'95 350 Tbi Starter Solenoid Replacement.

hubbycap · March 23, 2008

Well Ole Black Beauty wasn't her old reliable self today. After checking the battery and cables it tuned out to be starter problems. Removed the starter (that thing sure is little,) and it checked fine but the solenoid was no good.

My problem: the 3 external torx screws that hold the solenoid to the starter case are oriented so close to the casting that my 3/8" drive E6 external torx socket can't seat squarely on the screws. I'm afraid that any rigging that I may try will bugger the torx head and if I can find a thin-walled deep-well torx socket or the correct nut driver, if any of these exist, want be usable on a malled head.

I'm trying to keep the parts price in the $45 range (solenoid) instead of the $145 range (whole starter.) Does anyone have a tip on this?

Black Bart · March 26, 2008

You may find it better to replace the whole starter, I just replaced the one in my 94 with a lifetime warranty reman unit from O'Reilly for $39.99.

SKYrado03 · March 23, 2008

Have you checked sears? Haven't been to one myself in years. Found these on their website.

Gearwrench $31.99.......SK $68.99 ouch!

These are both 1/4" drive sets, not sure if they sell them separately.

It would be tough to find anything open today, hope you and yours have a happy Easter.

hubbycap · March 26, 2008

You may find it better to replace the whole starter, I just replaced the one in my 94 with a lifetime warranty reman unit from O'Reilly for $39.99.

Thanks David,

Well I'm not sure if the '94 is the same as a '95. My starter was really tiny. I didn't check O'Reilly's remanned starter price but Autozone was $139 (minimum). Had I thought it was in that price range, I definitely wouldn't have screwed around with it another day. I ended up at O'Reilly's anyway and the Borg-Warner solenoid alone was $46. I did get it on Monday (yesterday) evening and it works like it should now. The real problem was a poor starter jumper wire connection to the solenoid because the nut would not snug up.

hubbycap · March 23, 2008

Have you checked sears? Haven't been to one myself in years. Found these on their website.

Gearwrench $31.99.......SK $68.99 ouch!

These are both 1/4" drive sets, not sure if they sell them separately.

It would be tough to find anything open today, hope you and yours have a happy Easter.

Thanks Steve, that's exactly what I need. Maybe someone is open today.

hubbycap · March 24, 2008

Have you checked sears? Haven't been to one myself in years. Found these on their website.

Gearwrench $31.99.......SK $68.99 ouch!

These are both 1/4" drive sets, not sure if they sell them separately.

It would be tough to find anything open today, hope you and yours have a happy Easter.

Thanks Steve, that's exactly what I need. Maybe someone is open today.

Well, I couldn't buy it on Easter, but I did manage to find a good mechanic with a proper socket. Reinstalled, and Black Beauty is online again.

SKYrado03 · March 25, 2008

That's wonderful!

That's what I usually do during off hours, check my friends. I did think of it, but didn't know how far you wanted to take it, being the holiday. Next time I'll say something.

hubbycap · March 25, 2008

That's wonderful!
That's what I usually do during off hours, check my friends. I did think of it, but didn't know how far you wanted to take it, being the holiday. Next time I'll say something.

Well I didn't find a good enough friend to do it on Easter, but I did run into one today.