Hi all. This afternoon, I started the replacement of the starter in a 2000 Tundra Limited v8. All went well - I marked and documented all hoses and wires, removed the intakes, etc... until I went to remove the starter itself. There are two electrical connections - 1. the main wire that bolts on with a 12mm bolt (I'm guessing this is the main feed from the battery), and 2. a small wire that attaches via a plastic connector (from ignition?). When I remove the smaller wire the plastic connector broke, making it impossible to secure to the female portion of the connector mounted on the starter itself.

Is it possible to buy a new connector? Anyone have a similar issue? Looking at serveral Toyota parts sites, I can't even find a listing. Any suggestion on where to find a parts site with a searchable diagram / fiche?

Thanks!
Dave

 

You absolutely sure you have a FEMALE ON THE STARTER? Spade terminal? (a picture paints a thousand words). I would be surprised to see a female spade on the starter and a male on the harness, because the connector on the harness will carry 12V; the connector that carries power should be a female spade, while the recipient on the starter should be the male spade.
On our older trucks that is the case:

 

You are correct. I've seen this called the exciter cable. The part of the connector that attaches to the wiring harness broke. Just a small piece of plastic, but there is nothing left to 'click' the connector on. Given the location, having it back out wouldn't be good. I'll go to a dealer today and see if they can find a listing. I couldn't find anything online. I did find a wire harness repair pdf at this link https://www.toyota-tech.eu/wire_harness_rm/RM06H0E.pdf but since these are diagrams it's hard to gauge if I'm looking at the right thing. The truck has 225K and running strong so I'm going to everything I can to find something that will work. Funny how it can be taken down such a small part.