Guest old 52 Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 hi all, i have a 52 olds with a 303. was running fine, parked it, the next day she wouldnt start. no spark to the plugs. i replace the coil, still nothing. i check all conections, battery cable coating crumbles when i check that. spark plugs look fouled. i figure i have 15,000 miles on the ignition so i might as well replace plugs, wires, cap, rotor, condensor, and points. still no go. upon review i notice the wire from the points to the dist is worn and frayed. what guage is that wire? i also want to change the coil wires as well and need to know what guage to use. right now they have, i assume the original fabric coated wires. also i changed the mounting of the coil from the fire wall to the intake manifold, which i believe was the original spot. is the coil grounded through the bracket? cause my bracket is pretty rusty, and wouldnt make a good connection. also mounted on the bracket is what looks like a condensor or maybe a resistor, and is hooked to the coil, however my other 303 engine doesnt have one. i hooked it up with the new coil, but nothing. i guess i need to know if its a condesor or resistor, looks just like a condensor. i have searched through many of the tech topics and have learned a lot, but still had questions. any help would be appreciated, need to get back on the road. now this all happened when the temp dropped below 30, i wouldnt think it would make a difference. but who knows. yeah, i get to work on my car outside in below 30 degree temps...is it spring yet? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest imported_JPIndusi Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 I assume this is a 6 volt system. In this case, number 14 AWG is the correct size for the wires running to the coil primary.The case of the coil must be connnected to a good ground.The condenser (capacitor) lead is connnected to the battery side of the coil, the case of the condenser is grounded on the coil bracket. This is used for radio interference suppression.DO NOT CONNECT A CONDENSER LEAD TO THE DISTRBUTOR SIDE OF THE COIL.Make sure the battery cable to the starter and ground cable to the frame or block are of the correct type for a 6 volt system. I would recommend nothing smaller than 0 gauge. Most auto parts stores sell cables for 12 volt cars and these are not heavy enough for 6 volt service.Good luck.Joe, BCA 33493 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Old Guy Posted December 20, 2007 Share Posted December 20, 2007 The first thing I would do is run a jumper from the positive post on the battery to the plus side of the coil and see if that will give you spark. If it does, then your problem is in the ignition switch or wiring. If it doesn't , after all you have replaced, I would check the ballast resistor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest old 52 Posted December 21, 2007 Share Posted December 21, 2007 thanks for the input, greatly appreciated. didnt get to work on car today, snowed all day. i want to get this straight, it is 6 volt. is the ballast resistor whats mounted on the coil bracket, and connected to the distributor side of the coil? which connects to the points?and why doesnt my other olds have one? or is it a condenser? i am a newbie when it comes to electrical. i will clean up the coil bracket and make sure the coil case is grounded. i also have to finish replacing the wires, weather permitting. thanks again for the help...mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest imported_JPIndusi Posted December 21, 2007 Share Posted December 21, 2007 I never saw a GM 6 volt car with a ballast resistor, so there probably is not one. What you have is probably a condenser for radio noise suppression. If you take off the distributor cap and look inside you will see another condenser. This should look like the one outside mounted on the coil bracket.For right now, disconnect the external condenser and be sure there is a good connection between the coil and the distributor.Good luck.Joe, BCA 33493 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frj Posted December 22, 2007 Share Posted December 22, 2007 "running a jumper from the positive post on the battery to the plus side of the coil and see if that will give you spark." is a good & easy test, condenser can be removed temporary so if it is causing short circuit it will also be checked this way. but god ground is # 1 thing no rust no paint etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest old 52 Posted December 22, 2007 Share Posted December 22, 2007 well, i sanded the coil case, bracket and the mount to the intake manifold.removed the condenser from the coil bracket. replaced the wire from the neagative side of the coil to the distributor, and the wire inside the distributor to the points. i had to work solo today, so i had nobody to crank the engine. however i did run my test light (which beeps) from the positive side of the battery to the negative side of the coil, when the key is in the run position it has constant juice, when i crank it over it blinks on and off..if i run the jumper from the positive side of the battery to the positive side of the coil, i assume i need to crank the engine to see if i have spark. i also used the test light to see if i was getting juice to the positive side of the coil, and i do with the key in the run position. can i use my test light to test inbetween components, like coil to distibutor cap? like i said i am a newbie with electical, and i am somewhat itimidated..also anyway i can crank the car and check for spark on my own? thanks again, you guys have been a great help...still learning, mike... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest imported_JPIndusi Posted December 23, 2007 Share Posted December 23, 2007 The test light will not help from the coil to the distributor cap because this is the secondary or high voltage side of the ignition system. It sounds like you made some progress and if the coil is OK you should crank engine and get spark at the plugs. I think this car had copper core wire for the high voltage wire from the coil tower to the center of the distbutor cap, also for the sparkplug wires as well.Good luck.Joe, BCA 33493. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest old 52 Posted December 23, 2007 Share Posted December 23, 2007 Joe, thanks for the reply. are you suggesting my new coil might not be good? or maybe still not grounded? anyway, its gonna be 40 degrees tomorrow so i will be back at it. hopefully i can get someone to turn the key, so i can see how far along the system i am getting spark. thanks again. any other sugestions would be graetly appreciated...mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest wombvette Posted December 27, 2007 Share Posted December 27, 2007 Coils do not need grounding. Not through the case. That thing will fire while being held in the air. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Albert Posted January 3, 2008 Share Posted January 3, 2008 Check the high voltage lead leaving the coil for spark, with about 1/4 inch gap to the block, if thats ok, check the distributer cap, for the carbon rod, from the center tower, make sure it will contact the center of the rotor, or the finger on the rotor is ok as well.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest old 52 Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 thanks again for the replies, heres where i am at. i have power from the ignition wire to the coil, i dont have power at the connection from the coil to the distribtor. i do have power to the wire when it is disconnected from distributor. if i reconnect that wire and test the connection while manually opening and closing the points the light flickers on and off. i do have spark from the coil output to the distributor cap, but not to the plugs. i have swapped out caps, rotors and plugs. i plan to double check wires in distributor, any other suggestions are welcome. looks to be above 30 degrees fri sat sun, thanks again for the help... mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Cannon Posted January 4, 2008 Share Posted January 4, 2008 Mike-If the distributor has moved (rotated) around far enough, the outer metal tang on the rotor will not line up close enough to the pins inside the cap for a spark to jump and you will get no spark at the plugs. See if you can crank the engine over and stop when piston in cylinder #1 is at top or near top on a compression stroke. Then see where points and cam are. Rotate distributor body if you need to, to get points just opening. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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