Battery/alternator/starting issue. I don't know.

[1badgmc]

My Suburban is giving me some issues, but I'm not exactly sure what the source is.

When you start it up, it drags a little, like the battery isn't giving enough juice. On a cold start, it's not bad, but you can hear it a bit. If I drive it somewhere, turn it off, and have a short stop somewhere like a gas station, whenever I go to start it up, it cranks reaaaal slow. It's almost to the point that I'm waiting for that *click-click* of a dead battery, but it never does it. If I stop and stay for an hour or so, it'll start easier. It's just odd that it seems backwards of normal with it starting more-or-less fine after sitting for a while, but is hard to start shortly after being driven and having the alternator charging it.

I haven't had an actual test on the battery, but according to my charger, it charges up fine.

Any ideas here?

 

[94blu1500]

the heat from the exhaust manifold could cause your starter to get weak when it gets hot

 

[1badgmc]

So you think the starter could be the culprit? That does make some sense since it does start slower even when cold.

 

[DRAGGIN95]

It almost sounds like the starter is getting weak and that heat is starting to affect it, especially since it's worse after it has run, I would either put a known good battery on it, or put a charger on it for a while and then try to start it and see if it still drag's, and if you end up having to buy a starter don't let them sell you one without a solonoid, anymore alot of the starter's that the parts stores sell, don't include a solonoid, and that is what is bad a lot of the time. I have seen numerous times, a person in the store swapping their solonoid from their core starter on to their new starter and thinking to myself they will be lucky if their problem is not the same.

 

[94blu1500]

i would definitely have the battery tested first, but yeah it could be the starter.

 

[94blu1500]

.... and if you end up having to buy a starter don't let them sell you one without a solonoid, anymore alot of the starter's that the parts stores sell, don't include a solonoid, and that is what is bad a lot of the time. I have seen numerous times, a person in the store swapping their solonoid from their core starter on to their new starter and thinking to myself they will be lucky if their problem is not the same.

anybody tries to sell me a 350 starter without a solenoid and they wont be getting my business

 

[DRAGGIN95]

That's what I think too, it's crap, just another gimmick to make money, we'll sell you a starter now for the same price as a couple of years ago, but it won't include the solenoid, you have to pay extra for that.

 

[Greg]

I've had so many problems with my starter, I've replaced it twice already in the almost 4 years I've had it, both in the last two years. I would check to make sure your starter has that heat shield, someone unexperienced may have replaced the starter before you got it and didn't put the heat shield on the new starter.

 

[BHBurban]

Assuming the starter is original, how old is the battery?