UPDATE – May, 2019 – I replaced the starter relay. This is the starter solenoid looking thing that’s on the radiator support in the front passenger side wheel well.
NOTE – The new solenoid had a “I” ignition terminal. I cut it off to make sure there was clearance for the two large wires.
Last winter, I had a starter go bad on our ole 2001 Mirada. We had stopped overnight at a RV park in Oklahoma City. The next morning I went to start the Mirada, CLICK, then NADA. nothing, zip.. I climbed underneath and used a small jumper cable to short between the battery terminal and the small solenoid terminal. The starter would click, but it wouldn’t spin. The starter was bad. I removed the starter, unhooked the toad and headed to the local auto-parts store. They had one in stock, $120 exchange. Back at the motorhome I installed the new starter and we were on our way in less than 60 minutes.
This story had an interesting twist, because we spent the previous night in Iowa. It was 17 degrees below zero and the wind was blowing about 40 mph. It was snowing and blowing so hard, we couldn’t see the roads in the RV campground. I didn’t want to risk driving into a ditch or getting stuck, so we spent the night in the driveway entrance to the campground.. WOW, I can’t even imagine climbing under the Mirada and changing out the starter there.
Back to our “New-to-Us” 1999 Southwind. The starter hasn’t given any signs of trouble or impending failure, but its original and 18 years old. I figure starters are cheap and reasonably easy to replace, so I’ll replace it as a “preventative” measure. $60, Rock Auto This is piece of mind that I should be good for years to come.
When I replaced the starter on the Southwind in my driveway, I disconnected shore power, then removed the PLUS cable from the chassis battery to make sure no power was on the motorhome or the starter cable.
When I replaced the starter on my Mirada at the RV Park, I didn’t want to remove shore power, so I didn’t remove the battery cables. Instead, I was very careful when removing the power cable from the starter. I then wrapped it in a piece of plastic to keep it from shorting against anything.
The starter is held on with 3 bolts, one is hidden up behind the starter. The starter should pull free.
Put the new starter up, bolt it down and reconnect it in the reverse order.
The old starter is OK, so I keep it in my parts box, just in case..
