Where's the starter relay?

[SubGothius]

Anyone know where the starter relay is mounted on an '87 2nd-gen? It should have a Standard SR115-type start/run relay according to NAPA, O'Reilly's, and RockAuto, but I've looked all around underhood and underdash both sides and can't spot anything like it. And just to be clear, I'm not talking about the solenoid on the starter itself.

[FMS88]

I've never found a starter relay on my '88 and neither the FSM nor any other wiring diagram I've seen includes a such a relay. The solenoid is the "relay." Don't know why NAPA, RockAuto, etc. list one unless it's an after-market, add-on item. Incidentally, RockAuto, eBay and other sellers show the SMP SR-115 fitting many vehicles including Gen 1 trucks. Seems unlikely that it's an OEM item.

[geezer101]

I did some research and the NAPA part # that you've listed is for Mitsubishi post '97 (but I still have a feeling that is wrong too...) It gets called all sorts of names - starter relay, alternator safety relay etc. The part # I managed to find is MD11356. Is there a main relay/fuse box in the Gen 2 engine bay? Only place it could be. Gen 1's had a stand alone starter relay on the side of the engine bay - it was a clunky looking thing with a metal case and a 6 pin plug on the underside of it.

[FMS88]

Is there a main relay/fuse box in the Gen 2 engine bay? Only place it could be. Gen 1's had a stand alone starter relay on the side of the engine bay - it was a clunky looking thing with a metal case and a 6 pin plug on the underside of it.

Only engine bay relay in my '88 Ram 50 (2.6L, manual trans, no A/c) is the auto choke relay and it's in the device box. I've never found a starter relay in the engine bay (or anywhere else). Seems very odd that the Gen 1s have it and not the Gen2s.

[geezer101]

It's the ignition bypass relay (well, that's what I've always known it as) It shuts off accessories/headlights etc while cranking the engine to protect the alternator.

[dash]

what is it doing ? Weak starter solenoid signal on feed wire ?
My old corollas would eventually do that and wouldn't engage from key
Grabbed junkyard relay & pigtail and wired it into the starter solenoid wire
Started every time after that. Never dove deeper into the actual cause. Free fix sorted it
Toyota ignition swich electronic back was identical to mitsu

[SubGothius]

Well, it turns out my "new" (remanufactured) Bosch starter is dodgy. Tried jumping battery (+) directly to the solenoid trigger terminal -- still nothing, not even a click.

Took out the starter, bench-tested it again just to be sure, still nothing. Then I turned the pinion gear a bit by hand and tested again; suddenly it woke up. Gave it several more tries, still responding, so I reinstalled it.

Once back in the truck, tested starting and got one good crank out of it, then dead again. So I'll pull it yet again tomorrow, and back to RockAuto it goes...

[geezer101]

Ugh. It would've been acceptable if you'd given it a shot yourself of resurrecting your old starter motor. They normally are stubborn biatches after you've cleaned the commutator ring and installed new brushes. They aren't hard to pull down and clean out but it sucks that you have to take one 'remanufactured' in and out for warranty.

*check and clean all of your ground leads and connections just in case (don't know if you have/haven't done so already...)

[SubGothius]

I did bench-test it by jumping direct to battery after I removed it, so that eliminates any factors of grounding, switches, wiring, etc. Battery voltage is good.

This was already replacing a reman starter I'd installed a couple years ago, no idea by now if that one replaced the factory starter or if it already had an aftermarket unit by then, with ~165k on the odo.

Figured getting a Bosch unit this time, even a reman, would be a better bet than swapping it out for yet another O'Reilly's lowest-bidder reman starter, after their CS assured me I could buy my own replacement anywhere and then return their failed unit for a full refund under the limited lifetime warranty.

The problem with that one seemed to be a failing clutch in the pinion drive -- got to be over half the time the starter would just spin freely without engaging the flywheel to crank the engine over, and half the time it engaged at all, it'd lose engagement and resume spinning freely again. I did at least verify it's an 8-tooth pinion, as proper for a manual trans.

[dash]

I've had good experience with local small business repair outfit, for starters and alternators
Quick, reasonable, performed as expected. Upgraded alternator also. Had that personal touch
Not so with AC compressors tho.
Immigrant influx took over/deteriorated most of that type of business as wel as machine shops, several years ago