Pantera Starter

Ron Earp · 05-29-08, 08:33 AM

I've a buddy of mine with a Pantera and he is in need of a new starter. He has had his starter rebuilt, but it failed within about six months or so. I know there are a few folks with Panteras on the forum and the question is somewhat GT40 related for those that might use a Clevland/ZF combination in their cars. Does anyone know of a good source for a Pantera starter? I checked Pantera Place for some info but didn't run across starter stuff there. Thanks!

Ron

Jeff Hamilton · 05-29-08, 03:21 PM

I just bought one off of Ebay because everybody on the Pantera mailing list had great things to say about them. I got item # 160238623114 but it is still sitting on the bench so I don't have any other feedback.
Jeff Hamilton

Michael · 05-29-08, 03:36 PM

Search eBay for "mini-starter". I don't recall the vendor right now but it will be obvious who has a big online business. About $50 will get you a new reduction/planetary drive starter. I've had good luck with mine so far. It appears to be a new Bosch unit. Hope that helps.
Michael

Ross Nicol · 05-29-08, 07:22 PM

Ron
Mike Drew would be the person to contact.He has been around this site for a while and you could PM him.He is knowledgeable about all things Pantera.

Ross

Rick Muck- Mark IV · 05-29-08, 07:57 PM

Ron,

The original starter is nothing special, standard Ford Small block manual trans unit, 153 teeth if I recall.

Yes, go for the mini-starter. There is a seller on eBay from Tenn. that has good units at a fair price. You need to run the positive cable right to the starter, not the solinoid. The starter is then energized by a smaller gauge wire from the dead side of the solinoid when the key is turned. The mini starters have more torque and are less affected by header heat.

David Briggs · 05-29-08, 10:52 PM

You can use a starter from a 5.0 Mustang, works great, about $20 at Pic a Part.

Dave

Mike Drew · 05-30-08, 06:23 AM

The stock old-school 1960s starters are junk, and need to go over the hedge. They are heavy and not all that powerful.

Modern, lightweight starters work much better, are resistant to engine heat and are smaller and lighter. There are numerous options available; some are high-torque models, others use a gear reduction system. The latter are typically more expensive.

I paid top dollar for a high-torque starter from Pantera Performance Center; it cost about $150 with shipping. It works great, except the starter solenoid mounted on the starter body cracked (could have been installer error, DOH!) and eventually it quit working. Dennis Quella sent me a replacement solenoid for free. Haven't installed it yet...

When I still had the stock starter on my car, I bought an almost identical unit to Dennis Quella's purchased from a neighborhood starter shop for about $100. Before I got a chance to install it on my car, somebody desperately needed it and I passed it on to him. That was years ago and it has been working fine ever since. When I went to replace the one I sold off, the shop had closed down, and I took the easy way out and just phoned PPC.

I've been hearing about these super-low-buck E-bay starters (referenced above) for the past month or two, and numerous people have bought them, although I haven't heard any results yet. I'm a bit skeptical of anything that cheap, but I suppose they could be just as good as the more expensive, traditional options?

If you're made of money, a Tilton-type gear reduction starter will do the job, for $400 or so?

Lee Patterson · 06-01-08, 02:05 PM

Unless your friend wants to waste alot of money on a fancy aftermarket unit that will break prematurely anyhow, or have some ultra high horsepower motor that needs incredible starting torque, rebuild the original Ford. I had mine rebuilt in 1990 for about $30. Never had a problem. Debating the weight savings on the Ford starter is a bit absurd for a street car.