Community Forums

Kevin J · 10-15-2016, 10:49 AM

It appears that I need to replace the starter motor on my Generac generator. The starter contactor appears to be okay. The start button energizes the contactor and the lead going to the starter motor shows 12 volts, but the starter motor itself does not engage.
Having looked over the owner's manual, I believe I know where the starter motor is located, but I have no idea what I have to disassemble in order to get to it to remove/test it. It appears that it may be best to remove the whole generator from the motorhome to work on it.
I know different motorhomes have different installations, but I suspect most of them are squeezed in there pretty tight and disassembling them in place is difficult at best.
If anyone has had any experience with this, I would appreciate your feedback.

JRMEDPHYS · 10-17-2016, 11:38 AM

Just did mine this past spring. Had to take the generator completely out to get to it. Only way I could do it. Not a huge deal though...

This is what I did:

Switch off your salesman (so no volts at battery lead)
Disconnect +ve battery lead, ground wire (if necessary), fuel line, wire harness for remote starter, your AC wiring and muffler (this was the hardest part for mine). It helps to tag each wire with a little piece of tape so you know how to put it all back together or take some pics along the way for reference.

Then you can unbolt the whole tray from the underside so that it slides out as a whole unit. You are going to need a hand getting it onto a cart/table so you can work on it.

After that it is just a matter of removing the right parts to get to the starter motor bolts. I removed it, brought it to a starter shop and had it rebuilt. Cheap. Put it back in and reversed the process. No issues.

Hope this helps.

Kevin J · 10-21-2016, 07:34 PM

Thanks for the advice, Jeff.
I had already ordered a replacement starter online before I got your advice. I didn't even think about getting my own starter rebuilt. Oh well.
I followed your instructions and got the job done. Not as difficult as I thought it would be.
Thanks much!

yn1bennett · 10-25-2016, 01:38 PM

How did you remove the generator? Did it slide out of the cubby hole or did it go down to remove it?

I have a leak on the back side of the generator and can't seem to see or get to the leak and repair it.

Thanks.

Kevin J · 10-26-2016, 06:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by yn1bennett

How did you remove the generator? Did it slide out of the cubby hole or did it go down to remove it?

I have a leak on the back side of the generator and can't seem to see or get to the leak and repair it.

Thanks.

Mine has four bolts that I had to remove from underneath the generator and then it slid out. I was surprised that the framework that it set in wasn't a complete "box". It was just a rail on each side, so when it was unbolted, the rails moved around a bit and I was concerned that they might spread far enough apart that the generator would fall out the bottom.
It is somewhat heavy, but it wasn't quite as heavy as I thought it would be. For what I did, I didn't have to take it all the way out. In your case, you probably will remove it completely, so I would suggest having a helper.
Good Luck.