Pontiac Tempest Car Starter Repair at your home or office.

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Car Starter Repair Service

How much does a Car Starter Repair cost?

On average, the cost for a Pontiac Tempest Car Starter Repair is $438 with $256 for parts and $182 for labor. Prices may vary depending on your location.

CarServiceEstimateShop/Dealer Price
1990 Pontiac TempestL4-2.2LService typeCar Starter RepairEstimate$712.64Shop/Dealer Price$845.11 - $1231.97
1990 Pontiac TempestV6-3.1LService typeCar Starter RepairEstimate$700.93Shop/Dealer Price$831.10 - $1216.24
1991 Pontiac TempestL4-2.2LService typeCar Starter RepairEstimate$700.93Shop/Dealer Price$831.13 - $1216.30
1991 Pontiac TempestV6-3.1LService typeCar Starter RepairEstimate$700.93Shop/Dealer Price$831.13 - $1216.29
Show example Pontiac Tempest Car Starter Repair prices

What's a car starter motor and how does it work?

The starter motor is a powerful, compact electric motor that will turn a car’s engine over at about 200 RPM in order to start the engine. The starter is at the terminus of a circuit that includes the battery, the ignition switch, a neutral safety switch, relays and fuses.

When you turn the ignition key to start, or press the start button in some vehicles, the starter circuit is completed and the starter will run. Most starters have a small pinion gear that engages a larger ring gear on the flywheel when the starter is powered on. The pinion gear turns the engine flywheel at about 200 RPM. Since the flywheel is directly connected to the crankshaft, all engine components will then turn in sync and the engine starts.

Starter

When to replace the starter?

Starters are relatively durable but most will eventually fail in one or more of the following ways:

  • Intermittent operation of the starter. Starters can develop bad spots on the armature which will cause intermittent operation. This causes the starter to work sometimes and other times when you turn the key nothing happens.
  • Starter turns too slowly. Internal electrical and mechanical faults can cause the starter to draw too much current and in some cases the current drawn will exceed what the battery can supply. A consequence is the engine may not start as rapidly.
  • Unusual noises on starting. If you hear any type of grinding or other unusual noise while starting the engine, that should be investigated as the noise could reflect an internal starter failure or the noise could be due to pinion gear failure or flywheel ring gear damage.
  • Starter doesn’t function when turning the key. In some cases, the first symptom of a starter malfunction is a complete failure of the starter motor. This happens when you turn the ignition key to start the car, the starter motor does not function at all.

How do mechanics repair the starter?

  • If the starter is determined to be faulty, the battery must be disconnected prior to commencing any work. Once the battery is disconnected, the wiring to the starter is disconnected.
  • Starters are bolted to the engine block or the transmission case. Generally, there are two bolts. The procedure to access the starter varies across car models and can require removal, or lowering, of other vehicle components.
  • Once the starter is removed and a new starter is installed, the mounting bolts are tightened to the OEM factory torque specifications, the electrical connections are cleaned and re-attached to the starter and the starter is tested to confirm normal operation.

Is it safe to drive with a starter problem?

Once a vehicle engine is running, the starter is not in use. However, if you know that the starter is malfunctioning or working intermittently, you may be left stranded if you turn the engine off and the starter doesn’t function when restarting the engine. Should you know or suspect a problem with the starter, it is best to have the problem repaired to avoid being left stranded.

When replacing a faulty starter keep in mind:

  • Prior to replacing the starter, simple diagnostic tests should be performed to ensure that the problem is a faulty starter versus a weak battery, faulty neutral start switch, or other faulty electrical component in the starter motor circuit.
  • Starters draw large amounts of current from the battery, much more than any other electrically powered device in your car. This makes it important that the electrical connections to the battery are inspected, cleaned, and tightened as necessary. Cables to the starter should also be inspected for corrosion and replaced as needed.

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Meet some of our expert Pontiac mechanics

Real customer reviews from Pontiac owners like you.

Excellent Rating

(124)

Rating Summary
120
4
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120
4
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H

27 years of experience
828 reviews
H
27 years of experience
Pontiac Tempest L6-3.8L - Brakes, Steering and Suspension Inspection - Los Altos, California
On time. A true gentleman. Skilled with cars that date over many years. He knows older cars including many classics. Younger mechanics probably would know know a thing about a 4BBL Carburetor. One can see that he has a true love of cars & the work he does. This is only one experience so I would hope to see him back when needed.

Chris

23 years of experience
2372 reviews
Chris
23 years of experience
Pontiac Tempest V8-5.3L - Pre-purchase Car Inspection - Laguna Niguel, California
Chris did a great job inspecting the vehicle, I live in GA and wanted to purchase a car in CA so I needed an unbiased third party to look at it for me. My primary concern was that the car was represented accurately in the online ad (there are a lot of scams online now), which he did, we had a great conversation after the inspection which did a lot to comfort my concerns. This was a "project" car and needed to be evaluated accordingly, it was something that I had planned on doing a restoration on so I knew it needed some work. My only critique is that when the car was delivered there was a little more rust than I had expected, I wish that he had pointed that out, I accept some of the responsibility for not asking enough questions during our conversation. Overall I am extremely happy with the inspection service and would highly recommend Chris .

Oscar

25 years of experience
72 reviews
Oscar
25 years of experience
Pontiac G5 L4-2.2L - Starter - Ellicott City, Maryland
Excellent

Jeffrey

17 years of experience
111 reviews
Jeffrey
17 years of experience
Pontiac Solstice L4-2.4L - Starter - Dunedin, Florida
Kind courteous patient explained in detail what was wrong with our also gave hints on what could be done next to improve the quality of the car gangster quotes Fair labor prices

Excellent Rating

(124)

Rating Summary
120
4
0
0
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120
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Number of Pontiac Car Starter Repair services completed
1364+
services done by our mechanics
TOTAL NUMBER OF EXPERT Pontiac MECHANICS
800+
experts on our platform

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