Charles,
I run electronic ignition and have had a unit go bad. I don't think
you'd get even a backfire it your module went bad. Get a Bentley
workshop manual or Haynes. Get a multimeter or a continuity light.
Follow the step-by-step instructions in the manual for isolating an
electrical fault. Start early in the morning. BTW, I would argue that
the intermittency indicates a less-than terminal problem.
Good luck,
Jeff
At 4:47 PM -0500 12/18/99, Charles D. Sorkin wrote:
>Hello list:
>
>How can I determine if an electronic ignition system (brand unknown) has
>failed?
>
>I ask this because I am once again having difficulty starting the '74
>Midget. Starter is turning the motor, but engine does not start. Unlike
>the previous time this happened, I am now getting a single loud backfire
>through the tailpipe when disengaging the key. On pulling the sparkplugs,
>I noticed that the number 4 and 1 plugs were oily, and the center was
>grayish tan. The 2 and 3 plugs were oily and uniformly black.
>
>I tried once again to make certain that all of the distributor wires were
>attatched, that the coil wires were clean and connected, and so forth.
>
>Does anyone have any ideas? The intermittency of these problems would seem
>to indicate a significant electrical fault, and though I am not certain
>because I can't keep the car running for long enough, I have not been able
>to hold a charge in the battery. But then again, I have been cranking it
>quite a bit lately.
>
>Thanks,
>
>Charles
>'74 Midget
>'68 Sprite
>cdsorkin@ix.netcom.com
>Bloomfied, NJ
Jeffrey H. Boatright, PhD
Assistant Professor, Emory Eye Center
Senior Editor, Molecular Vision
http://www.molvis.org/molvis
Mailto:jboatri@emory.edu
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