Starter Motor Pigtail harness connector

[Texasdeere]

How The F**K does this thing work?  I pinched squeezed pulled and pried and nothing.  The red thing inside broke and it still wont come off.  

I'm dirty sweaty and pissed off and all I've accomplished so far is jacking up the truck and disconnecting the Neg Batt cable!

 

I've searched and found out how to remove the starter, duh and pigtails I can buy after I break this one!

 

Maybe there's a book I can buy on how this connector works, IDK

[Snowcamo]

If that red clip broke before it was pulled back you will have a time removing the clip by squeezing it. That red clip secures the pigtail in the socket.

[rav3]

The red clip is a "safety lock". It needs to be removed BEFORE you can unclip the connector. This is pretty much true for just about all connectors now days. This saftefy clip is Gray in some cases.

[Texasdeere]

Yup I tried to pull the Red part back. the top part came off then the rest went deeper into the connector.  I finally got

that piece out and then the connector finally came off.  I looked at it for a while with a mirror before I even started and couldn't make any sense of which way the red tab was supposed to go or come out.  Looked like it was locked in from the top with no easy way to free.

 

I thought BMW connectors where tricky.  

 

Thanks for your help.

[Snowcamo]

Your welcome.  If I was you, and I am...  I would at the very least secure the two plugs together with a zip tie between the wires.  That way it will have zero chance of separation. 

[westshorenc]

I had difficulty removing the starter solenoid wire plug with this clip as well (2014 Sierra).  What prompted me to pull it is the vehicle suddenly would not crank (luckily was in my driveway).  Battery new, voltage good, no click from solenoid.  I crawled underneath and simply wiggled the solenoid wire at the plug, then it cranked fine.  So I wanted to exercise the plug to wear off any oxidation.

 

It was NOT obvious how to remove the plug, partly because is tight quarters there.  But like the other plugs underhood, the key is to slide the red tab back, away fron the solenoid body and parallel to the wire.  It would not budge with my finger so I went in with a flat blade stubby which fairly easily slid the tab back 1/4”.  Then the plug pulled right out.

 

if the no-crank happens again I will likely get a new plug, or I saw a video where  the plug socket was ground off and a ring terminal crimped to the wire end, for securing under the stud nut.  Like in the old days before obd2 and fancy plugs!

Edited December 17, 2023 by westshorenc

[Steel City]

So I have the opposite problem. I can’t get the harness back on. It slides on but does not lock into place. No satisfying “click” and I can’t lock the red tab. Brand new starter that rock auto and the manufacturer say is for my truck. I finally decided to just push it in as far as it would go and see what happens. When I turn the key the starter spins but won’t engage. Also, it doesn’t stop spinning when I release the key. It keeps spinning until I turn the key off. Any suggestions or guesses? Thanks. 

[rav3]

I saw a video on YouTube where you broken connector is a common issue. He fixed it by just fastening the wire to the starter with a standard loop connector. I'll see if I can find the video & post it. 

 

[Steel City]

I don’t think the connector is broken. I just can’t get it to lock. Is there some trick to it that I’m not doing? 

[Snowcamo]

The red clip secures the two. If it's not working finger snug a sheet rock screw where the clip goes or zipties to keep it together.

[rav3]

 

[Steel City]

It was definitely not broken. I just couldn’t get it to lock into place no matter how hard I pushed. I decided to zip tie it, electrical tape it, put the heat shield back on, and call it a day. Now I just have to cross my fingers that it never comes loose. I don’t plan on getting rid of the truck anytime soon so I hope it holds on for a long time. 

[Steel City]

On 12/30/2023 at 4:25 PM, rav3 said:

 

Thanks for the video. I did contemplate doing what he did but I don’t have any of those laying around and I was sick of having a dead truck sticking halfway out of my attached garage in the middle of winter for multiple days so I used what I had.