Whitedog 0 Posted June 19, 2006 Report Share Posted June 19, 2006 Hi all.My vr struggled to start this morning and this evening which it never normally does. Got home then went to start it again......nothing.....not a squeak. Upon phoning a like minded vw nut and getting some idea's (i) i managed to trace the trouble to what i think is the culprit.At the end of the starter motor there is a piece of braided copper earthing about as thick as a pencil and about 1 1/2 inch long which seems to earth the starter motor to its housing. This braiding has corroded right through. Would this be the problem and can i just get a replacement piece from vw as it seems to clip on???Please help me to fix my sick VR +o( Cheers Link to post Share on other sites
SankysVR6 1 Posted June 19, 2006 Report Share Posted June 19, 2006 The earth braid is quite common, I had the same problem as you when i first got the car, ended up just putting in a re-con one from ECP Link to post Share on other sites
Whitedog 0 Posted June 19, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 19, 2006 I was thinking the same as you sanky but i dont want the expense of a recon unit if its just the earth. Link to post Share on other sites
shail 0 Posted June 20, 2006 Report Share Posted June 20, 2006 Ive had the same on mine. I have done a bodge on it, which has been working for 12 months+. One end is bolted on to the starter, and the other is soldered onto a little flat pin which sticks out of the starter body. Basically I bought a new (long) strap and bolted one end back on as per original, and soldered a heavy duty clip (i tried a large corocodile clip first, but it only lasted 2 starts before it melted) onto the other end of the new strap and clipped it to the pin which sticks out of the starter casing.Make sure you secure the new strap so it doesnt get caught up in the gear stick weight thing thats close by. Link to post Share on other sites
Whitedog 0 Posted June 20, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 20, 2006 Cheers Shail, think thats what i'll end up doing. Any pics or more tinternet info on this heavy duty clip you mention so i know what i'm getting. Also, could you not just bolt the one end and solder the other end to the pin??? Link to post Share on other sites
shail 0 Posted June 20, 2006 Report Share Posted June 20, 2006 You could solder it no problem, but you'd have to take the starter out, or remove half your engine to gain access to it with a soldering iron. I got the clip from a hardware shop, so no links i'm afraid.Another idea I had was to get a couple of big-ish jubilee clips and use them to hold the new braided strap to the starter body. In hindsight jubilee clips would probably work a treat and would have been a lot easier. Link to post Share on other sites
Whitedog 0 Posted June 20, 2006 Author Report Share Posted June 20, 2006 Did you have to take your starter out ot did you do it in situ?Ref jubilee clips, would i just put the jubilee clip around the body ensuring that the braided bits were under it to??Cheers for your help shail. Link to post Share on other sites
shail 0 Posted June 20, 2006 Report Share Posted June 20, 2006 I did it insitu. Its a bit of a pain to access. Remove the connector to the radiator fans to get better access. Also, disconnect the battery, otherwise you may get sparks flying.As for the jubilee clips - spot on. Just make sure the casing to the starter is clean so you get a good contact. Link to post Share on other sites
jamiehamy 0 Posted June 22, 2006 Report Share Posted June 22, 2006 Same as Sanky, i jusy got a recon unit, saved all the hassle of bodges. At the end of the day, if the earth has gone, your starter will prob be on its way out too. When i changed mine, i couldn't believe the difference, the old one must have been gubbed, but i didn't know! Suddendly it turned over faster and smoother. Link to post Share on other sites
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