Re: [DML] Starting is such sweet sorrow

["therealdmcvegas" <DMCVegas@xxxx>]

You've got new components installed, and that's great. But you want to
make sure that both the new, and the old components are functioning
properly.

Follow the procedures in the Workshop Manual, and test the both the
Ballast Resistor, and the Ignition Coil with a voltmeter. If you've
done a tune up already, that's great. But but check both your work,
and the quality of compoents involved. Only replace the ignition coil
with a BOSCH equivalent, or better (I HIGHLY reccomend a new MSD Coil
& Ballast resistor). Stay away from Accell coils, and also stay away
from any ignition wire sets that don't say BOSCH. I've wasted money on
"performance" wires only to find they were leaking voltage, and arcing
to the block on 4 wires!

Also, check your electrical connections, and double-check the work
that you've done so far. Clean crimped wire connections with either
sand paper, or a regular pencil eraser. Both work quite well at
removing corrosion. And make sure the wires are securely connected to
the sparkplugs. They should "click" into place. If not, you may need
to slightly bend the connectors inside of the boot to grip the
terminals a bit better (or if your plugs came with them, swap out to
the larger terminals included). In addition, what did you gap the
plugs to? Too large a gap (like how the plugs are set fresh from the
box), and the car will not run properly due to a weak spark.

One thing I'd strongly advise to do is completly drain the gas tank,
and replace with fresh, premium gasoline. If you've got old gas, and
fuel system cleaner/treatment in it, consider it contaminated. Your
best bet to dispose of it is to pour it into a vehicle that you don't
care as much about, and let that car or truck burn it off (check the
back archives for details about fuel system cleaner problems). Bad
gasoline can have a VERY strong impact on how a car will run.

Start there, and check your results to see where you should take this
next. With the symptoms you've described, this could be any one number
of issues. Or it may be several issues combined. You won't know until
you take each troubleshooting step one at a time to find the root
problem(s).

-Robert
vin 6585 "X"