I have a 1988 lx and i recently replaced the starter and the solenoid and the start is loud when turning over and my friends at work think i may need to shim and my friend has a aerostar with a lx engine in it and he said he didnt have to but id rather not risk damaging anything. So yh please tell me if i need to or what i can do guys everything is appreciated.
Do i need to shim the starter?
- Thread starter Newstylesleeper
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Simple answer is no. Starter shims are for old GM engines, SBCs and 4.3s, etc. There are no shims for Ford starters. There isn't even a way to put them in there. Ford and GM small block starters are mounted totally different. The Ford starter is bolted to the transmission bellhousing. There is no way to shim it to adjust the distance between the starter gear and the flywheel. The old GM starters were bolted vertically to the block itself. Back in the day, GM block production was so inconsistent the starter had to be shimmed to get the right gear spacing. If your starter is making noise, there is something else going on; it has nothing to do with shims.
Kurt
Kurt
Sorry, that is false. I used to think the same thing. Then I came across Ford small block starter shims. I knew when i saw them that they were rare and I bought every damn one of them. I've never used one...but I got them if someone wants one.
So you bought something that is clearly not rare, since I had to googled it, and they are readily available, for a problem you didn't have? I sold starters for years. Chevy starters come with shims in the box with the starter. This is the first time I have heard of a Ford starter shim. As far as I can tell, the only reason you would need the Ford starter shim is if you left out the dust shield.
Kurt
listen, there's no need to get defensive. You don't know when i bought the shims and therefore you don't know how common or un-common they were at the time. The reason I bought them at the time (this is before the Internet) is because if I did need one, I did not know if I would be able to find them again. The fact that you sold Chevrolet starters for years and the fact that this is the first time you heard of a Ford starter shim, sounds like evidence that I wasn't exaggerating. Nor did I have any intent on getting rich from the sale of starter shims. As far as I'm concerned, I would sell them for what I paid..which is lower than what you found on your google search, given the fact that I've never used one and since apparently I'm the only one who knows they exist, the demand is extremely low. I realize almost no one enjoys to be told they are mistaken...to those I say "You must be Jesus. I did not know you returned. We need to know what kind of wood is your favorite because you know what we do with you perfect ones. Or are you human and therefore don't know everything and will make mistakes until the day you die?"
- Mar 7, 2002
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Dorman part number 02359.
Sometimes Ford starters will hang when engaged to the flywheel or flexplate when all of the tolerances of mass production are added up (combined with mass rebuilders not building as well as they used to, aftermarket modifications, etc). This shim spaces pulls the starter away from the flywheel about 1/16" to remedy the issue.
Boostedpimp
Dirt-Old 20+Year Member
five bucks says the flywheel has seen better days... and i've had countless fords over the years and never shimmed any starter.
- Mar 7, 2002
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I've shimmed one. That's how I know the part exists. I also sold two or three of them back in my parts counter days.
It works if your problem is actually tolerances adding up to the starter engaging too deep. It won't fix anything if you're dealing with a worn flywheel (it'll make the problem worse in that case).
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