Ep43 - New starters cost $1600. Necessary expense? Yanmar engine maintenance Part 3.
New Yanmar starters can run $800 each. Before spending that, we tore ours down to find out what we actually had. Here's what we found.
The entire purpose behind doing our own major engine maintenance is to save money and give old parts new life where possible. Replacing both Yanmar starters at retail could run anywhere from $800 to $1600 depending on the source. Before spending that, it's worth finding out what you actually have.
Both starters were functional — no issues on the water — but with everything pulled out of the boat, this was the right moment to get into them, assess the condition, and make an informed decision. Clean, inspect, rebuild if needed, or replace if not. That's the call this episode is about.
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Shawn walks through a full Yanmar starter teardown, inspection, and rebuild — and makes the case for why a $50 rebuild beats a $1600 replacement.
What Happened
Both starters came apart completely — solenoid, gear reduction assembly, brush plate, rotor, and housing. Every component was cleaned, inspected, and regreased before going back together.
The gear assemblies got a kerosene bath in the parts washer followed by brake cleaner to pull any remaining oil residue. The housings and brush plates went through a wire wheel to clear carbon buildup and surface corrosion. Every piece got a proper inspection before reassembly.
The verdict: both starters are in good shape. The gear teeth show minimal wear, consistent with starters that were likely replaced at some point before Roam came to us. The brush assemblies have plenty of life left. There was some corrosion on one brush wire connection — a known failure point — but nothing requiring immediate replacement.
Both went back together with fresh grease throughout. No extra parts. That counts as a win.
Why It Matters
A new OEM Yanmar starter runs $400–800. Aftermarket Yanmar-sold replacements can be found for around $280. Rebuilt units or used spares can go for $100–150. The parts to rebuild one yourself run roughly $50. The math is straightforward if you're willing to get into it.
The more important takeaway is the spares strategy. Rather than simply reinstalling what was there, the plan coming out of this episode is to carry a complete cold spare starter plus a rebuild kit — solenoid, brush head, and housing with magnets. That covers essentially every failure mode and means a starter problem offshore doesn't become a larger situation.
Salt air in a marine engine compartment shortens the life of electrical components in ways that hours alone don't reflect. These engines have nearly 4,700 hours on them. How many starts that represents is anyone's guess, but the marine environment is a bigger factor than the number.
Related Episodes
This is part of the ongoing engine major maintenance series. EP40 and EP41 cover the earlier stages of the teardown and assessment. The series continues through full reassembly and reinstallation in upcoming episodes.
What Comes Next
With the starters cleaned, inspected, and back together, the engine reassembly phase is getting closer. Parts are inbound from the Netherlands and Louisiana, and the saildrive units are nearly ready to go back in. The full picture of how these engines come back together is coming in the next episodes in the series.
