Definitive Fix for Starter Misalignment

[cwmcobra]

I've just removed the engine/tranny from the Cobra to fix a couple of chronic issues with this engine package. It's a Ford Racing 514 with the combination of Lakewood bellhousing, Ford Racing M-6375-Z460 flywheel, Centerforce Dual Friction clutch, Summit Protorque mini starter and Richmond Gear Street 5-speed tranny. Having built the engine with the Fel-Pro intake gaskets that droop (a Tom Wells term), they were leaking and will be replaced with Victor Reinz Nitroseals. I also have the chipped tooth flywheel problem, with my starter making a lot of racket before it engages ring gear teeth that are intact. I have an obvious misalignment problem with the starter to flywheel ring gear interface. With 5,000 miles on the car, upon teardown the clutch face on the flywheel and the pressure plate look like new. No visible wear at all and the clutch disk has worn about 0.005" total. So, no need to change the flywheel if I can help it. I want to just replace the ring gear on the flywheel and the pinion gear on the starter and find a way to get proper alignment. I called Lakewood to consult, but got no information that would help. Ford Racing told me that the flywheel is made by McLeod, so I called them and talked with our old friend Red Roberts. He answered all my questions and gave me explicit instructions on how to align the starter. I'm going to document the procedure here in hopes that others can benefit as well. First, I ordered a new ring gear for the Ford Racing flywheel, having 176 teeth, the same as I have now. It's McLeod part number F40235 (likely to change in the future since B&M has bought McLeod). I ordered it through Summit at a cost of $56.39. A local auto machine shop will remove the old ring gear and heat and press fit the new one for $20. I already have the Summit Protorque starter and have ordered a replacement pinion gear, part number 820509 at a cost of $14.95. All in all, a cheap repair, considering the cost of new flywheels, clutches, bellhousings and starters. I will now have new ring gear and starter pinion that should last a long time with proper alignment.

So, here's the alignment procedure from Red. This for either a new build or an engine with the bellhousing removed so you can see the gear engagement.

1. With bellhousing removed, tighten the block plate to the block with 2-3 bolts to keep in in position.

2. Install flywheel

3. Install the starter with it's upper bolt only, finger tight.

4. From the flywheel side of the block plate, check the engagement of the starter pinion with the ring gear teeth on the flywheel. Use a simple gage made from a large paper clip. It has to be large one for the proper diameter. Pull the starter pinion out by prying it with a screwdriver until one pinion tooth is between two ring gear teeth. The proper radial (from the flywheel center) alignment is when a straightened large paper clip fits between the OD of the pinion tooth and the root of the ring gear.

5. If the starter needs to be moved to achieve this proper alignment, elongate the lower starter bolt hole in the direction it needs to move until the proper alignment is achieved. This is the position where you will tighten the lower bolt when doing the final install of the starter.

6. Now you must check for depth of engagement of the starter pinion into the ring gear. Again, pry the pinion out to it's fully extended position using a screwdriver and check how far the pinion in engaged into the ring gear. Proper engagement is 2/3 to 3/4 into the thickness of the ring gear. It's likely to be too deep, which would cause drag on the starter and eventually burn it out. If too deep, you must shim the starter forward, toward the front of the engine. NAPA makes a starter alignment shim for a Ford starter, part number 655-1188 and it sells for $8. I expect that one should be enough, but they could be stacked if necessary.

7. With the starter and shim in place (if required) and the starter rotated to the position that it's bottom hole is elongated to, tighten everything. It's now aligned properly.

For those of you building from scratch, you have the choice of either the Lakewood bellhousing or the McLeod modular bellhousing. The McLeod was not available when I did my build, but the consensus on the Internet is that it is more precise than the Lakewood and it also has a knockout to facilitate different starter locations. I expect the starter will align differently using this bellhousing than with the Lakewood.

In my case, for about $100 I can fix the problem, which is much less expensive than I had feared. I hope that this long post will be of benefit both to those doing new builds, to do it right the first time, and to those, like me, that need to fix this aggravating problem in an older build. Either way, happy wrenching to all!

Chuck