online170

Ok, so long story short theres no spark, and i think the culprit is somewhere in the distributor. Heres the details.

1987 Firebird, with a 1973 355ci block. The distributor is a later HEI style, with original style cap from whatever it was off of, and a Super ACCEL coil. Worth noting, the coil was in a car crash 2 years ago that destroyed the frame of the car (78 monte carlo), and was pretty banged up. But the inerts were decent, so i put it on my car, and drove around with it for a year, with no real probs. But i felt it needed to be replaced eventually.

Also worth noting, over the winter i had done a 700R4 TO T56 swap, and also switched the original 70's style starter for a 95 LT1 trans am style starter. In the process, there was a time where i was lowering the engine, and the full weight of the engine was resting on the "distributor" essentially the coil and cap.

Ok, so thats all the contributing factors, and heres what happened today (first day out with the firebird).

Everything was put back together (interior panel wise), and when we went to start the car, it would crank but not start. It did this over the winter when i tried to start it, after i finished the T56 swap. It was because i had the BAT terminal disconnected (with is not really a connector anymore, but a spliced in female spade connector). I figured over the winter i hadnt pluged it in right, and instead ran a wire from the battery straight to the terminal. (it worked).

Again, a few weeks ago, i started the car, and it wouldnt. SO i toggled the existing female spade connector, and kept playing with it, until it started. I found that if i pushed it "in" too far, so the coil terminals "lifted" a bit, it wouldnt start, but if i pulled back "out" a lil and seated the terminals, it would start.

Tried the same logic today, and it wouldnt work...... So, i decided to cut off the female spade connector, as it was kind of old and ratty looking, and spliced in a new one. Still no start, just cranking.....

After a little more random toggling, it finally started, we backed out, and went for a drive. Got up to 4th gear, and came to a stop light, and at the stop light, the car died...... Pushed it back home and went to plan B.

I decided it was time to replace the cap and coil. So i went and spent $150 on a BRAND NEW Super ACCEL coil, Cap and Rotor. Came back, reinstalled the new stuff, plugged in the wires, as per normal, checked the correct order, and...... crank crank crank, and no start.

So before i kicked the car and decided to give up, i checked a few more things.

First of all, theres THREE major connectors on the coil. One is BAT, the other is TACH (-) next to the BAT, and the third is 3 wires, that come out of the distributor's base, and into the coil.

I first pulled out the BAT terminal wire (ign wire), and with the ign ON, i checked for power with a test light, with respect to ground. It lit up, so the BAT has power.....

Second, i plugged in the ign wire, to the BAT terminal and checked for power at the TACH(-) terminal with respect to ground. It lit up, so it had power.

Third, i left the ign wire plugged in, and the ign ON, i put the test light on the TACH terminal, and the other end at the TACH wire. It did not light up, so it was not travelling through the TACH wire.

Is this my problem? I thought the TACH didnt matter.

Fourth, i pulled off the number one plug wire, and with a screwdriver in it, i cranked, and did not notice an arc.

So i guess the Coil is getting power, but the Plugs, and plug wires are not..... Whats the problem????

I will recheck my installation in the morning just to make sure, but im 99% sure i did it correctly. Any ideas appreciated.

(sorry for the long read, heres an image of the thirdgen youd be helping...)

online170

Hmm, 9 views and no responses eh??? I need to know how to test the various components, to figure out where the spark is going missing.

However I THINK i found the problem, but i havent tested it yet. Will keep you guys updated on how it goes. Heres what i found.


The 3 prong connector, that the GROUND is also connected to, had the POSITIVE side prong, slid down into the connector. Im almost certain it wasnt making contact with the coil. Maybe this was the prob?

Heres some pix, you can see me touching the connector, and the 3 slots, but one prong seems to be missing. Another view shows, its slid down.

online170

It didnt do anything. I still have the same issue.

greatpumpkin_68

i would pull the ignition module and take it to your local auto parts store and have it tested. i am having the same problem with my car (305 tpi) and a module fixed it for a minute.. but appearantly that wasn't my only issue. i am still searching for an answer. but yeah.. check the module.

online170

My dad suggested the module as well. He said, it was the only thing left if ive replaced, the coil, cap and rotor.

The car SEEMS to be working now. I went for a 1/2 hour drive, shutting off and starting it several times just to make sure, and it seemed to start up fine every time.

All we did, is take apart the cap, coil and rotor assembly, cleaned off all the contact points, regreased the washer with di-electric grease, and reassembled very carefully, after testing each component with an ohmeter.

We did this after testing to make sure i still had 12V going to the ign wire while cranking. Sometimes, for some reason, the voltage drops while cranking at that wire, needing an auxiliary source. But that wasnt my problem.

So i dont know what happened, but it seems to be working now...... Will keep you updated if it doesnt.