Every once in a while the engine in my 05 ZR2 would not turn over. It was very random and had been doing this for a few years, although a lot more lately. When I put the key in and turn it to start, nothing would happen. All of the dash lights would come on like normal, but that's it. I checked the starter wires and everything was good. I then disconnected the wires, cleaned up the terminals, and reinstalled them just to be sure there were no bad connections, however the problem still showed up every couple of starts.
The problem turned out to be the starter solenoid. Sometimes it would work and other times it didn't even though it was always getting power from the ignition switch. I could have just replaced the solenoid, but with 140k miles I decided to just get a new one.
If you guys want a good starter try the Powermaster 9200 Ultra Torque. It's a bolt in gear reduction mini starter with a larger 11 tooth pinion which is easier on the flexplate than the 9 tooth factory pinion. Even though its a mini starter, the main body is a little bit bigger than the factory starter, but it still fits just fine. I paid about $180 for mine through a local price match at O'Riellys.
The first time I fired up the engine I knew I made a good choice! This starter rocks!
![Rock on! :rock:](./images/smilies/icon_rock.gif)
One quick blip of the ignition switch and she starts right up. The engine starts much quicker now than it did with the factory starter. To be honest I wasn't all that surprised since I have Powermaster starters on all 3 of my Chevys. They all fire up like this and I've never had to replace one. This is a very good upgrade that is not much more expensive than a new factory starter!
Steve