spark I miss you.... 71 Dart

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kickywow

kickywow

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the last time my car ran in september it ran good, i knew i had weak spark but i don't know where it is from, i replaced the old points distributor, with a new electronic ignition, where i wired it up, replaced the distributor, and the electronic box, and the coil, i saw it spark one time today and then nothin, ive tested at the distributor, and the plug, my question, is there anything i could be missing, could it be my battery, some little box somewhere i don't know about, is there different types of coils one for electronic and one for points? help me out i wanna hear my car rumble again.:-D
 
on the coil...take a test light and make sure you have power and ground w/ key on engine off...KOEO.....if all good....put test light on the ground side of the coil and crank over does the test light flash...get back to me...
 
Make sure the motor is grounded to the chassis , I had the same problem and all it was is the small black wire from the negative battery post to the body.
 
with the key on and the engine off, the light is on both sides, when i crank it over it goes off on both sides, i did this test before and it only flashed when the car ran i think? what does that mean?
 
and im pretty sure my grounds are good, i've re wired them, the one from battery to engine, from battery to ignition box, and to the frame, i think it must be ground, heres what gets me i connected a wire from the postive battery terminal to the positive on the coil and i still could not see a spark...
 
it should pulse/flash upon cranking engine at coil....sounds like a dist problem...pick up or halofex switch in the dist...Am I right guys....Their is a way to diag this correctly...let me do some checking...I assume v8....is the elctronic box new, or used
 
The + positive side of the coil must have voltage when the engine is cranking,or you will not have spark. Could be a ignition switch , ballast resistor or wiring problem.
 
this all worked before, i had a guess that the new electronic box may be blown, its brand new, cant be distributor?, i check for spark at the plug from the coil to the distributor, the resistor is also new... its a 318. Distributor is also new.
 
Hello,
Did your problem get resolved???
I have the same thing wrong with one of my Demon 340's ....
It has good grounds..( I cleaned and check the grounds for the starter relay, head to firewall, head to battery and onto the radiator support. Even cleaned the grounds and mounting areas off all I could think of..
The battery is brand new and fully charged.
The started relay is also new.
The voltage regulator is grounded to the firewall and has a nut also applied from behind the firewall to keep it good and tight. The voltage regulator is also brand new!
The ECU is a new one and has had it's bottom sanded and the paint cleaned off and also reattatched and used a pair of nuts behind the inner fenders to keep a good ground.
The ballast resistor is also new.
The distributor is a stock replacement also brand new.
The wiring harness is a new M&H and installed properly.
I have current passing thru the firewall and it turns over using the key inside.
All lights, radio, etc are still working as they should.
The ground wire from the steering column to the mounting is also hooked up.
The coil is brand new and I have confirmed that power is going to it with a test light.
It showes power on the positive side and the test light is dimmer than I think it should be...
The ballast resistor has power on all four corners, but it has a dimmer light on the bottom right side. ( I assume the power once running brings this up in power?)
I have been restoring this demon 340 and recently repainted it inside and out.
again, I cleaned all the grounds I could think off...
It is GK6 brown mettalic, with black stripes,black vinyl top, 4 speed and 8 3/4 with 3.23 gears black deluxe interior.
I am stumped as to why I have no spark out of the coil ????
What do I test next?
I read most all of the posts here on the subject and short of rewiring it I am stumped!
The harness seems to be wired correctly and I am using an actual dodge service manual that has the wiring diagrams for a reference..
The amp gauge in the dash goes down "to the discharge side" as it should when key is in the one position.
I can also turn the motor with the starter relay and a screwdriver with the key on and still get no spark ( remember the key turns the motor over as it should be !!! too)
It all worked before I started the restoration and I also unhooked the alternator to be sure of no direct short or something.
Still no spark.
I can take the coil wire out of the cap and hold it close to a ground and see no spark...
In the past I always thought this is a ballast or distrubutor or ecu problem.
So I have replaced them all..
Still no spark out of coil.
It is all factory wiring as the car was born with, but replaced with new harness for engine.
5 pin ecu, dual ballast,
No ac or power steering to worry about..

What do I check next??
All items I can think of are now new!!!
I seen your post and was curious as to the outcome??? Did you get it to run?
Thankyou for your time.
Grant Eaton 719-330-0468
This is a 72' original 340 demon.
I have other parts from other demons and tried swapping the distributor with a known to be good one from one of my 72 GSS's and still no spark.
I tried using a new ecu replacement ecu made by MSD for the chrysler ignition and still no spark out of coil.( not positive that ecu was working or not yet, but was sold to me as a good one from a respectable friend..
Anyone had this "no spark out of coil happen?
Thanks in advance....
 
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