Hello world. This is a new group I've created as the future place to get technical advise on problems diagnosing and installing starters & alternators. The technical support hotline of Motorcar Parts of America (MPA) is staffed by ASE technicians with access to a wealth of vehicle specific information. We plan to have them monitor posts to this group to provide answers to questions you might have. Please post your question and be sure to include the application (year, make, model).

Years ago at Mazda school in Jacksonville we were told of an RX7 (early '80s) that kept eating rear axle bearings. The rear axle assembly was replaced. The bearings in the new unit went too. The car was bought back and given to the training center, where the instructor found a bad battery-to-engine block cable connection. The starter current would run down the driveshaft, into the differential, out to the axle bearings, where it would arc on the bearing rollers and find its way into the rear axle housing, then follow the park brake cables back through the body to the engine. Those little arcs were masked by wear on the bearings. The ground cable connection at the block had been left loose when the car was built. On a simliar note, not long before I left the Ford dealership, a 2000 Mustang GT came in on the hook for a no-crank concern with almost no miles on it. I had a trainee working with me that was all a-twitter because it was a Mustang GT and so I allowed him to check it. He found good power at the starter but the starter wouldn't operate. So he replaced the starter and it was a really big job. Nothing changed. It still wouldn't crank. A test light connected to the negative battery cable would light up when the ignition switch was turned to start - bad negative connection at the block, but the ground cable bolt looked clean and was very tight. It turns out that the ground cable bolt was anodized with something that was non-conductive and there was enough paint on the block that the connection just wasn't there. Two years later another Mustang GT came in. The same kid drew the repair order. The same exact thing happened. He replaced the starter and found that he had a bad ground cable connection... The word "duh" comes to mind...

I look forward to reading the content and commenting from this group.