I need your help! Two weeks ago I was driving my TF 1500 to a car show
90 miles away (the first time the car had been on the road in 25
years). It ran great at 65 to 70 miles per hour, no problems at all.
However, after about 40 miles the water pump started leaking a little.
After, 65 miles it started to miss a little. I stopped and checked the
distributor cap, dried it out and wrapped plastic around it. It started
right up and ran fine but after a few more miles it started to miss and
died. I pulled off along the Interstate and started to check things
out. Float bowels had plenty of gas and a good flow of gas was flowing
from the fuel line. I used my test lamp and determined that I had power
to the distributor and coil. The points were opening and closing fine
so I started checking spark. I soon determined that I had no spark at
all, even if I stuck a screwdriver right in to the coil. I had replaced
the plugs, points, distributor cap, rotor, condenser and coil. The
original spark plug wires were still in place except for the coil wire
because Abington Spares sent me a Lucas Sport Coil without a screw in
top; therefor, I had used an old TR6 coil wire. All of the new ignition
parts looked fine. I reinstalled the old condenser, but still no
spark. I figured that my coil was bad and since I forgot to bring the
old one, I called my wife on the cell phone and told her to bring the
truck and trailer. I then got to have fun loading the car on the
trailer in the rain along side the Interstate with traffic whizzing by
at 75 mph inches away. To hake a long story short, one of the ramps
slipped and when I was laying under the car with the jack under the
differential trying to get the left ring spring shackle off of the ramp
the car attacked me. Actually as soon as the shackle lifted off of the
ram the car rolled backwards quickly. Somehow I managed to shoot out
from under the car without being run over and then run a few steps down
the side of the road , catch up to the car, reach inside and pull the
emergency brake handle before the car hit anyone (luckily I had removed
the drivers side (rhd car) side curtain just for such an eventuality. I
then went on to the show and won first place (with the car still on the
trailer) since no other T series MGs elected to show up in the rain. I
then went home and started swapping coils, dist. caps and condensers,
and hot-wired the coil directly to the distributor all to no avail.
Sometimes I would have spark and the car would run fine for a few
seconds and then it would die and I would have no spark at all again.
Last weekend I determined that the connectors on the wires to
distributor (from the ignition and to the dist.) were a little loose and
that the coil wire was bad (very high resistance). I put the old coil
wire and lucas sport coil (with a screw on terminal) back in and
replaced the loose connectors and the car ran perfectly, though I didn't
have time to really drive anywhere. Note that I am now using the
original spark plug wires and coil wires which are made of stranded
copper and have the proper screw on terminals and copper discs.
This afternoon I drove the car in to town, about 10 miles away, to get a
flat tire fixed (those roofing nails will get you every time!). The car
ran perfectly and after several stops I headed back home. When I was
almost home and driving 55 mph hour down the highway the car suddenly
sputtered, backfired once and died in quick succession. I stopped and
started to check it out and discovered that I again had now spark. I
can get spark for a few seconds, and then it quits again. I had my wife
tow me home, we made it fine except for her starting too quick and
pulling one side of the bumper off (luckily it was the old one that
needed replaced). I can get the car to start and run for a few seconds,
but then it dies again and I have no spark. These ignition systems are
pretty simple but I am at loss with what is going on. I haven't really
dived in to it again this time since I wanted to ask everyone's opinion
first. Does anyone have any ideas? I have to go to another car show
next weekend about 70 miles away and would like to drive the car but I
might be forced to trailer it if I can't get this sorted out. Thanks.
Kevin Brown '54 MGTF 1500 rhd
Odessa, MO
|