[EFI83]

Help! My 1983 Mustang has a fuel injected 5.0 from a 1990 GT. Everything runs pretty good, and the car is a breeze to start when it's cold. However, if you park it at the store and come back in 15 minutes to crank it over and be on your way, the starter motor will usually make a lurching sound, very similar to the sound you would hear if your battery was on its dying day... But I know the battery is not the problem. It's brand new, it puts out 12V when the car is off, and when it's on, my meter reads about 14.5V. So, it's not the battery, and it's not the alternator. as it seems to be charging the battery just fine. Right after I turn the car off, again, the battery reads slightly over 12V. If it were a bad connection, it would be hard to crank whether it was hot or cold... This leads me to believe that it's the starter. I think it's the original from 1990. What do you guys think? Thoughts? Opinions? Thank you.
-EFI83

 

[DC 89 stang]

alot of times the starter can get heat soaked from the headers and it causes this problem. Mine is the same way. If you get a starter from a 94 or 95 mustang it comes with a heat shield and its got more torque. Thats all it is

 

[jcardoso91LX]

i just had to swap mine out because it was having the same problem. plus mine looked like it was really old. +1 on the heat soak

 

[Smurf stang]

It can be the started being heat soaked but it can also be a bad ground.

Check your ground straps and make sure there is no corrosion and they are making good contact. Also I would add another ground strap as you can never have enough grounds.