Volkswagen: flywheel damage, vw camper, starter motors

Question
We have a 95 VW camper, LWB, 6 months ago we had starting problems and the garage replaced 3 starter motors and finally the damaged flywheel, this seemed to sort it. The symptoms have returned, intermittent starting, usually rocking it in gear works to get it started. The garage have replaced the starter motor under warranty which didn't fix it and are about to repalce the flywheel again. Could there be some underlying problem that is causing damage? At the moment we can only bump start it. Thanks for any help with this problem.

Answer
Hi Mary,

It could very likely be the pinion hole that the starter motor gear is supposed to go into when it pops out to start the engine.

That hole must be completely clear and have what is called a pinion bushing (or pilot bushing) in place.

This could cause the starter to engage improperly.  The starter motor gear is a softer alloy metal than the flywheel, so it should technically get chewed up before damaging the flywheel itself.

Hope this helps.

Ron