[excelguru]

When you say "hard to crank", do you mean...

(a) the the starter is turning the engine over but it's just not firing-up?
(b) or the starter isn't turning the engine over to begin with?

I have had (b) before. I found that the cable had come loose at the starter. Just tightened the bolt and all was fine.

Could (b) also be caused by the starter getting too hot due to lack of a heat shield?