Starter apparatus for an internal combustion engine

The device has a front planetary speed reducer (19) rotatively connecting a pulley (80) to an armature shaft (14) driven by an electric motor (16). The reducer has planet gears (36) driving a sun gear (52), a planet carrier (40) on which the gears (36) are mounted and a ring gear (44) with teeth to drive the gears (36). The ring gear is housed in an inner bore (84) of the pulley and the carrier is fixed relative to a case (48).