Which carbon brushes to refurb a MK5 Transit starter motor?

[WhyWhyWhy???]

Hi.

I've got a dead starter I want to try and refurb. If I pull it apart and find the carbon brushes have worn out, I'd like to replace them and hopefully have a fully working starter motor again. Originally I ordered a new starter and fitted it, but after only 5-6 starts it has failed, so I'm going to send it back under warranty. I bench tested it and the solenoid on the new one was OK, but the motor itself doesn't spin up any more.

So my question is, can someone point me to somewhere where I can buy suitable carbon brushes that are decent quality for my dead starter? I fix washing machines for a living and have loads of carbon brushes for those, so I know that the carbon quality can vary greatly.

If it helps, my van is a 1999 MK5 Transit with 2.5 DI banana engine (no turbo) and the reg is T167 MNC. Unfortunately I don't have a photo or any reference numbers from the old original starter I want to refurb, but I can get them if needed.


Thanks in advance for any replies!

[metalworker0]

What i would be doing is finding out where the nearest alternator/ starter motor specialist repair shop is.. i live in the sticks in Prestatyn and the nearest to me is about 30 miles away at "LLanndudno-junction, where they will have said brushes

You have Peterborough . Leicester within 20 miles, there is great possibility that within those towns are such business's

or you can do a search on the net to ID the starter motor by type and brand .. once its established its type, model etc , then the brushes may be able to be found on ebay

and you do know that there is a tiny possibility, any of your washing brushes can be shaved down by scrapping with a stanley blade .. until they fit

all the best.mark

[cherniy_chack]

This comment is quite late, but it might help someone.
Three types of starters were installed on Transits between 1986 and 2000.
For many years, the most common one was the 2.7 kW Bosch unit.
Starting in the late 1990s, a 2.2 kW gear-reduction starter from various manufacturers began to be installed.
It is much smaller and lighter, yet more efficient and reliable.
The manual mentions another starter—a Lucas, I believe—but I have never actually seen one.
If you have a gear-reduction starter, you can buy a complete brush assembly for it; installing it is easy even for a novice mechanic.
However, if you have the old 2.7 kW Bosch or the exotic Lucas unit, it is better to replace it with a new gear-reduction starter—even a generic Chinese one.
Even the newest 2.7 kW Bosch starter is already 30 years old; in most cases, the rotor or stator windings short out against the housing, the rotor bushings are worn out, and the Bendix overrunning clutches are problematic.
Replacing the brushes requires spot welding.
I tried soldering the brushes with soft solder many times, but when starting the engine in winter, the solder would heat up, melt, and run off.
I tried hard soldering, but the insulation on the stator windings would burn off.
Replacing the old Bosch unit with a gear-reduction starter is the right move.
Replacing a faulty gear-reduction starter with a new one is also the right decision.

[bortaf]

check in areas near boat yards/marinas, there nearly allways a starter/alt rebuilder nearby or ask in a boat yard, thats how i found my local motor man (harlow) and rad rebuilder (hertford), nowt in London any more, land is too valueble