Starter

I bought mine here. http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=33576&item=2417583513
E-mail him to be sure this is the one you need.Mine works perfect!It comes with everything you need.You can hardly hear the engine turn over.
Good luck.
Ron

I have one of those starters off of Ebay too, though the shop is here in Dallas, so I just went by and got one. Works great. But, 8 months later, looks like I'm starting to cook it pretty good being right next to my Mindtrain headers, as when it gets hot (only recently has it started doing this), it turns over very slowly (fires right up otherwise). My next step is try putting a heat shield around it. Other than that it would be to buy one of the very expensive starters designed to withstand high heat.

I am currently running a 510hp motor and I have a high torque starter and have no issues at all. I would recommend purchasing a good started from any of the Pantera Vendors. It not worth taking short cuts on a starter! Also, make sure you have a good or a new starter soleniod with a good battery (optima red top) and you should not have any problems. Good luck...

I'm all for supporting vendors, have done it many times before, will do it again, but to spend a few hundred dollars on a starter for a 351C is ridiculous.

Now saying this, if the heat shield remedy for me doesn't work, I'll have to buy one of those specifically designed high-heat starters, and I'll do so from a vendor.

BTW, here is the direct webpage for that Ebay seller: http://www.reman.com/alterstart/

Also, I will say, many more people than me have gotten these very same starters without the heat problems I'm experiencing (come on folks is a 351 Cleveland, not NASA!). I'm blaming it on my headers. Mindtrain--loud, and hot, and wouldn't have it any other way!

I have 180 deg headers on my car so heat is not an issue.But the starter works GREAT!
Ron

To reliably start a Pantera engine when its hot, you'll need both a gear-drive starter AND a fresh ground strap between the ZF and the chassis, and all paint & corrosion should be wire-brushed off the frame & ZF case where the ground strap touches. The Ford starter system positions the control solenoid on the firewall away from header heat, and gear-drive starters are physically smaller than the OEMs, so I found a heat shield is unnecessary on my car. There used to be only one type gear drive, made from a Hitachi unit meant for a Nissen 300ZX, with a custom nosepiece. Recently though, there are small domestic gear drives built by/for Ford engines. My old McLeod unit is 14 yrs old, has never been serviced and still starts a 10-1/2:1 smoking-hot Cleveland on the 3rd turn. Another McLeod used on my modified Chev Z-28 autocrosser was also extremely dependable. Note that if you go to a hot-rod shop to save a few bucks, there are two types of Ford starters- one for auto trans and one for std. Some mfgrs use the auto-trans config for Panteras, others don't. Be sure you have return priveleges (on most electrical parts at most shops, you DON'T) or you'll spend much extra money... The vendors of course have already done the research on this issue, hence their slightly higher cost.