Ok here is my issue now. go out put the key in and turn it. Lights come on, and there is one click, but no start. I have been able to get it to start but its very random and not reliable. How can i determine if its the solenoid or the starter. They are both rather pricey so i would like to replace the right one and not have to replace something and have it be the other.

 

if u remove it and take it to atuozone and they will test it for free

 

its quite doubtful you can get the solenoid separate from the starter, and if you can its probably gonna be terrible aftermarket junk.

you also probably have oil leaking on the starter assembly from the rear cam plug "o" ring.

if it is indeed leaking, you should fix it to prevent this from happening again. and you're likely just gonna replace the starter/solenoid as an assembly.

 

Took the starter out and took it to autozone and had it tested. It passed the bench test, so we tested the battery it passed as well. Then the guy hooked my battery to the starter on the bench. It spun up but not very fast and it didn't pop out and engage. He then tried my starter with a different battery. it engaged but still didn't spin very well. He then hooked a new starter to the battery and it spun hard and engaged. So i am going to be getting a new starter.

 

yep, worked at autozone for a year and its good to see someone actually helped u find the RIGHT fix! they stress that

 

I had the same issue with my Diamante starter. The cam thrust case oil leak runs down and gets into the starter. I probably could have cleaned the starter and replaced the brushes (available separately from http://www.parts.com), but I went with a remanufactured one from AutoZone for about half the price of an OEM Mitsubishi replacement from parts.com. By the way, I found that Pep Boys, AutoZone and Advance Auto all sell the same remanufactured starter, just under different names.

As to the cam thrust case oil leak, I sealed it with silicone. See this thread: https://mitsubishiforum.com/forum/sh...ad.php?t=34354. I also sealed the seams on the new starter with the same silicone just in case oil gets down there. The starter remanufacturer said sealing the starter was okay to do.