"starter sounds like its grinding a sardine can !!! 850 1996
OK I solved it. After researching the cost of replacement(Bosch rebuilt - $285 +tax+shipping), I headed my knowledgable mechanic for a listen. He suggested removing the starter assembly and cleaning/lubricating first. It worked!
I did the job last night. Had to remove all the air intake/idle air pump/battery and other obstructions first ~ 1 hour. Removeed the starter, a real pain to get the rear mounitng bolt out. After the two front bolts are out, the unit comes out really easy. these bolts have very little clearance adn are hard to get a ratchet on. I Inspected the gear area for abnormal wear, and found a little beating of the teeth going on, but not much. Dirt and grit mostly in the gear area. I used electric motor cleaner to flush all the dirt out. Then I opened up the solenoid for a look. Hard to get the three screws out. I had to us my Makita 18V power drill to get enough torgue on the phillips screws. Inside the solenoid piston-more grit and dirt. I investigated how this thing works before cleaning and saw that the dirt and grit were impeding the return of the solenoid and thus the starter gear to the normal rest position. Pulled the solenoid apart, down to the rubber plug on the rear below the solenoid arm. I cleaned the whole mess of dirt out with the spray cleaner. I then used Permatex dielectric grease to lubricate all gears, starter shaft, and the piston.
Be sure to run the starter gear back and forth by moving the solenoid piston to spread the grease to the vital areas. Reassembled starter and re-installed. This is a good time to clean the trottle body and the flame trap (old 240 nomenclature), battery area, degrease hard to get to stuff, and check/clean electrical connectors. Startup cold this morning - no evil sounds. Car starts great. Took about 4.5 hours, $7.00 worth of cleaner and lubricant, and two beers to do this job. Really cheap compared to $285 +++."