On Sat, 8 Mar 1997, Jurgen Hartwig wrote:
> Quick question:
> Do ignition coils just stop all of a sudden(no more spark)?
Your '70 uses points, a coil, and a condenser. This SYSTEM cannot
work if the condenser is either shorted, or open. I've had two
condensers fail open over the years, and lost spark both times.
Not a weak spark, but dead! Never had a coil go bad.
> If you car doesn't start and you crank it for a a few minutes in 5
> seconds spurts, does it ever flood, or do you ever smell gas?
Only if the fuel pump is still working... (that's another story).
> I know it's either gas or ignition. I was able to get it started after
> a few minutes, but it ran really rough, hinting me to ignition. I
You might want to check the point gap. Without regular lubrication, the
rubbing block tends to wear down, causing the point gap to close up.
The car ends up barely running. It will idle all day, but has no power.
> assume I'm heading in the right direction. I'm thinking of just yanking
> some of the old ignition components(ignition coil, points, cap, rotor),
> and just replacing them all at once. They are really old, and I know
If you want to learn how to do the diagnosing of your car, DON'T use the
shotgun approach. ONLY CHANGE ONE THING AT A TIME, and TEST the result
as you do your work. Makes life much easier next time you have a glitch
> don't have any place except a parking garage to work in, I have no time
> because Finals are coming up, so I figured rip-out and replace is the
> way to go.
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