What Are the Symptoms of a Bad Car Starter Motor?
2 Answers
Car starter motor failure symptoms include: during ignition, the starter solenoid contacts become burnt, the magnetic coil fails to engage, the starter either doesn't rotate or turns slowly, resulting in the engine failing to start normally or experiencing difficulty starting. Difficult starting or prolonged starting times can easily cause concurrent symptoms like overheating in vehicle wiring or inside the starter motor. In severe cases, this may burn out other electrical components or wiring. Causes of car starter motor damage include: short circuit in the motor stator winding, damaged commutator or short circuit caused by brush dust, partial short circuit in the armature, poor contact due to severely worn brushes, severely worn motor bearings or misaligned assembly centerline causing rotor scraping, broken gears or pulleys, etc. Any one of these issues can prevent the starter motor from functioning.
A faulty car starter motor is a serious issue. My old car had this problem, and the symptoms were quite obvious: when trying to start, pressing the ignition switch resulted in no response at all—no sound, and the engine wouldn't budge. Sometimes, you could hear a clicking noise, like something was knocking, but it just couldn't turn the engine over. This is similar to a dead battery, but the difference is that even after replacing the battery, the problem persists. Overheating of the motor is another sign—for example, after prolonged attempts to start, touching the motor area feels very hot, and there might even be a burnt smell. If not repaired promptly, the problem worsens quickly, making it harder to start in cold weather, and the risk of breaking down on the road becomes dangerous. I recommend that if you encounter similar issues, don't mess around—take it to a professional shop to check the motor connections and internal gears. Regular maintenance can also help prevent this.
