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Subaru Forester (manual transmission). Stupidly restarted car after a stall but before engine stopped turning. Now there is a noise like a broken part inside the engine. Must be piece of starter pinion or ring gear tooth. Any idea which is more likely?
Secondary question: Is it tricky to replace starter?
The ring gear is more likely than the starter. Remove the starter, inspect its gear and then rotate the engine one full revolution while looking at the ring gear teeth. This is not a common problem.
The starter is an easy part to change as long as the battery is disconnected as the first step. Replacing the ring gear is much more work as the transmission must be removed.
