About Car Starters

The starter in your vehicle is the small motor used to crank your engine every time you start your car. Without it, it would very difficult for you to crank start your engine by hand the way early Model-T vehicles were started; actually, it is practically impossible with today powerful engines.

Function

Now, all you have to do is turn the ignition switch in your car to complete the starting system circuit, allowing current from the battery to reach the starter motor. This powerful motor rotates the engine crankshaft, and once the engine begins to run with its own power-combustion power-you release the key and the starter motor unplugs itself from the crankshaft, waiting for the next time you need to fire up the engine again.

Features

To accomplish this, a starter motor needs to produce a very high power torque or turning force at a relatively high speed. This is done through a strong magnetic field induced into wire windings assembled around the armature iron core. The produced magnetic field is 5 to 10 times stronger than that of the permanent magnets mounted on the sides of the armature.

Types

There are two main types of starter motors which basically differentiates the way a starter engages the flywheel to turn the crankshaft inside the engine. A movable pole shoe starting motor type uses a clamp lever to engage the pinion gear, a center shaft with a gear at the end, with the flywheel. A starter-mounted solenoid type uses a sliding bar or plunger to accomplish the same goal.

Identification

But the starter motor in your car is also very much like other electrical motors. It transforms electrical energy from the battery into a turning mechanical force that is used to rotate the crankshaft inside the engine. This is accomplished through a magnetic field created by electricity going trough permanent magnets inside the starter. This invisible magnetic field induces a current into a rotor in the center of the starter with a shaft in it. A gear at the end of this shaft is forced out through an engagement mechanism to turn the crankshaft.

Warning

And because of this powerful turning force produced by the starter motor, it is important that whenever you have problems starting your car make sure not to crank the engine for more than 15 seconds at a time. Current going through the armature may overheat parts, damage internal components and ruin the starter. Crank the engine 5 to 7 seconds at a time and let the starter cool down for a few seconds after three or four tries.