Classic Mustangs (Tech) Technical discussions about the Mustangs of yester-year.

Mini-starter wiring recommendations

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Old Feb 17, 2010 | 08:55 PM
  #11  
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67mustang302
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Not really, no. You can hear the starter spin for a bit after you let off of "start" on account of the starter gear pulling back. But that could just be that it's a high torque starter so it still has some inertia left in it. I imagine it may depend on the individual starter design as well. Basically as soon as you come off "start" the starter immediately disengages and decels to a stop.

I've had 0 issues with it for years and had it off several times, and there are no signs of abnormal wear on either the starter gear or the flywheel ring gear.
Old Feb 17, 2010 | 10:58 PM
  #12  
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Not meaning to offend,,,,,,,,,,,, but, IMO, (and experience) high torque starter (gear reduction starters) are pretty much a waste of money at best, and CRAP at worst. I don't like em.

The stock style we put on Jim's 11 to 1 CR 408 turns the engine just fine, is super reliable, super simple, and only cost about $30.00. This means that about 6 stock style starters can be bought for the price of one high torque starter.

Also, I keep looking at these "two solenoid solutions" thinking that often times just one solenoid can be a pain in the a$$, let alone two in a row one feeding off the other.....

The only way I will consider one of these is if space requirements dictate it's use.
Old Feb 17, 2010 | 11:39 PM
  #13  
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The high torque I'm running is the stock starter for late model 5.0 Mustangs...from the Cobras I think. It's a mini starter as well, so it takes up WAAAYYY less space than the factory beast, which was the main reason I got it. And a high torque is beneficial for a few reasons, first in areas of extreme heat or cold that make it harder to start cars(low cranking amps, a starter that tries to drag in the heat etc) they work a lot better, and secondly because the motor doesn't have to work as hard to start the engine, it lasts a lot longer.

They're not necessary, and are expensive, but they do have their uses....and they weigh a lot less. As far as I'm concerned the smaller size and weight is reason enough, removing and installing the starter and the clearance around headers is all the reason I need. I just got tired of dealing with the stock old monster units, especially since they didn't seem to last long in the climate around here.
Old Feb 18, 2010 | 01:54 AM
  #14  
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JMD you are a crack up. I don't think I've ever seen you endorse a high performance part over stock replacement. I can't tell if you're just hardcore old school, or have just had really bad luck with aftermarket parts. Either way, I'm glad I can count on you to play devil's advocate in these hipo parts threads.
Old Feb 18, 2010 | 02:03 AM
  #15  
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my 55 dollar dbelectrical mini starter works great

Much easier to install with long tube headers and fixes heat soak issues

For about the same price as the monster why not. Unless your concours no reason not to go with a mini
Old Feb 18, 2010 | 04:50 AM
  #16  
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I have a starter like a 5.0 Mustang and it is wired so that the factory solenoid engages it. It works fine.

Last edited by tx65coupe; Feb 19, 2010 at 03:49 AM.
Old Feb 18, 2010 | 07:56 AM
  #17  
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Originally Posted by lefty3382
And the instructions talk about "the ground cable to the frame should be the same size as the starter cable." They're not referring to the ground strap from frame to motor. What ground cable are they talking about? Should I have a large negative cable from starter to frame? If so, where?
The cable they are referring to is the negative cable on the battery. Remember, the juice coming out of the positive terminal must RETURN to the battery through the negative terminal. Most people have problems with grounds because they are focused on the 'dangerous' positive side.

Your starter is grounded to the block via the physical contact it makes with the block. You do not ground it with a cable. That is why I mentioned in my earlier post that you need to run the negative battery cable to the motor mount bolt (or any large bolt that screws into the block). This gives your current path the most unobstructed way possible and therefore, the most amps with the least resistance. The grounding strap from the block to the frame is really for all of your other electrical devices that are grounded to the body/frame.

http://mustangefiswap.blogspot.com/
Old Feb 19, 2010 | 09:27 PM
  #18  
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Originally Posted by lefty3382
JMD you are a crack up. I don't think I've ever seen you endorse a high performance part over stock replacement. I can't tell if you're just hardcore old school, or have just had really bad luck with aftermarket parts. Either way, I'm glad I can count on you to play devil's advocate in these hipo parts threads.


Ok, here is my take on aftermarket parts, I really dig the aftermarket, most of it anyway.

I LOVE aftermarket heads, Air Gap Manifolds, 5 speed trannys, headers, etc. I like stuff that WORKS WELL enough to drive EVERYDAY.

The reason I like stock starters is that they are typically really, really, reliable.

That said, 67 Mustang 302's starter is probably one I would use, but I AM NOT impressed with the "PowerCrapper" and the like.

We put one on my son's very warm 350, the sprag took a dump after a couple of months, and a trip to the parts store netted a TOYOTA starter that I managed to pull enough parts out of to make the Powermaster work, yep, that $200+ starter was made mostly of a Toyota starter available at the parts store for $30.

Another issue I have with these starters is that when they start engaging the ring gear wrong they can eat the ring gear RIGHT NOW.

Has anyone ever noticed that those old stock FORD starters (the ones with no solenoid on the starter) seldom if EVER misfire on the ring gear (so long as we wait for the starter to stop spinning) like GM starters so OFTEN do? So with this in mind, what do us FORD FOLKS do? we TAKE OFF our better starter and PUT on a "GM LIKE" starter with a troublesome solenoid on top of it..... (MY WIFE could change a FORD solenoid..... )

There are some things I don't really like, mini starters (in general) is one, 3" exhaust is another. IMO some of the highly marketed "bolt on stuff" is just crap.

I like good brakes and steering, I would recommend my son's R&P steering, aftermarket motor mounts, and Wilwood brakes in an instant.

I put a trick Edelbrock fuel injection setup, a sweet March pulley setup, and disk brakes all around on my coupe.

Anyone who knows me knows that I am a LITTLE opinionated....

Last edited by JMD; Feb 19, 2010 at 09:37 PM.
Old Feb 19, 2010 | 09:55 PM
  #19  
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A lot of aftermarket stuff is overly priced crap.

Factory parts are generally really reliable as well.
Old Feb 19, 2010 | 10:02 PM
  #20  
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this will solve all your after run problems!!
Attached Thumbnails Mini-starter wiring recommendations-diagramcopy.jpg  



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