In short, a car could work with a bad flywheel (smaller/bigger) , but not with a broken flywheel. Also the starter engages teeth around the edge of flywheel and if teeth are damaged starter will grind and even not turn the engine over at all to start.
3 Signs of a Bad Car Flywheel
- Gear Slippage. Gear slippage is the inability of the car to move to the next gear.
- Burnt Smell. One of the major indicators of a bad car flywheel is a burning smell, like that of burnt toast.
- Clutch Vibrations. When you feel an intensified rumbling or vibration while you use the clutch, it can be a sign of a bad flywheel.
Learn which signs are indicators that you should be replacing your flywheel.
- A Burning Smell. If you're noticing a burning smell—similar to burnt toast—it's possible the flywheel has worn out.
- Clutch Vibrations.
- Gears Slipping.
- Clutch Replacement.
Engine flywheels are normally highly durable, but if the teeth of the flywheel become worn, which they will eventually, the flywheel will need replacing. The replacement process itself is not overly complicated. Accessing the flywheel is by far the hardest part.
When you notice clutch "slippage," it is usually because the clutch disc is worn. You will rarely need to replace the flywheel, but the flywheel should be resurfaced whenever the clutch disc is replaced in a high-mileage car, and that can be easily done when the clutch assembly has been removed.
Worn starter drive components, worn bushings in the starter, improper shimmed starters on vehicles that use shims, weak batteries and aged equipment cause flywheel problems. Most engines will stop in the same stop each time the engine is shutoff. That causes the same spot on the flywheel to be engaged each start.
Since the starter motor pinion material is softer than the flywheel, it is highly unlikely that the starter would ever damage the flywheel teeth.
The flywheel is held in place by retaining bolts, which you can find in its center. Remove these with a wrench, and then carefully remove the flywheel from the crankshaft by pulling it away. Put the replacement flywheel in its place and replace the retaining bolts, tightening them firmly.
Inspect the flywheel for wear, hot spots, bluing, and cracks. Use of a straightedge can give a preliminary check for flatness. Inspect the ring gear for wear, chipped teeth, and cracks. If teeth are worn in one area, it may also be necessary to replace the starter drive.
Not nescessarily. It is in fact possible to spin the flywheel (ie, crank the motor) by pushing the car down the road. If you want to crank the motor without the car moving then you have to either lift at least one of the drive wheels (so it can spin freely) or put the car in neutral.
The flywheel is bolted to the rear of the crankshaft. Unless you've removed the spark plugs from the engine (to eliminate compression) you'll almost certainly be unable to turn the flywheel over by hand. You'll have to use the starter to “jog” the motor.
Noise. The classic and most obvious symptom of a cracked flexplate involves the sound it makes while the engine is running. Descriptions of the sound include clanking, chirping and a light knocking. The reason for the sound involves the flexplate's location and its function.
1. Flywheels are typically found on vehicles equipped with manual transmissions, while flexplates are used in vehicles with automatic transmissions. A manual transmission has a flywheel that is attached to the crankshaft and has a clutch disk in between the pressure plate and flywheel.
A cracked flexplate is almost always a sign of other problems. If not properly diagnosed it will occur again and often damage to the transmission may follow. The flexplate takes the place of the flywheel on automatic transmission vehicles. It bolts to the end of the crankshaft and attaches to the torque converter.
A flywheel is essentially a mechanical battery consisting of a mass rotating around an axis. It stores energy in the form of kinetic energy and works by accelerating a rotor to very high speeds and maintaining the energy in the system as rotational energy.
Replacing the flexplate is easy. It's getting the transmission out and back in that's the hard part. Seriously though, first save yourself some possibly unnecessary work. Take off the bellhousing bottom cover and put a mark on the flexplate.
To replace the flex plate the transmission needs to be removed, its a 7 hour operation and the flex plate seals and oils would be another $185 to $195.
How to Remove a Flywheel From a Chevy 350
- Remove the negative and positive cables from the vehicle's battery with a wrench.
- Unfasten and remove the two mounting bolts which hold the starter motor to the passenger's side of the transmission's bell housing with a wrench, then pull the motor out of the transmission.
Loosen and remove all of the flywheel bolts. Pull the flywheel off the end of the crank shaft protruding out of the engine block. Center the new flywheel over the bolt opening and begin to insert and tighten the new flywheel in place.
