Tomas

Thanks a lot. Is there also a plug somewhere in the engine bay to drain the rest of the water from the engine?

Gentlemen, You will be laughing, but yes, I can be so stupid. I was following the instructions from Les "300TDI cylinder head removal" (great instructions btw) in order to change the gasket. Once I remove the last bolt and lifted the cylinder head, I hear sound similar to splashing the toilet! Yes, I forgot to drain the water before removing the head. The result is that the water is in oil, oil is in water and water is in the cylinders. (And I'm not talking about the mess on parking that my wife cleaned with Karsher last week.) So, I cleaned the cylinders from water and dried it with clean tissue and hot hair, and drained the oil from the engine. The questions that I have are: - how and where do I drain the water? - shall I clean the oil, water and cylinder engine compartments with something before fixing the head again and filling up the engine with the appropriate liquids? Thx in advance, Tomas

Wow. Actually, the answer to all those questions is yes, but I just did not thought about adjusting the slack. The problem is that I do not have any more time to try this now. I have to hit the route as I need to be on the other side of Germany tomorrow early morning. Then, I'll have no chance to look at this again until next weekend. And if it does not work, I'll be waiting yet another week for the part to be delivered. So - I have to order now anyway and I can try your advice next weekend. It with works, I'll have solenoid and a starter for sale ;-) Thx for all your help and advices - really appreciated. Tomas

I'm giving up. Have look .I took the starter out again and wired it outside the car. You can see that the drive comes out with no problem at all. When I put it back in the car and just screw the 3 main cables together (without attaching it to the main feed on the solenoid) and only connect the exciter cable, I can hear the driver popping up and down. When I connect only the main power supply, but not the exciter - nothing happens at all. And when I connect it all, the starter tuns, but the drive does not come out. I could go on like this for another two weeks - but I have enough. I'm going to buy the whole starter. p.s.: anybody interested to buy almost new solenoid? ;-)

Thx for advice. I was measuring only the power getting to the exciter. When I measure the voltage getting to the starter motor - the bolt with the 3 cables, I was getting some 54 V. However, as you could see/hear at the video, the starter turns OK and if (occasionally) the jagged wheel gets out - there is no problem to turn the engine. I'm going to pull a dedicated cable between battery earth and the bottom starter bolt to see if it makes a difference. The cabling differences is visible here:

Still no luck. The mechanics, including the throw out mechanism, are cleaner and operating better then when new. The electrical problem was a good hit, but I'm not that good in electrics. So, I have intercepted the cable that brings power to the solenoid (the exciter feed) with voltmeter. I'm not sure if I'm reading it right, but this seems to be OK. I put it on youtube. .I was also checking the "300TDi Disco starter motor" from Les. And noticed some cabling differences: a) On the 8Th picture from top, Les says that there is a main connection - he has one cable coming there. I have three cables coming to this bolt. b) On the same picture (and detailed on picture 12), there is an Earth cable connected to the bottom bolt. I don't have this cable. So, it could be a electric problem, but how come it started only now? Also, how do I fix this? I have no ideas what are those cables and what to do with them.

OK - I'm officially clue less now. I took the starter apart till the last screw. Sprayed with Balistol oil all over. The jagged wheel moves up and down if just just breathe to it. And still, sometimes it comes out and sometimes it does not. The success to start is 25% (like 1 out of 4 tries). Now - any idea is more then welcomed. Thx.

OK - the question is what is the definition of "freely" right? ;-) So, my impression was that the resistance was the same, or just a little more then the on that is produced by the spring in the solenoid. But I'll have to get it all out again anyway - so, I'll test the resistance without the solenoid on. This should tell. Thx anyway - I'll keep you posted about my progress.

Yes. I did not dismantle this area, but I sprayed it with silicon oil and moved quite freely.

And a reply to Phillis: The solenoid weights cca 0.5 Kg I Got it from LRDirect: Products Ordered Code Product Item Price Quantity Total STC1245.Z8 STC1245 £27.00 1 £27.00 Subtotal: £27.00 Shipping cost: £11.00 VAT 20.000%: £7.60 Total: £45.60

OK. I got a new solenoid from UK. Eactly the same as featured by TSD on his picture. It worked fine for about 5 days and now I have almost the same problem again. The starter turns, but the solenoid seems not to have enough power to push the jagged wheel out. So, it spins idly without turning the engine. Any ideas are welcomed. Thx, Tomas

Yap - Wood Auto has the best deal, but they only ship within UK and I'm in Germany. But thanks anyway - at least I know the exact par number that I'm looking for.

Also, I just registered with breakers just now and waiting responses.

Thx a lot for your advices - really appreciated! OK, I'll not push my lack with the Britpart. I found one solenoid (0331303165) in Germany here: http://www.landyscheune-shop.de/magnetschalter-anlasser-2-5-d-td-tdi-bosch.html Would you say that EUR 79.23 is a fair price? Also, TDS mentioned two Bosh solenoid numbers (9330331002, 0331303165) is there a way to figure out which one I need - without taking the starter out again? Not that I would be lazy, but I have no garage and the weather is not really montage friendly today. Thx, Tomas

Gentlemen, After about 12 years of seamless operation the Solenoid on the Bosh starter from my 300TDI given up. I took it out cleaned inside out, greased, contacts polished, etc. But it just wont get the solenoid to pull strong enough and the starter just turns idle. So, I'm evaluation various options and would welcome your advice: - Can I replace only the Solenoid? - If so, any idea where can I get one and what part number am I looking for? (I'm based in Germany) - If I'm replacing the whole starter, which should I go for? Paddock has two complete models: - Bosh for some GBP 170,- or - Britpart for some GBP 80,- When it still worked, the engine normally started on first click. But during the cold nights, the first half turn was not enough. In those situations, it looked like the Solenoid retracted too early and I had to try 3 or 4 times before the engine started. Would that indicate more severe problem that would not be solved just by Solenoid replacement? Also, I intend to run this car just for one more year before it will be replaced with much younger brother of the same kind. So, I better be saving for the new one then spending too much on the old one. Hence the questions if I decide to go for new starter, shall I consider the Britpart at all? Other posts in this forum suggests not, but people, I need it only for one year. Any advice is welcomed, Thx in advance, Tomas