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Engine problems.

blue69runner

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While driving my Roadrunner yesterday. Was running fine the 383 was humming along then it started braking up and shut down. Pump the pedal and it fires but dies. Tried several times to get it to run. Same over and over. It fired but just died. Have fuel in the site glass on the new Holley brawler. I am stumped any thoughts Would be appreciated. May be coil or my ECU. I am lost. It is frustrating to say the least the new coil is not that old.
 
Thought about that but it is not that old. They do go bad thanks will add that to my list to check.
 
Dumb as it sounds, if it has a choke plate make sure it's not closing.
Also try dripping fuel through the carb and see if you can keep it going.
If it will not run like that it's probably on the electric side.
 
I can find what size ballast resistor I need. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Yes looked into my manual but no luck on size of resistor.
 
I can find what size ballast resistor I need. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Yes looked into my manual but no luck on size of resistor.
Points or electronic ?
Points just use the standard old 2 spade , some of the 73 and up use a quad set , the it depends on if you have a 4 pin or 5 pin ECU.
To be honest I've seen conversions run on the old original 2 spade ballast with no problem.
If Bob shows up for God's sake don't call it a dizzy.
 
I have had issues with a few Holley carbs new out of the box that had debris still left in them.
On an Avenger carb, found metal shavings in the jet well behind the jets. Just poor QC.
Now when I buy a new carb, I pull it apart and clean/blow out all the passages before using it.
That might not be your problem, but you said it was a new part on the car.
 
Rather than just guess... troubleshoot. Ignition circuit :In run position, do you have voltage at coil ? Do you have spark at plug end of cable ?
 
Check to make sure you actually have a good connection at the ballast resistor female connector. If it's an aftermarket harness it may not be as tight as oem. Also, if you're running points, not all resistors are the same. They do come in different ohm ratings. I'm running a 1.4Ω coil with a 0.5Ω resistor.
 
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My vote goes for the coil. Likely not the ballast resistor. I think that is a myth the Chevvie boys dreamt up. Electronic ignition takes a different 2-spade resistor than points ignition.
 
Most times a coil initially starts acting up when it gets hot but works OK after the engine cools off. If it won’t start cold I would speculate it’s not the coil. Is there gas inside the carb bores? If dry I would suspect ignition but really need to do some general checks like WileE said.

If the car dies like a rock when you release the key from starting that could be a ballast resister as it’s not in the start circuit. But most of them are pretty durable. Easy to check for continuity between the terminals with a test meter.
 
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Rather than just guess... troubleshoot. Ignition circuit :In run position, do you have voltage at coil ? Do you have spark at plug end of cable ?
^^^^ this. Disconnect and reconnect the center plug of the bulkhead. Paying attention to the blue /white tracer wire.
 
I worked in a garage when these cars were new/barely used. One of the things I learned from the veteran mechanics was "don't jump to conclusions". We would have "troubleshooting charts" to follow, and would almost always lead to the source of the problem. After a time, these troubleshooting flow-charts would be in your head.
 
Ok not enough info sorry. After market electronic ignition. Bought from summit. Cleaned the bulkhead connections. Checked my battery terminal's. It fires up and shakes violently. It just might be the coil will be off to get one tomorrow. It is not that old, but we know electronic parts now days. Getting 4 volts to coil when key is in the on position. Can't check volts when starting the car. Thought it might be the start relay, but it does crank up. I had been driving the car for over an hour and was going through town to see how the temp. did in traffic. Have a seven-blade fan on the car now. It was running like a champ. I had replaced one coil already some time ago. Thanks for all the info.
 
Which aftermarket ign????????????????? This is like pulling teeth.....
The coil needs to match the ign system.
 
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