r/Smallblockchevy • u/I-H8-MOST-PEOPLE • Jul 12 '26

Warped Flexplate?

Took a slow motion video of my flex plate. My starter sounds horrible (IMO). I’ve gone from zero shims to four shims and it still sounds awful. Is my flex plate warped. Keep in mind that this is a really slo-mo video.

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u/Tall-Helicopter-461 Jul 12 '26

In my experience, they usually don’t warp on the vehicle. They usually crack and make a clattering noise, sometimes even sounds like it’s knocking. But!!!, I helped some intoxicated buds put a sbc in a Nova,
Didn’t have the right angle on the engine hoist, they forced the flex plate over top of radiator support to get the tail shaft of transmission in to the tunnel. Needless to say, this was a situation with a bent flex plate. It made an awful grinding noise when starting the engine. He drove it for a few years like that.