Hi All,

I own a 1986 Volvo 240DL. I purchased it about two years ago and originally replaced the starter with one I bought from RockAuto about a year ago.

All was good until around two months ago when I went to start it one day and it made the most terrible never-ending screeching noise you can imagine. It seemed to go on forever, until I turned the key into the off position, and then it even continued until I attempted to start it again and it started successfully. The car sounded like a bunch of screaming aliens!

So I brought it to my mechanic and he swapped the starter out again with a rebuilt one that I got from AutoZone. Since then it's been nothing but problems. I've had to swap out the starter four more times, under AutoZone's lifetime warranty for the part, and they keep crapping out on me. Finally AutoZone had a "new" starter, instead of a rebuilt one, and I put that one in about two weeks ago hoping it would solve the issue.

No such luck. It acted up again two days ago... when I went to start it it made a slight noise that sounded like when you go to start a car that's already running. Then it didn't act up again until tonight.

I got home from a 40 minute ride, turned it off for five minutes to run into the Post Office, and when I went to start it again it was back to the original, terrible, never-ending screeching alien sound that went on until I turned the key into the off position and back to the on position to successfully start it.

I recorded the sound and am attaching it here. The recording doesn't really do it justice to how loud and terrible the sound really is!

At this point I am out of ideas as to what it can be... I'm thinking it can't still be a starter issue could it??? I'm not really interested in paying my mechanic the labor fee again to swap it out since it seems almost futile at this point.

Anyone have any experience with something like this?

Thanks in advance!

 

The starters being the problem is unlikely, what are the chances all of them being bad? I'd examine the fly wheel, it could be damaged, missing teeth, etc. which may be OK sometimes but eventually causes bigger (noisier) problems. I don't know what else it could be.

 

I had my mechanic fully check the fly wheel two months ago.

I agree... no way it can be a starter issue... after six of them... my buddy seems to thinks it's something electrical... but what?!?

My mechanic also swapped out the computer, and the relay that lives down there near the computer, the last time he had the car... cuz they were giving him issues when he was working on it.

 

I don't hear anything in your MP3 - (just background noise)

The engine tends to stop in about the same place when turned off. So the ring gear/flex plate teeth wear most in the same area. And just a few teeth worn will cause a problem. A screeching noise when trying to start happens as the bendix bounces off the worn ring gear teeth and grinds against the remains of the teeth. As others have mentioned I would suspect a few worn teeth on your ring gear/flexplate if you are getting a screeching noise when trying to start. .

 

It's sounding like, even though my mechanic checked the flywheel/flex plate, I should swap it out. Maybe something minor is messed up on it that he didn't see that's causing the issue. Now I just have to find the part... not having much luck so far...

 

What does anyone think about it being the "ignition switch" vs. the "flex plate"?

 

Ignition switch would not cause "screeching" sound. A failing ignition switch would either not crank at all or if it cranks it won't start. All depends on how it fails.

Why did you replace the original starter? They tend to be very robust and these types of items purchased from Rock Auto and Autozone tend to be marginal in their quality. If the original was failing in a similar way then it tends to point to something causing the starters to fail as Honk has mentioned.

 

I actually wish I didn't replace the original starter. The original "wrong" symptom was that the car would be completely dead sometimes when I went to start it.

I only recently discovered that there's a little play in my gear shifter and if it's a little too far forward, when in park, the car seems dead when trying to start it. If I bring the gear shifter back, without pressing the button, around an 8th of an inch the car starts right up.

 

Looking on eBay, I'm seeing a bunch of genuine used starters pulled from Volvos. Now I'm thinking I'm going to get one of those and have my mechanic put it in. I'm not trusting these RockAuto and AutoZone parts myself at this point and hearing that the originals are "robust" is giving me the confidence to try a used genuine one.

 

If you are getting a loud screeching noise when you engage the starter - that is caused by the bendix not engaging into the ring gear teeth, bouncing off and grinding against the teeth. The solution is a new flexplate/ring gear and a new bendix.

Engines tend to stop in the same place so the same teeth get used and worn down every time - If you can't find a good flexplate/flywheel/ring gear (have you ever specified automatic or manual trans?) on a 1986 with no speed sensor you could "rotate" the flywheel/flexplate to a new position so less worn teeth are used. Take trans out, unbolt flexplate and put back on in another position.

There is an adjustment on the neutral starting switch to prevent you from having to wiggle the shifter to start sometimes, under the shift lever cover. That problem happens when the shift linkage bushings fall out, or the trans/engine mounts sag or break.

 

I haven't said it yet... my Volvo is an automatic... I'll mention to my mechanic about rotating the flexplate to another position, thanks for the idea, since I'm not seeing any options to purchase one anywhere.

What I'm going to have my mechanic do at this point:

1. even though it doesn't seem to be an issue I'm going to have him fully test the current ignition switch
2. swap out the starter with a used original one I just purchased on eBay
3. unbolt and rotate the flexplate

If there are any other ideas throw them at me and I'll add them to the list!

Thanks.

 

Voluparts.com in Atlanta 404-352-3402 has used flex plates for $85 according to Melvin (answers the phone there sometimes)

Ignition switches do fail - but usually only fail with a poor connection to the accessory position. And not sure what to test - if it sends battery voltage to the Neutral switch in the start position - it works.

 

Okay I just found a used flexplate on eBay for $65 shipped. I wasn't originally thinking used was a good way to go for this part but it's labelled as in "excellent" condition and all the pics of it look good so I got it.

Updated list:

1. even though it doesn't seem to be an issue I'm going to have him fully test the current ignition switch
2. swap out the starter with a used original one I just purchased on eBay
3. swap out the flexplate with the used one I just purchased on eBay

 

And this is resolved...

It wasn't the starter... any of the six of them lol
It wasn't the ignition switch...
And it wasn't the flexplate...

It was the wiring harness located behind the manifold that enters the car from the engine compartment, through the firewall, on the other side of where the steering wheel is.

There were four wires there that had lost their outer covering and were fraying and would randomly touch and cause all kinds of chaos when they did! See photo below...

 

I still don't see how that would cause SIX starters to go bad but I hope this solves your problem, let us know how it turns out. Some car problems can be quite challenging and mysterious. Good luck!

 

Like I said in the previous post... "it WASN'T the starter... any of the six of them." Meaning the starters weren't bad...

 

it is just astounding your mechanic did not think to bench test even one of those units... wasn't he even curious how 6 could be bad?