Tardis using 3 sonic screwdrivers. Yes, I realize that's very dorky...but continuing on...

I disconnect the battery, grab a towel and a storage container lid and make myself a little operating tray. Perhaps its because I don't know the names of all the tools and I don't know where they all go or where they can all be found - but I'm much more organized than the others when it comes to taking things apart and putting them back together.

I like to take photos of things before I remove them - even better if I can take a picture of the tool that removes the thing AND the thing in it's original position before I remove it. That way, when I'm going backward trying to put things back together, I have a detailed map of the directions to follow.



2 Things I learned:

Did you know - battery cables come in two colors - a red and a black one? Since both of mine are red AND black, and I didn't know which side of the battery was which, and neither did D, we spent some time poking around the edges of the battery box looking for markings of any kind to show us which was the 'kill-me' wire and which one would 'let us live.' We wrapped the 'let us live' wire in tape for future car adventures.

You can make yourself feel better (ie, I have no idea if it actually helps) by capping the battery ends in a cut-up dried sponge? I grabbed a sponge and a drill and made a hole to fit over the battery nodes because I kept envisioning myself fried on the side of the car. Not sure if it would actually protect me - also, don't care 'cause it let me work on the car without freaking out. (no, that's not steel wool on the top)

So, eventually I replaced the solenoid. Yes!
Unfortunately, that wasn't the problem. Boo! :-(

Next, in the internet and the manual (engine tips chapter) is a faulty / damaged starter. The starter is a chunk of metal about the size of a 2 week old dachshund puppy but is weighs about as much as a 2 year old dachshund. Thanks to the internet, and gentleman Mustang-enthusiast, I've been gifted one.

Don't worry Musty- we'll fix you yet!

Before - old solenoid

After - new solenoid

 



Hello Musty!

During the Halloween Holidays, while T, D, and I were visiting my family and friends along the East Coast, my grandfather gifted me his 1966 Mustang.

Thank you grandpa!!!

I call her Musty...well, for obvious olfactory reasons. The goal is to make her Lusty over the summer :-)

She runs, which is wonderful, but she hasn't been water-tight for quite some time. There's a laundry list of things to do with her, firstly, installing the cowl covers and cleaning the drain getting her thoroughly detailed to remove the musty from Musty.

Hello Weekend!

Musty, just off the shipping truck