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The 168 tooth flex plate/flywheel is bigger in diameter than the 153 tooth.If your block has 3 bolt holes to mount your starter(mines didn't),you could use either wheel you want.The 168 tooth wheel will need the starter to be mounted in the staggered position.the 153 tooth will need the starter to be mounted inline.
yes. a starter made for the 168 tooth flywheel would not engage a 153 tooth flywheel.
Either 153 or 168. If it has an automatic transmission, it's 153. If it's a manual transmission, it will have 153 for the 1.5" clutch and 168 for the 11" clutch. An easy way to tell is the starter bolts. If both bolts are the same distance from the starter nose, it's a 153 tooth flywheel. If the starter bolts are staggered diagonally from the starter nose (one is farther from the nose than the other) you have the bigger 168 tooth flywheel.
No. Chevy uses a number of different noses for their starters. The size of the flywheel and year and model of engine determine what nose is needed. The 153 tooth flywheel is smaller in diamaiater than the 168 tooth flywheel. If you want to use a starter from a 168 tooth flywheel on a 153 tooth flywheel the nose from the smaller flywheel starter will have to be exchanged onto the larger flywheel prior to using it.
Just as the name implies the 168 tooth flywheel has 168 tooth ring gear and the 153 tooth flywheel has 153 teeth on it's ring gear. In the "old days" of high performance the manual 4 speed transmissions allowed a larger diameter 11" clutch to be used with the higher performance engines with the larger 168 tooth wheel. In addition to this the larger diamater flywheel gives the starter better mechanical advantage to turn over high compression engines because of the greater number of teeth on the larger ring gears. Chevy uses a number of different starter noses on their starters. This is the aluminum piece that the bendix gear is in at the "business end" of the starter. This nose is the piece that mounts the starter to the block. This nose is the part of the starter that moves the starter motor in closer to the flywheel on the 153 tooth and farther out away from the flywheel on the 168 tooth wheels. I believe the starter motors are mostly the same except for the HD starters which have a longer stator and rotor for the high compression engines of "the old days". These longer starters allowed the starter motors to develop more torque to turn the higher compression engines over to start them.
The gear is the same, but the nose cone is different.
Most of those engines were drilled for either starter bolt pattern. What matters is that you get the right starter for the size flywheel you're using. The 153 tooth and the 168 tooth require their own starter nose cone. Except for the aftermarket gear reduction starters which are usually drilled for either flywheel.
Could be the starter drive is not engaging or perhaps you're using the wrong holes for your flywheel. If you have a 153 tooth ring and have the starter in the 168 tooth position, the gears would not mesh. Did it ever start? if it did ,most likely the starter drive is broken, or the pinion ,or flywheel are stripped of their teeth. Bendix is broken, Starter too far from ring gear, broken bendix throwout fork.
I did the same thing in a CJ7: 350 v8 -151 bell h.- t4 trans. You will be limited to a 10.5" clutch and fly wheel. Advanced Adapters is who I got it from,and I do beleave it was 153 tooth so I also had to get a starter to fit an older 350, try 1978. Hope this is helpful. Any other Q's send to Buster70 shovel@ myjeepsace.com
With the inline bolt arrangement for the 153 tooth flywheel, the stock GM starter used a nose with a short and a long bolt. The short bolt had a 1 7/8" shank and the long bolt had a 4 5/8" shank length. With a stock GM starter for the 168 tooth flywheel (most SBC and BBCs), the bolt arrangement is staggered; both bolts are 4 3/8" long. With the newer mini-starters, the bolts are 3.7" long; if there are two sets of inline holes, the starter may be used with either 153 or 168 tooth flywheels. All of these starter bolts require a cross-hatch marking on the shank to center the bolt as it enters the block to accurately locate the starter. Ensure that the cross hatch extends about halfway beyond the bolt boss.
Some starters are intended for a 153 tooth flywheel, some for a 168 tooth flywheel. Most 307's had 153's, and most 350's had 168's, but you could put a 153 on a 350 or a 168 one a 307. Both engines are internally balanced, so as long as you have the correct starter for the flywheel, it will work. The one other difference between Chevy starters, is the length of the armature. The longer one is heavy duty, the shorter one is standard duty. Either will work as long as it's mated with the right flywheel.
Theres 153 and 168 tooth flywheels. Are there anymore?