On Wed, 1 Apr 1998 jbonina@nectech.com wrote:
> As I wait for my new dist. cap to arrive I have time to ponder the
> hookup of the Ignitor system.
You ordered a cap _and_ a rotor, right???
For the uninformed: swap these in pairs. I have heard stories of folks
that used caps and rotors from different sources and had problems... I
have never had these problems, but I have heard.
Besides, you re-glued your rotor together... that's reason enough to
replace it!!!
> After I installed the system, I noticed the car cranked noticeably
> slower almost immediately (same hour/day). After I ran the red Ignitor
> lead to the positive side of the coil and tried to start the car it
> wouldn't. I realized that I had pulled the wire going from the harness
> to the + coil in order to hook up the Ignitor. So, having a
> double-spaded connector on the + side of the coil, I left the Ignitor
> on one spade and put the original wire from the harness on the other.
>
> Is this possibly drawing current constantly, hence the slow cranking
> AND the hot coil?
The starter draws _lots_ of amps. Unless you have a dead short somewhere
else, and that would be accompanied by lots of hot wires and possibly
smoke and flames, then probably not... so, it is possible that you can
eliminate the idea that something else is drawing enough current to slow
down your starter.
Now, if there is constant current going to the coil, you must have wired
something wrong. The coil should only get voltage when the key is at the
"on" position. There is an "accessory" position on your ingnition switch,
in that position, there should be no current going to the coil.
Perhaps you have a dead/dying battery.
Get a battery tester thingie from you local discount auto parts place. I
mean the kind that checks the electrolyte in the battery, not a voltmeter.
If the battery reads marginal, perhaps you have a bad cell or other
problem. Note: bad grounds can cause symptoms that appear to be like low
voltage problems... is your battery securely connected to ground at the
engine block?
Did you test your system for short circuits, as suggested in the past?
You should. This will eliminate that as a source of your slow cranking.
Also, if your starter is old, perhaps it is degrading from the excess
strain that you are putting on it by cranking it over and over.
The coil shold not be hot, it might be warm, but not hot. Especially if
your engine is not running!
> Electrically challenged,
> Jeff
regards,
rml
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