[DeTomaso] hot start problem solved

[MikeLDrew at aol.com]

In a message dated 10/23/09 10 57 20, asajay at asajay.com writes:


> Operation:
> Works the same as stock, except now at the same time the firewall 
> solenoid provides power to the starter, it also provides power to the 
> starter solenoid.  When the key is moved back to RUN, the firewall 
> solenoid cuts out, removing power to the starter and it's solenoid.
> 

I've got my car wired the same way, and it has a big problem.   When the 
engine starts, the starter gear is engaged with the flywheel.  Normally, when 
you remove power from the solenoid (by turning the key to 'run'), the 
starter gear withdraws.   However, with this setup, when you remove power from the 
solenoid, the engine is running, the starter gear is engaged with the 
flywheel, and the starter turns into a generator, and generates enough power to 
feed backwards and keep the main cable energized momentarily, which in turn 
keeps the solenoid powered, which in turn keeps the gear engaged with the 
flywheel, which in turn allows the starter to act as a generator...and so on.

My starter has always made a strange noise on startup which lasts for about 
5 seconds after I move the key to the run position; I never really knew 
what it was.   John Taphorn & Co. were horrified when they heard it in the 
parking lot in Reno (apparently the noise is much more apparent outside the car; 
my cabin is so well soundproofed that it's not particularly dramatic from 
behind the wheel).

I actually got my starter from Pantera Performance Center and wired it the 
way they told me to, but I subsequently learned the error of my ways, and 
this weekend in fact, I'm going to re-wire it properly.

Here's a post from the GT40 forum that shows what can happen if the problem 
continues too long:

http://www.gt40s.com/forum/superformance-gt40s/28878-starter-gearwheel-2-tim
e-brocken-what-starter-do-you-use-roush-427-ir.html

Another scheme which hasn't been mentioned, is to simply fabricate a wire 
extension for the stock wire that runs from the key to the stock solenoid.   
Just unplug that wire from the solenoid, join it with an extension wire that 
leads to the new solenoid, and bypass the stock one entirely.   Move the 
big power cable from one side of the stock solenoid to the other, so that the 
solenoid's sole function is to serve as a junction block for the two battery 
cables that run from the battery, to the stock solenoid, and from the stock 
solenoid to the starter-mounted solenoid.

Mike