Ok I havea 99 gst and for the past few months it has been giving me problems when I goto start it. the funny thing is its not everytime. when I leave the house in the am it turns on fine. but after I drive it to school about 30 min away then try to leave about an hour later It makes a whining noise and nothing turns over all the lights and and stuff comes on. then I wait like 5 sec and it will turn on. I had the battery tested and it is fine(12.45V) the cables and terminals are clean and screwed on tight. I don't know what to do? the problem still happens when I disconnect the radio and extra lights. nut it seems that the longer I wait between trips the higher the chance of getting the car to start i have. Any I dea on what is wrong and how to fix the annoying problem would be Greatly appericated.

 

Sounds like the starter solenoid.

 

I concur. Definately sounds like the starter soleniod. It's not a very expensive item and will do something like what you describe. If the engine isn't turning over you have 2 places to look. The battery which you already tested and the starter. If it sounds like the starter is trying to kick over but won't and the battery tests fine then the soleniod is bad. It'll prolly be a pain to get to (I haven't found too many easy to reach starters. They tend to make teh easy to get to ones on the V8 vehicles LOL). Also if you end up getting stuck somewhere and teh starter won't turn try whacking it with something to get it to free up a little. It's a temporary get-me-out-of-a-jam-and-home type fix so replace that starter soleniod soon before you can't start the car at all. (Or do like I do and make sure you get a manual tranny car so you can push start it LOL)

 

yeah I replaced the starter but for some reason the starter for the 99 eclipse didnt fit I had to get a 98 one. anyone know why? Just to let you know the starter is under the tb so you have to jack the car up remove the battery and tray to get to it. On my old 96 rs the starter was right under the header so it was a very easy job.

 

Is it possible that the starter you recieved was for the 420A rather than the 4g63 when it didn't fit? Just a thought. Do like Sanguinius says and carry something to tap on the starter with and you should be able to crank it. Eventually this will no longer work, so get your starter out, have it tested, and if need be, replace it. Starter on the 4G63 is not too difficult to get to as you know.

 

Yeah I'd say definately get the starter replaced ASAP. It's a definate possibility that they gave you a starter for the wrong engine. Make sure you have the right starter before you leave the store next time :P

 

I replaced the starter and the problem went away. But how was I supposed to know if it was the right starter when I didnt have the old one w/ me. I told the guy at the counter i need a starter for a turbo 1999 eclipse fwd. then he came back with a box that said 99 gs-t. usally what ever the box says it right

 

Glad to hear we could help. Wrong starter is not neccessarily your fault, I was not saying that the starter was wrong, just that the solenoid was bad. 99% of the time the right part is in the the right box, just check labels.