Last night I went to move my '05 350Z and it wouldn't start. The starter solenoid would engage (I could hear the click), but there was no rotation from the starter motor. So, I'm inclined to think my starter has died. As I'm the 2nd owner of the car, and the previous owner never mentioned the starter having been replaced, this is likely the original starter (17yrs and ~145k miles, not bad for a starter). The battery has a good charge and I checked/torqued the battery connections, too. My son and I had just taken a 60+ mile drive with it yesterday afternoon, too.

So, are there any recommendations for what brand of starter to use? It's probably not as critical as the crank and camshaft position sensors (where Hitachi/OEM is recommended), but I thought I'd check,

 

hell i would just use an autozone or oreilly one

 

Pretty sure you can take it in and have it load-tested for free. OEM did well at 17 years, but Trav has a point. Back in the day NAPA had parts with a "lifetime guarantee."
Get 3 quotes and go from there.

 

I'm putting a RockAuto order together of parts for my other vehicles, so I can order one through there, too. I'm considering the one from TYC, then. The lifetime guarantee from Autozone is appealing (I used that recently on a CV axle I bought from there for my Passat). But it's double the TYC cost from RA, and I have other vehicles to drive while the new starter comes in.

 

Before you go that route, have you tried actually disconnecting the battery cables and clean the gunk from the terminals and clamps with a battery brush? And/or the other end at the starter which lives near the road gunk. I've dealt with that more than once. If your starter was going, generally you'd have some starter hesitation issues before it entirely takes a dump. Could still be the starter, sure, but eliminate all the simple stuff first.

 

^^^ As Mic suggested, check your cables. Especially all your engine grounds. I believe the 350Z starter is grounded through the engine block and therefore requires good ground strap connectivity between engine and chassis. It's not uncommon for ground wires to corrode/rust out depending on your geo-location.
-Icer

 

Got around to installing the new starter today. I pushed the car out of the garage tried bump starting it. I did turn the key to start (engaged the solenoid) - I wasn't going fast enough, so it didn't start - BUT - I think I got the starter to rotate enough when the solenoid engaged that the old starter did start the engine on a next try. It did kind of "hiccup" before it started turning the engine over and started the engine.

So, I think I'm safe in my assumption that the OE starter was dying/dead, and it was time for a new one (144k miles on the Z, now, at this point).

It was a pretty straightforward job. Although, seperating the old starter from the transmission housing took a little bit of work - I can thank mid-West winters for that!

A few pics below...

My 350Z up in the air today for the starter replacement.

Details on the old OE starter

New vs. old (OE) starter

Here is the new starter installed.

The new TYC starter is working well, so far.

 

I think your TYC starter should work just fine. Particularly since the Z is no longer your DD and not needed as much. I assume you keep it out of the weather that started dissolving your OEM unit.

 

Yeah, it gets garaged now

 

And a fine garage (and two post lift) it is.

 

Thank-you! I'm just glad my wife liked the house

I did have to add the lift, but that was a fun and worthwhile project

 

Jeebus! The original starter unit is really rusting/corroding away. I've never seen one from a 350Z look so rough, but then again I live in CA. The solenoid looks especially rough. Based on the oxidation levels shown in the pics you took, I think your Z would really benefit from a grounding kit. If you have the tools, there's no need to purchase a pre-made unit (like the Stillen one), you can easily crimp your own ends using some 8awg welding cable.

Also, sweet garage setup! I've always wanted a lift (was looking at a mid-rise 2-post M6K from MaxJax) but having a post-tensioned concrete slab really complicates the install and I don't want to deal with the space constraints of a 4-post system. Enjoy the garage and the Z!
-Icer

 

I do get jealous looking at videos and pictures of people working on their cars in the non-rustbelt. The starter from my Z looks about par for the course for any car around here that's used year round. My Z gets a break from that, now, but for the previous/original owner it was the year-round daily-driver.

On the lift, I've been really happy with it - thanks! I finished installing it at the start of last Fall and have already used it a lot across all our vehicles. This is in my shop garage (detached from the house), so I had the space for it, and the previous homeowners who put up this extra garage really over-built it, too. I have 11'3" from floor-to-ceiling, though, so the Mohawk fit my needs (most 2-post lifts with the overhead brace need 12' min.) - I only had to run the hydraulic lines up through the attic. I can lift most of my vehicles high enough to work under, and for the others where it's a little shorter underneath than ideal (like with our Ford Flex), I can roll around on a shop stool and work, instead.