As the weather gets colder, we’re entering the season where people more increasingly find their cars won’t start. You know that dreaded feeling, waking up on a cold and frosty morning, getting in the car to go to work and when you turn the key, the silence is deafening… or there’s just an ominous click.
It can be easy to assume that the problem is the starter motor and that it just needs replacing, but actually there are many more reasons why this could be happening.
And these reasons are certainly worth investigating before you invest in a new starter motor and find the same thing’s happening again.
The starter motor is the electrical device which is used to start a normal internal combustion engine. It is made up of the starter, starter solenoid, battery and cables which join the system together and enable the engine to burst into life.
At this time of year, many of our customers come to us looking for replacement starter motors, because the one in their car won’t work.
But, while sometimes it can be that you need a new starter motor when it turns over slowly or not at all, on investigation, some of the most common starter motor faults can include the following:
- Sticking key switch
- Battery issues – such as low voltage, or poor connection
- Cable connections are corroded or broken
- Excessive oil or paint on the starter mounting surface (in which case it might just need a good clean)
- Incorrectly wired or faulty neutral safety switch
- The wrong type of starter has been fitted to your car, causing it to turn over slowly
If the starter motor has in fact burnt out, this could possibly be as a result of low battery voltage or repeated attempts to start the engine. Before it gets to that point, when you first notice a problem, it’s important to check the rest of the electrical system for voltage, grounds and wiring first.
Thing is though, if you aren’t a dab hand under the bonnet, you might be unsure where to start. So, the minute you know there’s a problem, it’s always worth getting a professional to do some thorough investigation before the problem gets worse.
If you’re in any doubt, feel free to enquire by giving our experts a call for some friendly and helpful advice.
Great news for Howkins Motor Spares
In other news, we are pleased to announce that we recently won a special small business award from Dragon’s Den star Theo Paphitis!
Every Sunday, between 5pm and 7pm, the entrepreneur rewards small businesses that tweet him @TheoPaphitis and describe their businesses in one tweet including the hashtag #SBS.
Theo reviews the businesses that entered and on a Monday night chooses his favourite lucky winners who are then re-tweeted.
With a twitter following of over 500,000 people, this means an amazing boost for the businesses chosen – and recently ours was one of them!
Having been picked as one of the SBS winners, we can’t wait to have the chance to meet up with the Dragon’s Den star at some point next year!