So I've been planning on replacing the start before our big move this year...but it looks like the current one is starting to go (no pun intended). Drove over to drop some food off for the family and when I fired her back up there was this horrible shrieking. I thought it was water on a belt at first as I hit a splash on the way up the driveway. Anyway, I turned her off, waited...turned her back on...still made the noise... But finally one more cut and turn over and the gear disengaged.

So, I wanted to go ahead and get a replacement while also keeping the old one to rebuild later and to then keep as a spare. I presume you cannot get a new one from Toyota anymore... just the remans? Are the Toyota remans any good?

(2000, v6, SR5, 4WD)

I pull mine off rock auto as denso remains. They are the same as oem Toyota and cheaper..

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I used DB Electrical, not a single complaint

Hm, interesting. It is the same one toyota sells? I'll check that out.

Denso is the oem mfg of alts and starters for Toyota. Maybe different part number and no Toyota stickers....

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Rockauto.com sells loads of OEM parts at very cheap prices. They are a forum sponsor and regularly run 5-10% off codes on their company thread on here.

Yeah I've used it before but did not know Denso parts were on there. I do wish they still sold a brand new one... one can dream

I have had zero issues with denso remfg. They work just as long as new ones. So it's not a big deal. Plus they are cheaper. It's not uncommon for Toyota to discontinue starters and alts. After so many years.

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I concur what others have advised. If you're going to replace it rather than try to fix it, I'd get a remanufactured Denso.

This video will help you with the swap. You can obviously skip the part of me rebuilding the solenoid.






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Hey thanks Tim! I actually will be using the rebuilding part later when I rebuild my old one so that will really help.

By chance do you suggest sticking with the 1.4kw if that is what my truck came with? According to McGeorge Toyota, based on the VIN, mine came with the 1.4kw starter. Not sure if I should get the 1.8kw if it wasn't intended for her, or does it matter?

Is the denso 1.4 or 1.8?

I could be wrong on some of this but from what I remember when looking when I needed one a few years ago
denso makes both the 1.4 and the 1.8
the 1.4 came on the manual trans, the 1.8 on automatics
the 1.8 was also considered a cold weather starter for either the manual or auto
the 1.4 is slightly smaller and maybe easier to install

being that your in georgia you might not need the "cold weather " starter

I personally would only use a denso reman, not autozone etc
you can keep you old one around to rebuild as a spare as you said....but it may be many years till you need it. I had a denso reman that had at least 60k on it ( totaled car)


I know ....that was not much help

The non-return of the plunger is may be due to OEM grease solidifying with dirt/dust etc., If you are capable of cleaning the gear mechanism (cleaning/lbing the gear mechanism is not difficult at all), You can reuse your starter. Install new contacts and plunger.

Oh yeah I'm definitely not getting anything from AutoZone... haha!
As for the wattage, that's what I thought as well, but Toyota insists that my rig came with the 1.4kw. at the end of the day all I care about is not over stressing the flexplate. If that isn't even a concern then I'll just get the 1.8kw because later this year we are moving to Wyoming and so I imagine we might need the cold weather spec then. As long as it's not going to crack the flex plate I don't see anything wrong with her starting faster.

Well I thought about that, but with the upcoming move across the country and everything going on with my new job I figure it might not be a bad idea to go ahead and get a rebuilt one popped in there and then I'll keep the other one as a spare.

Hello, once we get moved I might even put the rebuilt old one back in just for fun. :P

You'll be fine getting the 1.8kw starter. When you pull your old one out compare the overall length of them. If it's the same length then you already had a 1.8kw starter.
Denso 280-0166 is 1.8kw starter
Denso 280-0167 is 1.4kw starter
I was going to buy a 1.8kw starter to replace my 1.4kw starter as preventative maintenance/upgrade. Amazon has the lowest price I've found Amazon.com: Denso- 2800166 REMAN STARTER : Automotive

For what it's worth, when I was getting ready to tackle my starter my local dealer told me that VIN lookup couldn't tell which starter was originally installed in a vehicle, and the only way to know was to check. The info 3bears gave on the different starters and when they were used lines up with what little info I could find. You should be fine to use the 1.8kw version even if you originally had the 1.4kw. The only time it should actually matter is if you are rebuilding as the internals are different.