# Where is the starter on a 2000 Nissan Altima?



## stancho (Aug 26, 2006)

My 2000 Nissan Altima hesitates when starting. When you turn the key it cranks slowly, even though it starts fairly well. I suspect a bad starter. I just put in a new battery and new belts and the problem persists.

Could you tell me where is the starter located? I could not find it just looking at the engine. Any suggestions what might be causing this, other than a bad starter?

Any help is appreciated. Thanks.

Stan


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## Asleep (Jan 19, 2003)

the starter is located directly below the throttle body. remove the intake tubing and it will be somewhat easier to locate.


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## stancho (Aug 26, 2006)

*Is this it?*


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## Asleep (Jan 19, 2003)

i cant tell exactly from that pic, but it looks like youre in the area. the 2 bolts that hold it in are accessible with a long extension and a 14mm deep socket. if you place the ratchet somewhat underneath the master cylinder, youre about in the right place - more room to work too.


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## stancho (Aug 26, 2006)

Thank you Asleep, I think I'll let the starter be for now, and will replace it when it dies.


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## stancho (Aug 26, 2006)

Ok, this happened sooner than I thought it would. My wife's Altima wouldn't start this morning. When you turn the key all you hear is a click. After multiple attempts it eventually started, but my wife was afraid to drive it to work, so I had to give her a ride.

Looks like I'll be replacing the starter tonight. If I get a chance, I'll snap some pictures and post them here, in case anyone needs to do the same thing.


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## Asleep (Jan 19, 2003)

in a pinch, sometimes you can tap the starter body with a wrench or small hammer and it will usually start. this is also another way to diagnose the starter...


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## stancho (Aug 26, 2006)

Ok, the new starter has been installed and the car starts beautifully. I got a Bosch part from Pepboys, which set me back about $150 + tax. This was the cheapest I could find and still seems like a lot.

Here are the steps that I followed to install the new starter:
1. Removed intake hosing along with the top of the air filter box. This allowed access to the two bolts attaching the starter to the engine. The bolts were still hard to get to since multiple wires were in the way. 
2. I had to jack up the car and go underneath it to get to the starter itself and detach the electrical connections. I believe I used a 12mm wrench.
3. Then, I unscrewed the two bolts holding the starter. This has to be done topside. Used a long extension and a 14mm socket, per AsleepAltima's advice.
4. Got under the car again and removed the old starter.
5. Installation of the new one was following the reverse process.

By the way, Autozone does free starter analysis. I brought my old starter in and it failed the test. I did that before I put the new one in, just to make sure that the starter was causing the problem.

Finally, I'd like to thank AsleepAltima for his advice and I hope that this thread will be useful to someone with the same problem.


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## jmacho (Aug 20, 2004)

Many starter problems are caused by pitted switch contacts which eventually cause the starter motor not to turn as there is no 12v battery voltage to the starter motor. What happens is when you turn the key the solenoid ( like a magnet switch) on the starter assembly causes a small rod or plunger to make contact which turns (switches on) on the starter motor. You can purchase new starter contacts from a Nissan dealer or if not too badly pitted simply file or sand the copper contacts so they are clean. With the starter out this is about a 1/2 hour max effort. New contacts are about $20. If you are handy, disassembling the starter is not difficult and may save you the expense of replacing the entire starter. You can easily test the unit before reinstalling by applying 12V both to the motor directly and thru the solenoid as long as you are comfortable doing so.


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## stancho (Aug 26, 2006)

Thank you for your comment, Jmacho. This is useful info and probably I should have spend the extra time to disassemble the old starter. At this point, since the new starter is already intsalled I'll just let it be. The $$$ have already been shelled out. I'll keep this in mind if a starter fails again on me. The one I just installed has a lifetime warranty, which of course, I will not get to use (hopefully).



jmacho said:


> Many starter problems are caused by pitted switch contacts which eventually cause the starter motor not to turn as there is no 12v battery voltage to the starter motor. What happens is when you turn the key the solenoid ( like a magnet switch) on the starter assembly causes a small rod or plunger to make contact which turns (switches on) on the starter motor. You can purchase new starter contacts from a Nissan dealer or if not too badly pitted simply file or sand the copper contacts so they are clean. With the starter out this is about a 1/2 hour max effort. New contacts are about $20. If you are handy, disassembling the starter is not difficult and may save you the expense of replacing the entire starter. You can easily test the unit before reinstalling by applying 12V both to the motor directly and thru the solenoid as long as you are comfortable doing so.


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## Asleep (Jan 19, 2003)

im glad you got it done. its nice to not have to pay someone to fix something that you can do yourself. these forums are full of valuable info like this. 
oh and btw, thats about average price for that starter. i think i paid 160 for the last one i purchased from checker auto.


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## Darktide (Jul 29, 2004)

one side note to Jmacho's comments. If you decide to hook the battery up to a 12v source, strap it down to something. Don't try and be quick about it and hold it down with your hand because it won't feel good. Starters have plenty of torque (for obvious reasons) and when put power to it it will spark and probably scare you enough that the starter will jump out of your hands. I worked at Advance for awhile and I've done it myself. Its much safer/ more intelligent to just strap it down. 

And remember to connect the negative source first. then the power.

Darktide


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