E30 325i Facelift Starter Motor Grinding

Post Mon Nov 11, 2013 9:32 pm

My starter motor started playing up recently...

What happens, is when I crank the engine, it starts fine, however there's a grinding noise for about 1-2 sec right after it fires up and then it goes away.

Had a look at some starters on ECP/GSF and they all seem too pricy and some dodgy brands, like RTX...

I found Bosch remanufactured ones on eBay for 100 quid, so that sounds pretty decent.

Is there something in particular I need to know before ordering? One thing I noticed, some motors are 1.1kw and others are 1.4kw? 1.1 ones are more expensive as well, don't know why?

Any significant difference between them and which one do I need?

Here's what I'm looking at > http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BMW-3-Series- ... 5aeea1042e

Thanks guys

Post Mon Nov 11, 2013 10:39 pm

Sounds like a sticking solenoid to me. Should be fixable if it is that. Repaired such myself.

Post Tue Nov 12, 2013 5:54 pm

votivequagmire wrote:Sounds like a sticking solenoid to me. Should be fixable if it is that. Repaired such myself.

Well, it looks quite rusty and tired to me, so I thought I would replace the whole thing with a fresh Bosch unit? Less hassle in the future.

Post Tue Nov 12, 2013 6:05 pm

Your existing one may just need some de-rusting and lubrication - use graphite powder (pencil lead), NOT oil or grease.

Post Wed Nov 13, 2013 1:34 am

If it's the original BMW one, which I assume it is, it'll last longer than the Bosch one. It's true what they say, they don't make them like they used to.