The car's being a bit of a bastard right now, firstly the gearbox hasn't been right since changing the clutch, I've pulled the engine out again and swapped back to the old pressure plate but it didn't help much. I've now put racing oil in it which has improved it slightly, but it's still a bitch to get into 1st or 2nd.

The second issue is that the starter motor has always struggled to turn it over, and in august I had to strip and clean it to get it to work at all. Now it's started sticking again, and often needs a tap with the wheel brace to get it going.

Last week while playing with BMW engines on 2cv 'boxes I saw what a massive difference in power there is between a standard 25-30 year old starter motor, and a new 'modern technology' Valeo starter. Thing is my starter and ring gear are from a 652 Visa, so I need to try and find a new type Visa starter, otherwise I may have to swap the ringgear and starter back to 602, if measurements prove they're compatible with the Visa bellhousing.

But where do I go for new Visa parts? I'll try the local factors later incase they can help.

Joolz There seems to be a few on fleabay.....

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/STARTER-MOTOR ... 3377bae848


And links to certain motor factor places that still look like they stock them...GSF certainly look like they have one or two!! Might be easier than u think!!

Joolz,

With regards the starter motor, it might be worth getting in touch with Malcolm Lockwood - He has a large range of new & used parts - he's been in the game since 1976.

http://mlockwood.org.uk/

Vantage tend to have a lot of old stock too - no website unfortunatley>

http://www.yell.com/b/Vantage+Citroen+a ... L-6016819/

Failing that drop Mike Barker the CCC Visa section rep an email:

visa@citroencarclub.org.uk

Hi Joolz.
Try these

http://www.leboncoin.fr/equipement_auto ... htm?ca=4_s


http://www.leboncoin.fr/equipement_auto ... htm?ca=4_s[quote][/quote]

Thanks for the suggestions, although unfortunately all the specific item links are for the much commoner 1100 engine, which isn't interchangeable.

The starter for the 652cc engine is externally the same as the one for a 602, the only difference being that it has 10 teeth on the pinion, as opposed to 9. I originally went with the 652 starter on the assumption that it would have more torque, but while assembling BMW engined cars with Pete we tried a variety of second hand 2cv starters from various manufacturers, Bosch, Ducellier, Iskra, etc, all of which turned the 1100 BMW lump at a speed that suggested the battery was flat.

We then tried a modern Valeo unit This one and it spun the engine over much faster than the visa starter in my car ever has. So I'm really hoping that Valeo do a 'new technology' version for the 652, other wise I may have to use the 602 one and that would mean swapping the ring gear, which is of course an engine out job again.

I called in at the local factors this afternoon, and while the lad behind the counter was quite surprised that his computer listed a Visa 652 starter motor, they don't stock Valeo stuff, and after last week's experience I don't want to shell out for a 'brand X' and discover it's no great improvement.

Perhaps I should try contacting Valeo directly and see if they actually produce one.

It's amazing what you can find on the internet, I found and dowloaded the complete Valeo starters and alternators catalogue in PDF. Turns out they do make a new starter for the Visa, and armed with the part number, rang my nearest dealers who gave me prices of £137 and £152, Ouch! Meanwhile the similarly powered 602 version is £117 from ECAS, so pulling the engine out to swap the ring gear would save me £20... old habits die hard!

Speaking of power, the Valeo PDF lists both the 602 and 652 versions as 0.75kw, whereas a lot of the 2cv starters I can find listed specify 0.65kw, there are a load on ebay claiming 1.4kw but I'm assuming that's mis-information or typos. Also came across this Russian page(in english) listing all the starters available for the 652.

Hi Joolz

This site says for Visa club 0.7l

http://www.oscaro.com/demarreur-citroen ... 33-1061-gt

Chris

Thanks Chris,

although I can't tell what price they're actually selling it for. Also according to the Valeo PDF part no. 433206 is a standard exchange rather than new, although all the other spec is the same.

It is strange - they say 111 euros but when I click add to basket it jumps to 176 euros. The Bosch one is 136 euros. Is it cheaper than Uk supplied?

In my experience car parts are always considerably cheaper in the UK, and conveniently that's where I am at the moment. I didn't get a price for the standard exchange unit, I'm assuming that it's original spec, maybe reconditioned so would be somewhat cheaper than the £137 'new' unit, which in turn is still cheaper than the one listed on the french site.

At the moment I don't mind spending a little more to get the most powerful version I can, as interestingly the Valeo site also lists a starter for the BMW bike, and it is 1.1kw.