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To: digger48

I bet if you googled it (or youtube) you can find a hack to disarm it. I had to replace the starter on my wife’s new van. (She drove the old Buick for a couple of days!) It was just the starter - but their were lots of hacks if it was one of the safety sensors that prevented the ignition from activating the starter.)

https://www.thedieselstop.com/forums/f23/no-start-push-reset-emergency-fuel-shutoff-starts-159793/

I have no idea if the above link is related to what you are dealing with.

Car repairs are such a ripoff if you have the time and some tools. It looks like replacing this inertia switch is pretty easy with a screw driver as all the tools you’ll need.

Diagnosing and replacing my wife’s starter cost $110 in parts (rebuilt starter) and probably 5 hours of my time. I didn’t know anything - so I learned something too. The mechanic would have charged probably $600 to $800.

It was actually an interesting project. By all accounts the starter seems to work (out of the engine it seemed to run just fine!) But everything else in the ignition circuits checked out - and the engine wasn’t frozen - so it must be the starter. Then, when bench testing the starter I noticed the gear didn’t retract when it should have once. So I’m guessing something was a bit “sticky” and it wasn’t engaging or releasing from the gears in the engine.

Although it wasn’t until I installed the new starter that I was 100% certain. (I was 99% sure though when I bought the new starter).

BTW - Amazon has inertia switches for $50 to $75.


31 posted on 06/28/2019 4:44:59 AM PDT by 21twelve (!)
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To: 21twelve

Oh - previously on her van they diagnosed the steering wheel noise as needing a new pump - $700. I looked on the net. Seems where the hoses hit the pump there is a fancy attachment that uses some rubber ring washers. Except they built it with lousy washers. I paid $6 bucks (for two tiny washers - probably cost a nickel to make both of them) and removed the hose connection with a socket wrench - easy access.

Got the sound to go away. In cooler weather the washers contracted and leaked and the steering would squeal. Warm weather - no noise. Now in the winter she doesn’t get the strange looks when she pulls into a parking space.

Well - maybe she still does. But not because of the squealing steering!


38 posted on 06/28/2019 4:55:37 AM PDT by 21twelve (!)
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