[68coupebte]

Calling all gurus.

I have just finished up putting a 302 in my coupe and I'm having an issue starting it. The current situation is that when I turn the key to start all it will do is turn over and over and backfire through the carb.

I already fixed an earlier ground issue, I am positive that the starter, solenoid, and battery are all wired correctly.

The thing that has puzzled me is that when using a test light, the distributor is not providing any power to the plug wire. When the key is in the "on" position, both terminals light up on the test light, but when I turn the key to start neither light up and the coil doesn't even light the test light.

My only ideas are that the ignition switch could be bad, the coil could be bad(but it is a brand new pertronix), the spark plugs could be bad, the timing might be off, or the wires could be wrong.

I don't have much experience with engines so any insight could help! If it is useful information, the engine was sitting for around year, but I bought all new accessories before tring to fire it up(battery, spark plug wires, starter, coil, distributor, carb, water pump).

Please help me, for I am lost. :crying:

 

[sp66stang]

are you getting voltage to the I terminal on the starter solenoid?

 

[Driveway]

Although you mention a new pertronixs coil, did you also get rid of the points also?

Either way, look at how the wires between the switch, coil, and solenoid are connected. You may not be getting the power to the coil to start, or run. In simple terms, they should make up a Y.

It wired correctly, then it may be the switch.

 

[Ivy66GT]

If its backfiring through the carb your spark plugs are working but the timing is screwed up. A cold engine can't fire without spark. You are firing the plugs with the intake valves open. That is the normal result when the distributor is installed incorrectly WRT to the crankshaft making the timing off by 180 distributor degrees.

Make sure the distributor and plug wires are correctly installed and not off by half revolution.

 

[68coupebte]

Haven't checked the solenoid, but will.

The distributor is new, but still a points system.

A friend told me that its firing very even so he doesnt think it is timing or wired wrong, but me and him could both be wrong. I installed the distributor to the exact position as the old one, and checked cylinder one for tdc when I wired the plugs, buuuuut I'm not a seasoned mechanic at all so i could be completely wrong. Will inspect further.

 

[Veronica]

Hello. Ditto to what Ivy said. If it is backfiring through the carb, it A) has to be getting spark, and B) the intake valve is open when it gets that spark. The easiest way to determine how far off your timing is ( it is definitely off some ) would be to have the aforementioned friend crank the motor while you have a timing light on it. If the timing looks ok with the light, the distributor was installed backwards. If it is obviously way off according to the light, adjust it to what it needs to be.

 

[Ivy66GT]

Your engine cranks and its fires; just fires at the wrong times. I doubt you will find anything wrong with your solenoid since every job its supposed to do is being accomplished.

You may think you installed the distributor the same as the old one but that may not be true. When you push the dizzy into place the gear on the bottom of it rotates the shaft quite a distance as the gears engage. Initial engagement isn't the real test, getting it right when the dizzy is seated is the important part. If all the spark plug wires are in the right places then either the gear on the bottom of your dizzy is engaged incorrectly or the entire unit is rotated incorrectly. Those are both variations of having it installed 'backwards'.

With #1 cylinder at TDC on the compression stroke (not the exhaust stroke; there are two TDCs) and the distributor rotor pointing to the #1 spark plug wire the points should just be opening. From there it should start and then you use your timing light to set the timing you want.

 

[Veronica]

Hi again. That's what I get for typing something in a hurry. What I said about it firing in the right place if the distributor was in backwards was a very silly thing to say. :gringreen The balancer will be in the same position that it is when firing in the right place, but, the #1 spark plug won't fire. The rotor will be pointing 180 degrees away from the #1 spark plug wire.