Editing Starter (engine) (section)

===Gear reduction===
{{Listen
 |filename = Chry_1.5OSGR_Starter.ogg
 |description = A Chrysler gear-reduction starter cranks a V8 engine
 |type = sound
 |pos = right
 |title= Hear a gear-reduction starter
}}

In 1962, [[Chrysler]] introduced a starter incorporating a [[gear]]train between the motor and the drive shaft. The motor shaft included integrally cut gear teeth forming a pinion that meshes with a larger adjacent driven gear to provide a [[gear reduction]] ratio of 3.75:1. This permitted the use of a higher-speed, lower-current, lighter and more compact motor assembly while increasing cranking torque.<ref>{{citation|title=The 1962 Starting Motor and Alternator |publisher=Chrysler Corporation |date=November 1961}}</ref> Variants of this starter design were used on most rear- and four-wheel-drive vehicles produced by Chrysler Corporation from 1962 through 1987. It makes a unique, distinct sound when cranking the engine, which led to it being nicknamed the "Highland Park Hummingbird"—a reference to Chrysler's headquarters in [[Highland Park, Michigan]].<ref>{{cite journal |title=Memorable Mirada |journal=Hemmings Classic Car |date=June 2007 |first=David |last=LaChance |url= http://www.hemmings.com/hcc/stories/2007/06/01/hmn_feature7.html |quote=...the twitterings of the Highland Park hummingbird, Mopar's famous gear-reduction starter... |access-date=25 May 2015}}</ref>

The Chrysler gear-reduction starter formed the conceptual basis for the gear-reduction starters that now predominate in vehicles on the road. Many Japanese automakers phased in gear reduction starters in the 1970s and 1980s.{{Citation needed|date=November 2011}} Light aircraft engines also made extensive use of this kind of starter, because its light weight offered an advantage.

Those starters not employing offset gear trains like the Chrysler unit generally employ planetary [[epicyclic gearing|epicyclic gear trains]] instead. Direct-drive starters are almost entirely obsolete owing to their larger size, heavier weight and higher current requirements.{{Citation needed|date=November 2011}}