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Help! My starters are noisy and keep burning out.

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Gimmeagig

Re: Help! My starters are noisy and keep burning out.

I was only kidding about the 20mpg. with my 531 HO I would be happy if I got 10. I have two gas tanks in my truck and I'm not sure if the fuel sensors are working properly. Can you guys tell me what the Fuel capacities are for front and rear?

1985 (March) F150
351 HO
Edelbrock carb
Shortbed

Gary Lewis

Re: Help! My starters are noisy and keep burning out.

Administrator

You don't say in your signature anything about your truck so I cannot answer the question. However, you can by looking at the info on the page at Documentation/Fuel & Air Systems/Fuel System Part Numbers/Fuel Tanks.

Gary, AKA "Gary fellow": Profile

Dad's: '81 F150 Ranger XLT 4x4: Down for restomod: Full-roller "stroked 351M" w/Trick Flow heads & intake, EEC-V SEFI/E4OD/3.50 gears w/Kevlar clutches
Blue: 2015 F150 Platinum 4x4 SuperCrew wearing Blue Jeans & sporting a 3.5L EB & Max Tow
Big Blue: 1985 F250HD 4x4: 460/ZF5/3.55's, D60 w/Ox locker & 10.25 Sterling/Trutrac, Blue Top & Borgeson, & EEC-V MAF/SEFI

Gimmeagig

Re: Help! My starters are noisy and keep burning out.

Okay I guess I have to go over my settings and enter stuff about my truck. Like the fact that I just found out from one of the members here that it's a 85 and not an 84.

1985 (March) F150
351 HO
Edelbrock carb
Shortbed

Gary Lewis

Re: Help! My starters are noisy and keep burning out.

Administrator

That would help us give more accurate answers.

Gary, AKA "Gary fellow": Profile

81-F150-Explorer

Re: Help! My starters are noisy and keep burning out.

If the truck is a short bed, it has a 16.5 gallon front tank, and a 19 gallon rear tank.

Truck: 1981 F-150 Explorer / Engine: 300-6 California MCU Feedback System / Trans: T-18 - 4 speed / 2.75 Ford Rear Axle Open Diff.

LARIAT 85

Re: Help! My starters are noisy and keep burning out.

In reply to this post by Gary Lewis

Gary Lewis wrote

If you have a 300 six and a 5-speed 20 MPG is obtainable.

I manged to get very close to 20 MPG with Lucille a few years ago (I haven't checked in a while) - as long as I kept my foot out of the secondaries. I suspect the steep 0.67 overdrive gear in my AOD played a big part in that.

Lucille: 1985 Ford F150 XLT Lariat

*Colors: Dark Canyon Red exterior, Canyon Red interior
*Engine: 5.0, CompCams 31-230-3, "Thumper" E7 heads, Edelbrock Performer intake, Autolite 4100 carburetor, DuraSpark II ignition, Thorley Tri-Y headers, Flowmaster dual exhaust, H-pipe.
*Drivetrain: AOD transmission, 3.55 gears, 2wd.

Gimmeagig

Re: Help! My starters are noisy and keep burning out.

Thank you for that info. That means that my fuel sensors are not working properly My front tank sowed it was nearly empty and when I went to fill it up I could only get 8 gallons in.The sensor for the rear tank is probably not much more accurate.

1985 (March) F150
351 HO
Edelbrock carb
Shortbed

Gimmeagig

Re: Help! My starters are noisy and keep burning out.

Hi guys,
Last week I took my truck to a new mechanic for a manifold leak. He has many 5 star reviews on Google he is ASE certified master tech. Meeting him and seeing his shop gave me the feeling that my truck might be in better hands with him.
When he started the truck, it made the awful grinding noise and he diagnosed right away that there must be some missing teeth on the flex plate
Now the starter wont't even engage. I used pliers on a pulley to move the flywheel( or is it flex plate?) past the broken teeth. Just like the last time it wants to grab but then it starts spinning freely again. Maybe I'm spinning it in the wrong direction?
But it doesn't even matter, I'm going to have to bite the bullet and replace the flex plate for the second time.
I have a feeling that my last mechanic installed the wrong one. I'm not going to take the truck back to him. Someone here mentioned the teeth are supposed to be beveled on the side of the starter. The new mechanic confirmed that. Can you guys verify that for me one more time please? Is NAPA a good place to buy a new plate or are there better choices for that? So, new flex plate, new starter, 980.- Ouch!
I asked the new mechanic about the PMGR starters. He says I won't need it. I have no choice. I can't sell the truck broken.But I am pretty frustrated with it.

