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Starters
Pontiac V8 Starters
Spin It Every Time — Starters for Pontiac V8s
A Pontiac starter has to spin a big, high compression V8 while living next to a header and an oil pan kick-out. The factory unit is heavy, draws a lot of current, and soaks up heat. A mini starter fixes all three, which is why nearly everything here is gear reduction.
Butler stocks IMI mini starters in several motor sizes including Butler-milled versions, Powermaster XS Torque and Ultra Torque units, a TCI racing starter, and the adapter plate that lets a 1961-64 block run a later transmission.
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1. Block Mount or Bell Housing Mount
Pontiac moved the starter mounting, and that is the first question.
| 1964 and later | The starter bolts to the block. That covers the great majority of Pontiac V8s and almost every mini starter Butler stocks. |
| 1961-64 389-421 | These use a bell housing mounted starter. IMI builds a bell housing mount mini starter for them, rated 1.2 kW with 4.4:1 gear reduction and recommended for up to 11:1 compression. |
| Mixing eras | Butler's starter adapter plate mounts a starter on a 1961-64 block when running a later transmission. It is 1/4" thick, automatic only, and requires an early bell-housing-mount starter and a 1965 or later flexplate. With a 1963 or earlier block the bolt holes in the later transmission open from 3/8 to 7/16. The pre-64 crank pilot hole is 1.625" while a newer converter snout is around 1.75", and the pilot hole also needs to be deeper. Countersunk bolts included. |
2. IMI Mini Starters and the Butler-Milled Versions
The IMI units are the everyday answer for a street or street/strip Pontiac. They use a genuine Nippon Denso motor coupled to IMI's own design, with 16 clocking positions, 4.4:1 gear reduction and a 175 amp draw at full load, and they come with bolts and shims.
| 1.2 kW | The base block-mount unit for 1964 and later, designed for driver's side mount. Butler notes it can be used with Ram Air exhaust manifolds. |
| 1.4 kW | Rated 1.88 HP and recommended for up to 14:1 compression, on a machined aluminum adapter block with an adjustable drive end housing. This is the one for a big-inch, high compression street engine. |
| 2.0 kW | The largest IMI block-mount motor Butler lists for 1964 and later. |
| Butler-milled | Butler has IMI mill the mounting pad an extra .075" for better fitment when the engine runs a flywheel, and includes an extra shim for flexplate use. Offered on the 1.2 kW and 1.4 kW units. If you are running a manual behind the engine, start here. |
| Early four cylinder | IMI also builds a mini starter for the 1961-1963 Pontiac four cylinder 3.2L, replacing the Delco 1107796 or Lester 3659. |
3. Race Starters and High Compression
When compression climbs or weight comes out, the requirements change.
| Powermaster XS Torque | Up to 200 ft-lbs at 4.4:1 gear reduction, up to 1.4 kW and 1.8 HP, on an adjustable billet mounting block. Powermaster calls it the lightest 200 ft-lb starter available and recommends it up to 18:1 compression, and for cars where heat soak or header clearance is the problem. The InfiCLOCK system gives 360 degree rotation. It will clear most oil pans. |
| Powermaster Ultra Torque | 250+ ft-lbs from a 2.5 kW, 3.4 HP motor on a machined aluminum adjustable mounting block, built for big cubic inch engines and designed to work with most oversized kickout oil pans. Recommended for race applications; it may not work with manifolds and standard headers, and custom headers may be required. |
| TCI racing starter | Built by Hitachi for TCI, new rather than rebuilt, 11.5 lbs installed, with full ball bearing construction, a heat and vibration resistant encapsulated armature, a heavy duty solenoid using a contact disc, and a low draw of 210-250 amps at full load. Also a race recommendation with the same header caveat. |
| Gear reduction alternative | A 3.75:1 gear reduction mini starter is also listed for 1967 400 and all 428 applications, which may require clearancing the block for the starter motor and will not work with some Ram Air exhaust manifolds. |
4. Clearance and Setup
A starter that fits on the bench can still foul once the exhaust is on.
| Exhaust | The IMI block-mount units can be used with Ram Air exhaust manifolds. The Powermaster race units and the TCI unit may not clear manifolds or standard headers. |
| Oil pan | Kick-out and high capacity pans crowd the starter. The Ultra Torque is specifically built to work with most oversized kickout pans, which is the pairing to look at if you have gone to a deep race pan. |
| Pinion engagement | IMI specifies starter pinion to ring gear clearance of 0.100", plus or minus 0.050". Shims are included, so set it rather than assuming it. |
| Wiring | If the old starter had an R and an S wire and the new one has a single pigtail, IMI's guidance is to clip the S wire into the supplied spade receptacle and land the R wire on the main 12 volt stud under the boot with a ring terminal. |
Pick by compression and by what sits next to the starter. A 1.4 kW mini starter handles most street Pontiacs; take the Butler-milled version if there is a flywheel behind the engine, and check header clearance before committing to a race unit.
Not sure what your Pontiac needs?
Call our tech team at 866-762-7527. Tell us your engine, heads, car, and power goal, and we will put the parts together as one combination that works.