Re: [alfa] starter for 73 gtv

["Dean W. Cains" <dwc@xxxxxx>]

Hi Vangelis:

I've had a late 80's gear-reduction starter on my '74 Spider for a few 
years now, and it's worked flawlessly every time.  But, when I posted my 
brilliant idea to the Digest at the time, I was sent quite a few e-mails; 
about half predicted impending doom, while the other half reported similar 
success.  So, whenever I'm under the car I have a look at the ring gear and 
pinion, and they still look great.  I've heard that the problems (when 
reported) are related to either the different number of ring gear teeth 
(131 v. 130), and/or the alignment of the pinion and ring gears.  Of 
course, my '87 Spider has the same starter (with a different ring gear), 
but it was built that way, and it works equally well.  I also previously 
had one of those boat anchor 1.1hp starters crack the bellhousing on that 
same '74 Spider, and the half-weight of the gear-reduction starter makes me 
feel better in that regard, too.  Be aware that the late '90 - '94 Motronic 
Spiders had a different gear-reduction starter, which since those cars have 
the same ring gear as the pre-'75 cars, is supposed to be "the" way to 
go.  So, that's another option.  I can't deny that others have had 
problems, with the late '80's starters, but I'm happy, and personally know 
of two other pre-'75 Spiders with the same starter, and the same success 
(along with those email reports).

I can recommend a great vendor for rebuilt starters and alternators, 
whatever you decide:

http://autoexpress.safeshopper.com/

I've used their parts on three cars (Alfa and Volvo), and the quality is 
much better than the typical rebuilds having just a little cleanup and lots 
of sloppy, new black paint.  Their prices and warranty are outstanding, too.

Regards,

Dean
Lutz, FL
'74 & '87 Spider Veloce's

At 09:41 PM 11/15/2004, you wrote:

> Date: Mon, 15 Nov 2004 10:52:19 -0800 (PST)
> From: Vangelis Kokkevis <vkokkevis@domain.elided>
> Subject: [alfa] starter for 73 gtv
>
> The last couple of months I've been having
> intermittent problems with the starter of my 73 gtv.
> On occasion, especially when the engine is warm, the
> starter motor will keep running even after the
> ignition is turned off.  When this happens, I usually
> run out of the car, disconnect the battery, and then
> remove the air filter (to gain some access), tap the
> solenoid with a hard tool, and then it goes back to
> normal.
>
> In any case, I'm looking to replace my starter as this
> process is getting a bit old.  I was actually leaning
> towards getting a gear-reduction starter from a late
> model spider.  As there are different opinions as to
> which starters are compatible with the ring gear of a
> '73, I was wondering if anybody has tried the
> conversion and what worked for them.
>
> Thanks a lot,
>
> Vangelis
> Sunnyvale, CA
> 73 gtv
> 83 spider
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