Had the updated cable done and it cranks over easily now when hot and cold. Cost me 1k for it all total price. I view as maintaince costs and had to be done on the 997.1 I have

 

Mine was fixed this past week with a new starter.
Can't say how much it cost because it was part of a large overhaul package.

 

Who did your work?

 

ASG. They were excellent.

 

I had to have my cable replaced also a while ago. I was flabbergasted at the cost of replacing what amounts to a wire, and was quite relieved my extended warranty didn't balk at covering it.

 

Same here. I replaced the starter last week and all good now. Cost me US$240 part (Bosch) and 2.5hour DIY time.

ps: mine is 2006 C2S

 

Replacing the starter looks like a cheaper fix than changing the cable.

 

I currently have the hot start issue and my Indy wants to replace the cable (cost about $1k). I don't think a new starter will cure the problem if same old corroded cable is left in car, so I don't see much of a choice but to replace cable. Does that sound correct?

 

If you are suffering slow cranking on hot re-starts then the root cause is the cable so you should replace that first. But, the slow cranking caused by the cable is also hard on the starter so if the cable fixes the "hot" starting but you still have slow'ish cranking when cold, then do the starter as well.

 

There are a few theories on the cause of this "hot start" problem, I don't know enough to be sure which one is the right one.

But I leaned more towards to "under-spec cable causing the starter to degrade over time". So I went with the cheaper route first and replaced the starter which was only 1/4 of the cost US$1k to replace the cable. For US$1k, I can replace the starter 4 times.

Mine is MY06 and it took years for the starter to fail. So hopefully this new one will last for a few years before it needs replacing again, and may be the next owner too!

 

Thanks guys. I'm thinking that my starter is perfectly fine because car starts up perfectly at "cold starts" (first thing in the morning or after sitting for a while). It's only the "hot start" (re-start in less than an hour or so) that I get the sputtering. Sound like the cable? My Indy thinks it is def the cable corroding at the connection points, but he's not exactly unbiased because the job is almost all labor... but I do trust him... I guess I can replace the starter too out of excess of caution, but I hate to just throw $ away unless it's warranted. I can spend many thousands out of "excess of caution"!

 

There is a process to check the voltage drop from the battery to the starter terminal. Yes, its all in the labor ans its quite involved. Your symptoms are just like mine were. Cranks fine when cold, but run it a while and it gets hot, slow cranking. Even worse in the summer when its hot out.

 

I had had the exact symptom ever since I got the car 2 years ago. It didn't bother me at first, probably because I didn't know the car. But the more get to know the car the more it bothers me. After reading and filtering all info, I took the plunge and replaced the starter about a month ago. The problem has completely gone since.

Some were fixed by new cable, some by new starter, and in some cases requires both. Probably further testing for voltage drop per DC911S will help to pin point the exact cause of the problem.

(ps. oh since Pelican said "Starter motors fail over time" anyway, so I figured it was beneficial to replace the original 9-year-old starter anyway. And I probably would have replaced the cable as well for the peace of mind, if I had my own garage and a lift).

 

Thanks for good input. If cold starts are perfectly fine, I'm assuming that starter is in good shape and doesn't need to be replaced-- does that logic make sense? I'll discuss with Indy... Thanks

 

Not necessarily. Mine started fine when cold too. What I didn't know, not being familiar with 911s, was that my cold cranking was actually slow. I would have called it deliberate and fairly rapid but not slow. When hot it was really slow.

But now that I have a new starter that fixed my hot-start problem, the car cranks really fast hot or cold.