High Torque Starter Issues
Turbo Mini Forums

We have a High Torque starter on the Miglia. Not that it needs high torque, but it provides better clearance for the intercooler.

One of these:

http://www.minispares.com/Product.aspx?ty=...id=42784&title=

Anyway, it seems to dislike the ring gear as sometimes it just spins and does not properly engage. The only way to get the car to start is to put it in gear, move it a bit to turn the engine and try again. Sometimes it needs a couple of attempts.

Now I didn't think that the motor was supposed to run until the gears were engaged.

We are using an Odessey 30 battery which now seems to have plenty of current to turn it over to start, once it has engaged properly.

One thing that I thought it may be and that is the solenoid feed wire may not be big enough. So we try a short piece of wire and touched it to the main terminal. It still just span.

Anyone else had similar issues ?

Saul Bellow - "A great deal of intelligence can be invested in ignorance when the need for illusion is deep."
Stephen Hawking - "The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge."

It hasn't chewed a lump out of the ring gear has it? Hence a bump in gear to present a different part of the ring gear to the starter? We had this on the DON at one time, using an all alloy flywheel and ring gear, the engine always tends to stop in the same place, so after a couple of years of use the teeth at that point were getting a bit tired.

Everything is new. However, it has started to polish the edge of the ring gear in at least one point.

Saul Bellow - "A great deal of intelligence can be invested in ignorance when the need for illusion is deep."
Stephen Hawking - "The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge."

Carl knows the details of the Brise starter better, but I remember him saying something about there being a copper contact pad that was pitted on the DON starter, as this also had a period of the bendix spinning but not throwing out into mesh.

This is the same as the cambridge starter motor which required extensive modification to make it mesh properly on my engine. Basically the pinion had to be made to move closer in. The Brise unit although more expensive actually worked!

Edited by Scruffy on 26th Jun, 2011.

On 5th Sep, 2011 Vegard said:
I stand corrected. You should know

Ive seen a Hi torque starter where it totally misses the ring gear,

Sounds like I need to get Minispares to swap it for a Brise one.

Saul Bellow - "A great deal of intelligence can be invested in ignorance when the need for illusion is deep."
Stephen Hawking - "The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge."

I wouldn't hold out hope of that being the fix forever, the Brise on the DON has been poor comsidering how expensive it was. Plus if anything goes wrong Brise will charge you something ridiculous like £65+VAT just to LOOK at it.

Take the wok of and see what it's up to when you engage it.

If that is the starter you have, I would be inclined to say that if it has the little wire from the battery terminal onto the solenoid, it is an 'inertia' type starter. The pre engaged come without the little wire, and the only other difference is the number of teeth on the pinion - 9 for inertia or 11 for pre engaged.

What ring gear do you have fitted? and how many teeth on the pinion?

The only issue I have from time to time, is that the starter doesnt engage and the motor does not turn over, all you hear is a loud clunk, which I suspect is the pinion not quite meshing with the ring gear. Try it again and its usually fine after that, maybe one or two trys, but thats about it. It does sound like there is a probem with yours if it is truning the motor over before its fully engaged.

Edited by Paul S on 29th Jun, 2011.

Saul Bellow - "A great deal of intelligence can be invested in ignorance when the need for illusion is deep."
Stephen Hawking - "The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge."

the wire looped from the battery terminal to the solenoid 'should' turn the starter over when battery voltage is applied to the battery terminal

I fitted mine to a pre engaged wiring loom, and the heavy gauge brown/ red 'crank' wire connects to the solenoid, and the large battery cable connects to the battery terminal, same as it did with the standard pre engaged starter.

The 'inertia' type starter only hase the large heavy duty cable to the starter, from the solenoid. Retrofitting the pre engaged type high torque starter than nneds a loop from the battery terminal to the solenoid, as is seen in the link to Minispares, so that when the solenoid is energised, voltage is applied to the starter motor and the solenoid together.

If you have the loop installed and the battery cable also connected to the motor, the starter will spin over all the time, as I have experienced.

By the way, the starter linked to on Minispares looks Identical to mine.

I think Joe is referring to the one I bought. It was sold as 'for Aftermarket verto flywheels', but it misses the ring gear by 2-3mm. I've tried it upside down, rotated the front etc, but it only makes it worse.

The response i got from the supplier was 'theres too many aftermarket flywheels out there for us to gaurantee that it will fit' lol!

The only option I'm left with it chopping it about.

In the 13's at last!.. Just

If a standard starter works with an after market flywheel, why do you needs a special starter just for after market flywheels? There 'standard' replacement should work

Paul, I think there is a problem with med starters, that starter in the photo is the same one I bought. I had the same problem.. Would not engage slips on the gear.

And I bought a matching set clutch, flywheel ring gear etc etc and starter.

I had to machine the back plate to make it engage and still it did not work properly.

I got a refund from them and you should get the same.

I must say though that med were great about it all and tried to help me a lot,, even though it did not work I would buy from them again.

Funny thing is this starter worked fine with my normal shitty 190mm STD verto set up.

But with the the new ring gears, flywheels it does not reach or engage properly?

Turns out I have a starter for an inertia flywheel.

MED have confirmed that it should have 11 teeth, but the one I have has 9.

Off to Liecester in the morning to swap it over.

Saul Bellow - "A great deal of intelligence can be invested in ignorance when the need for illusion is deep."
Stephen Hawking - "The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge."

Whatever happened to the one you tried to modify? Did it not work?

http://www.twin-turbo.co.uk
http://www.hillclimbandsprint.co.uk/default.asp

A man without a project is like a like a woman without a shopping list.

It hasn't been tested, need to try it on a scrapper of a engine first

That'l be your car then :)

Saul Bellow - "A great deal of intelligence can be invested in ignorance when the need for illusion is deep."
Stephen Hawking - "The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge."

Just picked up an 11 tooth starter from MED.

It has the "little wire" link for use with a remote solenoid. I'll leave it off for use with our pre-engaged wiring.

Saul Bellow - "A great deal of intelligence can be invested in ignorance when the need for illusion is deep."
Stephen Hawking - "The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge."

Mr fenton, if you need the dons starter rebuilding theres a place at crimethorpe called acorn auto electrics, they charged me £30 to rebuild my starter. Really nice guys too!

Mike

1/4 Mile 14.3secs 96Mph Terminal 10psi of boost.


Fibreglass Parts? - http://www.tdkracing.co.uk/
Split Rims? - http://www.force-racing.co.uk/

Any ways toms not frumt yorkshyer, hes bloody cider drinkin suthener tha nos!

1/4 Mile 14.3secs 96Mph Terminal 10psi of boost.


Fibreglass Parts? - http://www.tdkracing.co.uk/
Split Rims? - http://www.force-racing.co.uk/

Bloody watch it monkey boy, or I'll have that manifold un-welded double quick time!!!