Mondial T Starter Overhaul/Repair

The starter in my 93 Mondial T got fried due to a sticky ignition switch. Ignition switch fixed with a shot of wet graphite film lubricant. The starter still worked but the motor clearly overheated and upon removal the solenoid contacts were also clearly badly worn.
The OEM starter is a Nippondenso unit. Searching for a new replacement several different places quoted me a replacement Bosch unit. Figuring it would be a better quality unit than the OEM Nippondenso unit I ordered one.

The Bosch unit several places quoted me goes by the part no. SR-488X. Upon receiving it it was clear it wouldn't fit.The nose of the starter had the correct bolt pattern, size and clearly would engage the ring gear but the Bosch starter was a direct drive rather than geared motor and hence was considerably longer. It would not clear the transaxle housing.

The only new OEM Denso ( Nippondenso is rebranding it self as simply Denso) starter I could find cost almost $750. No overhauled units to be had. I contated Denso's tech support and they were able to cross reference the original Ferrari Part No. 141706 (superceded by Ferrari Part No. 151802) is cross referenced to Denso Part No. 128000-8181. I was told this Denso part was made only for Ferrari but Denso provided me with a complete internal parts list.

I contacted the largest starter overhauler I could find, Nation's Starter Alternator (www.nationsStarterAlternator.com) , and forwarded them the parts list. They told me they could get all the internal parts and shouldn't have a problem repairing my starter.

It took them about a week to turn around the stater. When I got it back it looked like new with a completely new motor assembly and solenoid. The engagement gear looked new also. The only original part looked like the reduction gear housing. After installation the engine never cranked faster. The total cost including shipping was $184.95.
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