1985 (March) F150
351 HO
Edelbrock carb
Shortbed

85lebaront2

Re: Help! My starters are noisy and keep burning out.

Administrator

A couple of things, NAPA should be good quality, but make sure he gets a 351 flywheel, the 302 and 300 are physically the same, but the balance is different.

Starter, if the starter pinion is chewed up and he wants to replace the starter, insist he use a PMGR starter, cranks better with less current draw. I have had the one on Darth since 2004 and have replaced it once since then.

Bill AKA "LOBO" Profile

"Getting old is inevitable, growing up is optional" Darth Vader 1986 F350 460 converted to MAF/SEFI, E4OD 12X3 1/2 rear brakes, traction loc 3:55 gear, 160 amp 3G alternator Wife's 2011 Flex Limited Daily Driver 2009 Flex Limited with factory tow package Project car 1986 Chrysler LeBaron convertible 2.2L Turbo II, modified A413

Gimmeagig

Re: Help! My starters are noisy and keep burning out.

Good to know. Thank you. I'll pass that information on to the mechanic.
Do you know if those teeth on the flex plate are indeed supposed to be beveled? If that's the case then my old mechanic definitely didn't put in the right one.
About the starter... You wouldn't happen to know which exact starter I should get? Maybe even a Napa Part number? There seem to be quite a few options, some reasonable, others really expensive.
Now if I do all the repair and the starter is still grinding and super noisy...Is there a possibility that something else is causing that? The engine runs great once it is started and the tranny also seems to be fine. I'm just concerned because the truck had (unbeknownst to me) missing teeth in the flex plate when I bought it.

1985 (March) F150
351 HO
Edelbrock carb
Shortbed

Gimmeagig

Re: Help! My starters are noisy and keep burning out.

I really like that truck when it runs. But I thought these F150 are supposed to be ultra reliable. I see the youtube videos where they were found sitting in a field for 20 years or recovered from a flood and still they start up with minimal effort. The way my Truck has been treating me ...I might as well get another Triumph TR4..LOL

1985 (March) F150
351 HO
Edelbrock carb
Shortbed

85lebaront2

Re: Help! My starters are noisy and keep burning out.

Administrator

In reply to this post by Gimmeagig

Just look for a 1994 up 351 automatic, but FWIW, a 1990 Lincoln Town Car starter is a PMGR and fits 300, 302 and 351W with automatic.

If you really want another Ferguson tractor powered car, you will need this:

Bill AKA "LOBO" Profile

Gimmeagig

Re: Help! My starters are noisy and keep burning out.

Ha! I have to say that the engine of the TR never failed. Everything else around it weekly. But still I think I'm done with Ferguson Tractor cars. I saw a photo of my old TR a while ago . It is still beautiful but i don't miss it.
So far my F150 hasn't treated me any better though. I hope that will change with my new mechanic..
I went to NAPA about the flexplate and the starter. The guy who works there knows his stuff. He has a lot of the part numbers memorized even. His Dad had a Napa Store,so he grew up with that.
He told me that the Lincoln PMGR starters come with 9 teeth and also with 10. Which one should I get?
And this may be a stupid question,Why is it called a Flex Plate. I don't think it flexes or does it?

1985 (March) F150
351 HO
Edelbrock carb
Shortbed

85lebaront2

Re: Help! My starters are noisy and keep burning out.

Administrator

The number I have would be a 3205 (that is a standardized number that NAPA should be able to cross if it isn't their number). My son used to work for a company named Precision Certi-Pro and he was the one who crossed the 1990 Lincoln Town Car one to the 300 and 351W automatic applications.

The torque converter drive plate is called a flax plate as it is flexible compared to a solid steel or iron (even aluminum) flywheel.

Bill AKA "LOBO" Profile

Gimmeagig

Re: Help! My starters are noisy and keep burning out.

I just went to NAPA to see what the replacement flex plate they sell acually looks like. It makes sense to me that a bevel would help the starter engage. But the NAPA plate definitely doesn't have a bevel. Are you sure it is supposed to have a bevel? I don't want to pay a shop to install a flex plate that isn't right. I tried to get some additional info from this forum but nobody is responding.
My old mechanic installed a SFI rated plate from Summit racing. I was hoping that would be a good upgrade but Another starter later I have the same problem.This plate does not seem to be flexible.Maybe that is the problem? It sure seems like there are missing teeth again.The new mechanic has not verified that yet. I have an appointment Aug 8th.
Are there flexplates from other newer Fords that might be an upgrade like the PMGR starters?

1985 (March) F150
351 HO
Edelbrock carb
Shortbed