my starter is working now, i have fuel getting to the carb again, but when i turn the ignition i get nothing. i ll wait then try again and sometimes i hear the engine start to turn and kick in but then it stops and just cranks. i havent messed with my timing or the distributor. the distributor isnt loose either. theres new spark plugs but the same old plug wires.

someone said it could be my timing but i dont know why it would have changed. i dont know how to adjust timing and i thought the engine had to be running to adjust it in the first place. Any thoughts?

now i tried putting the old spark plugs back in and still nothing,.checked that plug wires were right and fully seated

if the motor fires then dies after you let off the key you have your starter wires on wrong. check them first. I believe you should have 2 wires on the big post and one on the small one.

it dosnt die when i let off the ignition. when i turn the igntion the starter turns, and i can see the fan and belts turning, but it just cranks and cranks and some times you can hear the engine start to turn over so i hold the ignition in the on position and pump the gas a little and it dies right away. i dont let go though cause it dosnt last long.

ill try the starter wiring, any other ideas anyone.

thanks for getting back to me by the way

This may sound stupid, but is the coil wire on tight? That's what happens when the coil wire is off, it will crank but not kick over. Just a suggestion......


Spoileddaddy

i checked that kind of stuff but i think i might be something related to that area. You mean the big plug wire from the center of the distributor cap to the center of the coil?

blown68bbc - i tried what you said about the wiring to the starter.

1)before i had the yellow(+) wire from the + side of ignition coil to R on the starter, the purple wire(leads to a cluster of wires into the wirewall) to the S starter terminal, and then the + battery cable to the big middle starter terminal.
this made the engine crank and almost turn over. this is how it was laid out on a wiring diagram for 72 chevelle.

2)after what you said i tried the yellow(+) ignition coil wire on the big connector with the + battery cable, and left the purple wire on the S terminal. this made the ignition stay on even with out the keys.it cranked and cranked but wouldnt turn over.

3)then i tried the purple wire on the larger terminal with the + battery cable and put the yellow(+) coil wire back on the R terminal. This made the ignition go on and off with the key but the starter wouldnt turn at all .


any other ideas anybody ?very frustrated

i put everything back to how it was in option #1. it almost turned over again. Should there be a wire from the bottom of the distributor to the negative side of the coil. its black and looks like a 20gauge wire. then theres also a second black 16g wire on the - side of coil leading to the firewall.

on the positive side of the coil there is a yellow wire to the R side of starter and a red wire to the firewall.

i do have a mystery wire. its a black 20g wire.it is coming from a litlle round metal transistor looking thing. its mounted to the metal ignition coil harness. there nothing going in or out of it except the broken wire.

could this have anything to do with vaccum lines to the carb?

First of all "turning over" means engine is being rotated by the starter, not firing or starting.

What kind of vehicle?
What type of distributor?
Have you checked to see if the plugs are getting spark?
Have you checked to see if the carburetor is getting gas?

sorrry i mean its not firing then.

its a 72 malibu.

its the stock points distributor. pre 1974 used points and after HEI correct?

yes the carb is getting gas.

i dont know how to check for spark. is it at the wires or spark plugs?

Pull the wire off the spark plug, stick a screwdriver up in the wire and hold it close to any ground while someone cranks the engine over as if trying to start it.
Don't hold onto the metal part of the screwdriver.

3 ways to check for spark
1. the wrong way
2. the better way
3. the right way

1. The wrong way, Hold on to coil wire and have your buddy crank the car
2. The better way, Have your buddy hold the coil wire and you crank the car
3. The right way. Snap-on or any tool guy makes a spark tester that looks like a spark plug with an aligator clip on it. Hook it to a wire and ground the clip. Then crank it over while you watch it. Not only should it spark, but it should be a strong blue spark. If its weak and yellow, you may get a spark in open air but it's not going to jump the gap under compression. But what ever you do, please stop switching your wires. You had them right the first time. The yellow wire is a 12 volt supply durring cranking that bypasses the restance wire to you coil from you ign in the run position. Thats what its for. The purple wire is the start wire. Make sure the yellow wire did not get pinched between the starter and block when you installed the starter. If you washed the moror before working on it, make sure there is no water in the cap or that you did not wipe out the points.

Hope this helps Bill

i checked for spark and there wasnt any thong at all. what does that mean?
i also checked the distributor cap and rotor and the both had burn marks one them and are a bit old looking. the points looked good though . no carbon tracks, burn marks or that type of thing. ill replace the cap and rotor.

could that be my proplem? a bad cap and rotor? also if i change the cap and rotor the timing and dwell dont need to be adjusted right?

Get the dwell set or you won't get any spark. Make sure you are on TDC with #1 plug wire in the right spot with the cap and rotor. If all else fails>>>>>get an HEI:D

If you haven't changed the points then do so along with a new resistor that sits on the points plate.

Agree with pizzi-man

I was going to tell you to disconnect the yellow wire then I found out you have the points distributor so scratch that idea. That was my problem trying to get my magnetic MSD distributor ignition to work...remove the yellow wire. But, do change the points and condenser. Sometimes the points build up over time and cause little or no spark.

could that resistor alone be the problem? the points look great and the outside appearance of the resistor look good too though.

i tried a spare ignition coil i had and still no spark. also put a new spark plug wire on the #1 plug and that didnt change anything.

i've been looking at Petronix Flamethrower HEI distributor for my next desperate attempt to fix this but am worried ill buy it and still no start. At least ill have a better dist when it does though.

anyone happy with petronix? i have no experience with them.