I'm not sure where to start on this one. When we first got the motor running the initial starter was super loud but seemed connected right; however it eventually broke (literally, the gear snapped off several teeth) and we replaced it with a refurbished unit. The second one has only been slightly quieter and actually needs to be replaced for a totally different reason now (the little plate in the front has come loose of its tack welds and is creating intermittant arcs). I don't know if the flexplate is from a different year (it's a 302 and C4) but the starters were all set for a 73 Maverick V8 engine. I honestly don't remember my previous Comet being this loud; it's obnoxious really, but only when the starter is engaged. We're going to check the teeth on both the flexplate and the starter when we go to replace it (may take longer than either of us would like, for now it's the only commute car we both have besides my motorcycle) to see if there's any wear, but what could be the problem? Could my flexplate be off a few teeth or maybe I need a different year starter? The block came off a 68 Mustang 289 but that shouldn't make a difference would it?
There were a couple of flexplates with different teeth counts used during the time frame of your motors (same balance factor,though): 1964-68, 289 & 302: 157 teeth 1968-73, 302 & 351W: 164 teeth I suspect the gears are not meshing properly. Hope this helps. Eric
You just want to make sure your flexplate is the right one for the bellhousing, I don't think there is a differance between starter vs. toothcount. starters should be pretty much universal... 289-351w/c with automatic or 5-speed is one starter and 289-351w/c with a 3 or 4 speed is another.
David is right and said what I meant. The 164 tooth flexplate bellhousing mounts the starter further out (different offset front to rear). The starter noses are what are different. A 157 tooth bellhousing will require a starter with a shorter nose. Eric
silver70; the noses has more to do with the trans type (automatic and T5 has one nose and the 3 and 4 speed manual has another) if the bell is proper for the flywheel/flexplate that should ensure proper offset for engagement. for a c4 there was the 157t and 164t flexplates and bellhousing, I used to have a 164t bell/flexplate on my origenal I6 c4 when I installed my 289 and it worked just fine, I once picked up a 157t flexplate and installed it in with the 164t bell and the starter just spun freely w/ no engagement. although I have never installed a 164t flexplate w/ a 157t bell... it would stand for reason that if you did that the starter would be to close to engage at all and the gear would just run into the flexplate... ladyeclectic79; this may sound dumb but did you remember to install the backing plate? it's installed before you mount the flexplate and it spaces the bellhousing from the block? not installing that could cause a spacing issue allowing engagement but causing binding from improper spacing.
Is there a way to estimate how many teeth the flexplate has without removing everything to manually count teeth? Also how will I know what starter to get? The flexplate came with the motor after we had the machine shop bore out and install the pistons and crank, I never really thought to count teeth.
Hm I'm pretty sure it was there but I'll check after work. It would stink if the problem were so simple and went undiagnosed this long!
I can tell you what the tooth count is on your flex plate if you can tell me how the transmission bell bolts to the transmission. If it uses the same bolts for the pump and bell then you have 157 teeth on the ring gear - if it uses separate bolts to hold the bell in place then you have 164 tooth ring gear. They use the same starter and starter drive. If you try to use the small flex plate with the large bell it will not start because the starter gear will not engage the ring gear. If you try to use a 164 tooth ring gear with the small bell the starter will hit the ring gear and you will not be able to install it without breaking something. If you are using rebuilt starters then you may have to go through a few starters before you find one that is built correctly. It might be easier to just buy a new starter and be done with it. You want a starter for and automatic transmission V8. There are differences between the auto and manual starters and the starter for the six is mounted differently.
