HOW DO I CHANGE A STARTER ON A 1978 CAPRICE CLASSIC

look for ground cable if tight, did you plug wire at the starter the right way

Check the wires on the alternator- some were routed in a way that they could wear through from mislocation of the harness so the wire would be cut through by a pulley.

If can also be a loose connection down at the starter, or at the block depending which battery cable you follow. It can also be a faulty or failed starter solenoid too..

corroded battery cables and also a loose starter nut at the cable

sounds like you may have a leaking rear wheel cylinder. Once you remove the drum you should be able to see if it is leaking.

If its leaking enough for you to see it on the back of the tire than the brake shoes are probably soaked as well and will need to be replaced.

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what would cause 95 chevy caprice to not reverse, but change out in all other gears perfectly. how much will it cost to put transmition in 95 chevy caprice?

OK,here we go. Remove starter, exhaust pipes if in way, flywheel pan. Your have raise engine 3 in. Unbolt pan.

I would, first, check the battery connections to make sure they are shiny and clean and tight on the battery.

Then, I would check the amperage draw of the starter in the car.
If it's like 75 to 100 while turning rapidly, that's ok. If it doesn't turnover rapidly with that amperage draw, then the starter is probably going bad.

When the car is jumped, it bypasses the battery connections a little bit, assuming the connections are not allowing full cranking amps of the battery to reach the starter.

You need to check the Inst. Pannel fuse and make sure the dash is grounded.

The timing marks are located on the crank and cams,to get to them the fan,water pump,timing cover,and a few other things must be removed.

If you are just wanting to adjust the timing,(And the timing chains are not broken or jumped)You will do this at the distributor and you will need a timing light to do it correctly.