RockAuto is your source for everyday low prices, and now on select parts we have even lower prices! RockAuto is now offering Wholesaler Closeout pricing on certain parts. In some cases we may even have parts that were discontinued by the original manufacturer. We are passing on these GREAT savings to you.

These parts are new (or remanufactured), name-brand items, just like all other parts in our regular inventory. Remember to check our catalog frequently… We are constantly updating the availability of these parts.

Monroe "Safe Summer Road Trip" Promotion

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You've Been Asking For Them...Now We Have Them

There's nothing uglier than chipped paint from rocks and road debris. A LeBra Custom Front-End Cover is the easiest way to protect your vehicle from unexpected road damage.

You invest a lot of time, money, and effort into your car to have it just the way you want it. Wolf Car Covers are the best protection against the damaging effects of sun, dirt, pollution, and even the occasional misguided bird.

The sun’s damaging rays can crack your dashboard. With the simple protection of a DashMat you can keep your interior looking better longer.

Designed with thick, durable, automotive grade nylon pile, Premier Custom Cut Floor Mats are available for most foreign and domestic cars, trucks, sport/utilities, and vans.

Tech Tip - Starter Solenoid

About a week later my wife said turning the ignition key would occasionally only result in a click. I mumbled that it must be the new starter breaking itself in. A couple of weeks later five turns of the key would not start the car. Soon it was ten turns of the key. My wife started driving a different car.

The click was the starter solenoid mounted on the side of the starter motor. I removed the starter from the car, wired it up, and still only got the solenoid click. I could not call RockAuto and give them an earful about selling me a bum starter because it might be me answering the phone! I decided to get out the repair literature and find out what was going on.

The service manual said check the battery voltage and then check the voltage on the wire coming from the ignition key to the starter solenoid. That voltage was supposed to be more than 8 volts. I had heard the solenoid clicking so I figured it must have been getting 12 volts, but I decided to do what the manual said anyway. Surprise! The voltage on the ignition key wire never got above 3 volts!

The ignition key energizes a coil in the starter solenoid that pulls a small metal drum down a tube. One end of the drum slams into a button that connects the big battery wire to the wire going to the starter motor. The other end of the drum pulls on a mechanical arm that shoves out the starter motor gear so it engages the flywheel. A spring pushes the drum back up the tube once power is turned off.

Three volts was enough to make the solenoid click, but the drum did not hit the button at the end of the tube with enough force to get a solid connection between the battery and starter motor wire contacts. The weak connection had caused arcing which gradually ate away the contacts inside the new solenoid and caused intermittent connections.

Starter solenoids damaged by low voltage might be a common problem. I searched the Internet for something like my “starter just clicks” and found repair forums where people with many different cars said things like “I am on my third new starter”, “the solenoid clicks so it is ok”, etc.

My wife’s car has been fine since I put a new solenoid on the starter motor and hot wired it to a momentary-on switch below the dash. Hopefully, sometime this year I will take apart the steering column and track down where the voltage is getting cut down to 3 volts. I will probably end up replacing the ignition switch. For now my wife is happy pretending she is in a racecar with a big start switch on the dash!

Tom Taylor,
RockAuto.com Auto Parts

This is a regular driver in very original and excellent condition. You'll see it at all kinds of cruise nights in the Chicago area. I bought it 22 years ago with 54,000 miles on it, it now has about 71,000 miles. Been on Route 66 a couple of times...great highway cruiser. Just finished the Hot Rod Power Tour a few of weeks ago...had a great time.

Lots of tune up, fix up, and upgrade parts from RockAuto on this car.

Rick in Illinois

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