Starter motor spinning but not cranking engine

Hi everyone,

I'm pulling my hair out with this one, I've changed the clutch in my 2005 3.0TDI B7, had the flywheel off to inspect and put it back, as far as i can tell in the correct position.

Anyway i go to start the car for the first time and the starter motor just spins and appears not to engage. Fine strip out, bench test and the drive cog moves in and out as it should and runs up... Take to a auto electrician and he checks it and replaces the drive clutch as says it could be the prob.

Back in the car and guess what, still just spins at what appears to be full speed. I've checked the earth connection to the engine and from the starter housing to the coil just to make sure, all seems fine and resistance is good too.

Has anyone got anything to suggest as to where i go next with this, as i'm really not looking forward to having to drop the gearbox back out to check the flywheel is all ok? I should add that i can get the teeth on the flywheel to turn and aren't sheared off etc.

Thanks

Just to continue this one on as i'm still struggleing with it. I found that the starter drive cog won't engage into the fly wheel, i've removed the solenoid from the starter and now trying to engage it in and out by hand. It doesn't, just pushes up against the side of the flywheel and the teeth won't mesh in. If i withdraw the starter and engage the cog first and then push the starter in fully, it looks up and won't move in or out.

I wonderd if there was something wrong with the locating of the flywheel, so i tow started the car. The flywheel, new clutch and gearbox all are working perfectly, no odd vibrations etc when driving. And looking at the flywheel going around whilst running it's not moving in a elipse or wobbling etc etc.

If anyone has any thoughts or suggestions, i'd be very grateful.

I'd agree with you, i just can't understand how it can be. It's a fair few mm out and if the flywheel was out by that much surely it would show up when running. There's hardly much room for it to be in the wrong place within the casing of the bell housing.

I've considered whether i've tighten the flywheel that it could have warped equally all around so the teeth weren't square and pointing outwards slightly, but is this even feasible the amount i'm looking for.
Could the bell housing some how be in the wrong place, but there are locating dowls (collars) positioning it, one of which is just above the starter mounting point.

I'm running out of ideas, so thinking of undoing all the bolts again on the bell housing just to see if i can find some play.. somewhere