A mechanic admitted that he was quite puzzled by smoke coming from the starter motor of a 2016 Ford Fusion that was sitting in his workshop.
Dave Frisby, owner of Circle Auto Repair in Virginia, USA, explained that he had a 2016 Ford Fusion parked in his garage after the vehicle had been towed.
According to him, the car wouldn’t start, and despite having more than 320,000 kilometers on the odometer, he hadn’t noticed any signs of failure before this happened.
Dave then decided to take a look at the starter motor. That’s when he noticed strange smoke being emitted whenever the ignition was turned on.
“Look at the smoke coming from the starter motor. It’s not turning the engine,” he explained in the video. He then removed the unit and immediately noticed that something inside it was loose. “This is loose internally… this is bad.”
Dave then rotated the body and pointed to an unstable internal assembly, a clue that sparked a heated debate in the comments about what exactly was moving.
Many commenters quickly identified the issue as a faulty solenoid, the cylindrical component attached to the starter motor housing that uses a magnetic plunger to engage the gear.
If the plunger sticks or the internal contacts short-circuit, brief bursts of smoke and a burning smell can occur—symptoms identical to those captured in the video.
Meanwhile, some viewers noticed another clue: a layer of oil on the removed part. “This oil leaking everywhere likely contributed to the starter motor’s deterioration,” wrote a TikTok user.
Another commenter speculated that the faulty part could have been a low-cost remanufactured replacement. Many parts stores remanufacture starter motors but reuse the original housing and some internal components.
This theory aligns with the age and mileage of the car, as a daily-used vehicle with 320,000 km could easily be on its second or third starter motor.
Fortunately, replacing the part seems to have solved the problem. When Dave installed the new starter and turned the key, the Fusion started instantly with no sign of smoke. “It sounds great,” he said at the end of the video.
Photo and video: TikTok @circleautorepair. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
@circleautorepair Why was this ‘16 Ford Fusion smoking under the hood? #circleautorepair #diagnostic #fairfaxva #ford #localmechanic ♬ original sound – circleauto
