A friend of mine has an 85 5speed v6 fiero with lots of miles. He drove teh car everyday and then was pushing it one day and heard a "noise." He drove it with intermittant problems. It now has new distributor, control module, wires, plugs, cap, rotor, and coil. When I first took a look at it I checked teh timing and made sure it all had been installed correctly. It gets teh fuel pump prime, but only intermittant spark. It did have some kind of electrical issue with melted wires but it clearly was just superficial burn to the insulation so it should not be an issue.
Now, It had been driven several miles and then parked. Has not started since then and is not getting consistant spark. He replaced the new coil with another new coil and smae exact situation.
What should we look to? Thank you in advance for your help! Scott
IP: Logged
08:43 PM
PFF
System Bot
psychosurfer Member
Posts: 2014 From: Jefferson, GA USA Registered: Mar 2006
Check the ignition module and it's connectors. This part signals the ECM to fire the coil and is the source of most ignition problems, it also has a tendency to go bad fairly quick if you don't use a good heat sink compound when you install it. The GM ones tend to last better than the aftermarket ones.
IP: Logged
09:08 PM
tjm4fun Member
Posts: 3781 From: Long Island, NY USA Registered: Feb 2006
the connectors for the ign module are known to cause problems, try wiggling them and see if that gets spark. Wires with melted off insulation also get water in them, they wick it up, and corrode internally and break. best to splice in new wire, cut the old one back to good copper and splice them. solder, shrinkwrap and liquid electic tape the splices.
when you checked the timing, did you jumper the a-b pins at the aldl connector?
IP: Logged
09:16 PM
psychosurfer Member
Posts: 2014 From: Jefferson, GA USA Registered: Mar 2006
Yeah I jumped the a-b terminals when adjusting teh timing. when I got there I checked teh wires to the control module they were shorted at a but connector. I redid them and then checked for continuity and it was good. The control modual is new as well but I dont knwo if he used teh electric grease when he installed it. The wires that were damaged should be for the ac and not effect eh running. The head scratching starts with why it ran for several miles and tehn now does not get spark. Im trying to keep him from crushing this very complete car but am having no luck getting it running.
IP: Logged
09:25 PM
stephsformula Member
Posts: 611 From: sacramento,ca.95815 Registered: May 2006
I was having similar problem with my new formula.Turned out yhe pigtail from dist. module was bad. Both wires inside the coil end connector were losing connection. bought a new on from fierostore and the problem fixed.
IP: Logged
10:15 PM
Raydar Member
Posts: 41430 From: Carrollton GA. Out in the... country. Registered: Oct 1999
Check all of the connectors at the ignition module and on top of the coil. (Did you say that one of them was shorted? If two of the wrong wires were touching, it could have damaged something.) Just for grins, unplug the tach filter. (It's the little cylindrical thing, under the coil.) If the filter is shorted it will kill the ignition completely. If it runs, just leave it unplugged until you can get a replacement. (Your tach won't work, but WTH...)
I was having similar problem with my new formula.Turned out yhe pigtail from dist. module was bad. Both wires inside the coil end connector were losing connection. bought a new on from fierostore and the problem fixed.
Ditto,Had the same exact thing happen to me, messed with it for months until a mechanic buddy told me to try the above---bingo it did the trick...
IP: Logged
01:57 AM
fiero1969 Member
Posts: 502 From: greenbay wisconsin Registered: Feb 2004