Starter Sticks when hot

My car starts every morning no problem. But when I drive out and get to work and turn the car off and try to turn it on again it won’t start.



I have changed the starter twice. The last time I purchased an original starter from the dealer.

I bang it with a crowbar and sometimes it works but it is unpredictable. I have taken the starters to get checked and they pass the tests

By the way when the engine is hat the starter just clicks. I have had the battery checked and the electrical all passed

Replying to both your posts, I have few things you might try.
The most obvious reason for your problem is that your battery is poorly grounded. This would explain why heat is a factor, and also why you have a good charge in the battery but can’t start the car when it’s hot. A poorly grounded D/C system quickly builds up resistance at the points of weakness, most often at the connections. If your problem is resistance everything may seem fine until you want the battery to actually turn the starter over. Charging the battery would not be an issue, but using that charge would be a different matter. You need to have as little resistance as possible when starting.
Heat increases resistance, and although the amount of heat that might affect your connection from simple engine heat is relatively minor, it might be that it is enough to make the difference if you have loose connections. The ground (negative) wire generally comes loose at the battery terminal, and if it is loose, it can often be moved by hand, in which case it just needs to be removed, cleaned up a little with a small wire brush and reinstalled and tightened so it stays put when pressure is applied by hand. The good news is that this cable and connections don’t corrode and almost never needs replacing. But they need to be tight.

If the negative terminal is pristine and tight as anything, then you need to look at the positive (red) cable and it’s terminals and connections. The positive connections attract the gases released from your battery, just because of the charge, and over time that white powder will accumulate around the terminal, and you may even have cleaned that off, but again the integrity of the connection could have become an issue. The terminal connection could be corroded under the metal, and in some cases the copper in the wire begins to corrode as well. And, as with the negative wire and terminal, a tight clean connection is absolutely necessary. In this case the white powder acts as an insolator, preventing the demanded voltage from the battery from reaching the starter. Again, loose connections are fatal.
If white powder has ever accumulated on your positive terminal, replace the terminal and clean up the uncovered copper wire strands with a wire brush, and attach everything tight (don’t go too crazy) so that nothing moves. Get as much exposed and clean cable wire into the terminal as you can. After you tighten everything up nice and clean you can buy a spray from any auto parts stores to coat the positive terminal to prevent future problems. You can also glue a penny about an inch away from the positive terminal, which will absorb most of the solids in the gas from your battery and corrode instead of your terminal. Replace with a new penny whenever the old one looks fussy and white.

Next check the starter end. I assume you did the starter replacements yourself. If not, please reply. If so, did you clean the terminal to the starter, and if not, think about what condition it was in. While not likely to ever corrode, the starter side of the cable needs to be tight and clean. Again, be careful to make it tight but do not bear down on the connection. These are fragile parts, not lug nuts. Just make them tight.
Most likely, poor or corroded battery connections are your problem. If you try these suggestions and they don’t work, please respond. These suggestions are just the things you should have tried first, and since you don’t say you did them, I assume you didn’t.

Sorry for the delay… I have checked the cables and they are are in good state. I changed the cable that goes strait to the starter a while back so that cable is new.

I also have been told that it could be the battery but I had it checked and it came out perfect.

I also have been told it may be the relay on the alarm cutoff. But I don’t think that is possible. I will try and let you know. Any other recommendation would be great.