Fiat Bravo Quiz
Electrical system

The starter

In this manual: Electrical system
Dear Reader — 1Engine — 35Engine lubrication — 3Engine cooling — 10Ignition/spark plugs — 14Fuel system — 10Petrol fuel injection — 13Diesel injection system — 13Exhaust system — 7Clutch — 7Transmission / Gearshift / Automatic Transmission — 5Front Axle — 11Rear axle — 4Steering — 9Wheel alignment — 1Brake system — 22Wheels and tyres — 10Body — 34Heating — 6Electrical system — 39Lighting system — 14Instruments — 7Windscreen wiper system — 8Vehicle care / tools — 6Jump Starting / Towing the Vehicle — 3Jacking up the vehicle — 1Fiat Bravo / Brava Maintenance Schedule — 1Maintenance — 38Wiring diagrams — 5
9steps
~54min
2/5difficulty
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A small electric motor, the starter, is required to start the combustion engine. For the engine to start at all, the starter must accelerate the combustion engine to a speed of at least 300 rpm. This only works if the starter operates properly and the battery is sufficiently charged.

The starter consists of a drive housing, a pole housing and a commutator housing.

The armature and commutator are supported in the pole and commutator housing, as is the brush holder. The brush holder contains carbon brushes, which wear down slowly but steadily. If the carbon brushes are heavily worn, the starter can no longer operate properly.

The pinion drive is housed in the front drive housing.

When the starter receives voltage via the ignition starter switch, the solenoid switch mounted on the starter housing pushes the pinion along a helical thread into engagement with the flywheel ring gear (see Check/Remove and Install Solenoid Switch). If the solenoid switch is defective, the pinion is not pulled into engagement with the flywheel ring gear in the starter.

As a result, the starter cannot crank the engine.

This fault occurs more often than the starter motor itself being defective.

Test with the starter installed: remove the gear, shift lever in neutral position.

Test requirement: battery fully charged.

Pushed onto the ring gear of the engine flywheel.

As soon as the pinion has advanced to the stop on the spindle, it is in positive engagement with the flywheel.

The starter can now bring the engine up to the required cranking speed. When the combustion engine starts, the pinion is accelerated by the engine, so it briefly runs faster than the starter motor and overruns, which disengages the connection to the combustion engine.

Since a high current draw is required for starting, make sure during maintenance that the cable connections are in perfect condition. Clean corroded connections and coat them with terminal protection grease.

Note: depending on the type, the starter is also available as an exchange part.

This means that a defective starter may be accepted as a trade-in when buying a remanufactured or new starter from the manufacturer. Therefore, take the old part to the dealer.
Der anlasser

  1. Drive housing

  2. Armature (rotor and pinion with freewheel)

  3. Field housing

  4. Brush holder

  5. Commutator housing

  6. Pinion engagement lever

  7. Shock absorber buffer

  8. Spring guide bushing

  9. Solenoid switch

Test yourself

A quick Fiat Bravo quiz: every answer comes with an explanation and a link to the manual page.