Torque converter ring gear and teeth on starter breaking....why?

[ABC]

Hello all!
I have a 1986 Honda Accord LX with an auto tranny. I'm having a little problem with the teeth on the torque converter breaking as well as the teeth on the starter. Both the T/C and the starter have been replaced twice and this is the third time it has happened. The two times this happened, the car wasn't in my possession. I gave the car to a relative to use for work and it broke both times in his ownership. He had a mechanic replace the parts twice and it broke again so he decided to give up and returned the car to me.
Now, I'm trying to fix the problem myself and was just wondering what could possibly be causing this. I spoke to the mechanic and he wasn't sure why it happened but believes it might be because my relative kept the key in the cranking position even after the car fired up, which kept the starter engaged. Other than this possibility, the mechanic has no clue why this happened twice.

So does anyone have any ideas?? I'm hoping to get this problem fixed once and for all.

Also, where would I be able to find another torque converter for my 1986 accord??
Is it possible to only replace the ring gear on my current torque converter?? The T/C is working fine...it's just the teeth are broken off. I did a search on this and someone asked this same question but someone said it was possible and then another person said it wasn't possible for an AT. So is it possible?

Thanks for your time!

[Strugglebucket]

could be that they messed up and put a 5-speed starter on your car.

[joker2]

Wrong starter could be it but as far as just replacing the teeth, that can't be done, you have to buy a whole new T/C.... Shouldn't cost you that much but I'm pretty sure you know that seeing that you have already went through two of them..... I remember getting one for like $100, when I had an auto but I have since converted to manual.... :rockon:

[POS carb]

the starter is the same on 5-speed and auto, it's the mounting bracket that's different.
Your car may have a problem where the ignition switch doesn't remove power from the starter but I'm pretty sure you'd notice all the racket that makes.
if there are no obvious noises you have a serious misalignment of your torque converter and starter. If the torque converter teeth were hitting anything they'd make a rythmic cracking sound

[joker2]

Actually, the starters between the autos and the manuals are a little different....

[ABC]

Thanks for your input guys!

joker2
Where did you get your T/c from?? Was it new, from a junkyard, some rebuild from a transmission shop?? When the torque converter and starter teeth broke, the car was in my uncle's ownership so he brought it to a mechanic and paid them to replace it. I'm not sure how much everything was. This has never happened previously when it was in my ownership. I wish I could do the auto to manual swap but my mechanical skills aren't that advanced. :)

POS carb
What mounting bracket are you talking about?? When I removed the starter, there was no mounting bracket. The starter just unbolted and came off as one piece. I skimmed through the starter section of the service manual and saw no mounting bracket either. Do you have a picture of the piece?

Can you also please elaborate on the misalignment of the T/C and starter (like possible causes). I figure that as long as the bolts that connect the T/C and the drive plate are torqued down correctly, along with the starter, there should be no reason for misalignment unless there is some sort of warping going on with the parts (not sure if this even happens).
I just want to get some ideas so I know what to look out for so it's possible to prevent this from happening again. Are there any special procedures to ensure that the T/C and starter are aligned during installation?


Thanks again!

[Strugglebucket]

the bracket is the piece that bolts to the tranny and the starter motor and solenoid are attached to. when you buy a starter it comes assembled with the bracket already. so, if someone installed the wrong starter then the holes in the bracket won't line up right and although it is possible to thread the bolts with the wrong bracket, it will never sit all the way flush.

it's easy to tell the difference between the two. the auto bracket has a hole on the left and a hole on the right. the manual bracket has a hole on the left, a hole on the right, and an elongated (oval) hole below that.

as far as starter installation procedures, it's really simple; there's only two bolts. just make sure it's flush and make sure you don't get the ground wire caught under it.

[ABC]

the bracket is the piece that bolts to the tranny and the starter motor and solenoid are attached to. when you buy a starter it comes assembled with the bracket already. so, if someone installed the wrong starter then the holes in the bracket won't line up right and although it is possible to thread the bolts with the wrong bracket, it will never sit all the way flush.

it's easy to tell the difference between the two. the auto bracket has a hole on the left and a hole on the right. the manual bracket has a hole on the left, a hole on the right, and an elongated (oval) hole below that.

as far as starter installation procedures, it's really simple; there's only two bolts. just make sure it's flush and make sure you don't get the ground wire caught under it.

Ohhh...thanks for clearing up what the starter mounting bracket is. I thought there was some other bracket that went somewhere around the assembly that was missing. From your description of the brackets, it looks like the correct one was used and the assembly was mounted flush.
For the installation, I figured it was simple but when POS Carb said there could be misalignment issues, I thought maybe there were some special procedures to align them that I never heard about before.

[joker2]

I got the T/C from a shop that specializes in all kinds of transmissions and it was new, not rebuilt.... Actually, I still have that T/C because I bought it like 8 months before I did my conversion....

[carlos51]

I Have 1989 Honda Accord Lxi Auto Transmission W/ The Same Problem Ring Gear. Some One Has A Picture Of The Ring Gear W/ Out Torque Converter.

Thanx To All

[Dr_Snooz]

as far as just replacing the teeth, that can't be done, you have to buy a whole new T/C

Any torque converter shop should be able to weld a new tooth ring on.