Good suggestions, men! But no, those aren’t the root of the issue that’s causing this drama, unfortunately. I’ve already replaced the ballast multiple times with several on hand, and the heat crossover, while a good suggestion, isn’t it either. My guess is still an electrical short somewhere that I’m just not finding but then again, maybe that new fuel pump is causing the issue?:dunno: I doubt it since it’s keeping the filter full.

Remember;
- several ballasts used
- two different carbs (brand new/rebuilt)
- two new coils
- everything new in the wiring harness
- two set of plug wires, two distributors (one dual point, one single point)
- everything new on the fuel system

I’m going to bust out that voltmeter and check a bunch of things when I get back next week now that I’ve had time away from it and can think clearly! That is, until Steve dangles that a Voodoo doll over this thread again!:shocked:

Cheers:beers:
Dave

So we have to wait a week to find out what is wrong???
Jobs sure cause us problems

No,

He is one of them thar mollenial Influencers. He only uploads a video once a week to keep y'all hooked.

That would not surprise me either.

Hahaha! I know it! It's killing me to not be home trouble shooting this thing and providing the much needed update we all want to see!

But fear not! I'll be out on the street very shortly and will have ample time to not only update this thread, but all the other ones I'm going to start for all the other members cars I work on so I can pay my mortgage and eat! :thumbsdown:

Just kidding.....I hope! :dunno:

Cheers:beers:
Dave

Dont get the corona while your out. We dont need any delays.

New brilliant idea!!!

What's that old children's book? "Stone Soup" I think. Where every one in town puts something into the giant pot and at the end, everyone gets to enjoy the soup.

How about you just paint the car, send it up here and I'll do the troubleshooting and get it running. Then we can send it to someone who does interiors...(me and my son), and then on to another guy who does chassis work (me and my daughter) and then on to another dude who constantly argues about where all that money went (me and my wife).

I'll even bring it to MCACN next year.

;-)

It definitely sounds like an electrical issue. But . . . another wild ass guess/suggestion . . . pull the spark plugs and see if they are "proper."

Question: What happens if you install the distributor 180 degrees off?

Ignition switch ?? Bulkhead connector ??

Good thoughts, guys. But; new ignition switch, new harnesses and connection connectors that are connected in the bulkhead connection are connected!:smile::hmmm: Timing isn’t the issue either (it’s set correctly) and 180 out won’t get the car running without serious misfiring, but these are good suggestions. :biggthumpup::youguysrock:

T-Minus 5 days until I get home to figure this out and I’ve got several troubleshooting procedures I’ve researched to try when I get back. These include a sledge hammer to the A-pillar, a block of C4 to the bellhousing, and finally, a drive to and off of the Tallahatchie bridge:burnout::eek2:

More to come this weekend since we’ll all be quarantined anyway and there won’t be anything to do except watch my thread!:eek2::laugh:

Cheers:beers:
Dave

Attention all Users: Attention all Users:

A breakthrough has been discovered!:shocked: Sitting Reserve in Miami with absolutely nothing to do except listen to the Corona-Clueless scrounge for TP, I decided to take a road trip up to The Villages to see my folks. Driving up with the dash and engine harness diagrams floating through my head from hours of staring at them, I called M&H and chatted with Joe (I think....I know it wasn’t Tom). So explaining to him my entire situation from start to finish, we methodically went through every situation that it “could” be. I’d present a scenario and he would debunk it with the diagrams. He’d present a solution and I’d describe why that isn’t possible with the wiring diagram in my head and the symptoms my car had, to which he’d agree. This went back and forth with some extremely intelligent banter the likes of which haven’t been heard since the Carter Administration:dunno:. This hour long conversation puzzled him, puzzled me, puzzled the government phone tap guy that was listening on the other end:smirk:, and ultimately made us both think we came up with the issue with concurrence from the phone tap guy who said “that’s it!” in a very soft and muffled voice:worship:

I have to use the voltmeter and test one wire when I get home which will confirm our assumptions. We’re confident that this will be it!!!:scholar: Which means out comes the dash harness and back to M&H it goes to be reworked. There’s one, to possibly two, wires in the harness that are spliced incorrectly which is sending power where it doesn’t need to go and grounding out the system intermittently. We touched on it briefly in the thread and Darrell gets the trophy with his mention of the “key in buzzer” option. My car doesn’t have that option installed but the connection is in the harness. The wire that powers that option is the culprit along with the tach lead wire, and oil pressure sending unit lead, and coil wire. Yes, it is THAT complicated!!! I’ll confirm Saturday when I get back and have a better explanation, but I think the eureka moment has come!!!:burnout:

Cheers:beers:
Dave

Well done Captain :)

Enjoy your parents.

Be safe.

Dan

That would make some sense.
Did you take 27 north thru Sebring?

Drat! Foiled Again!

Holy crap! Is that Dick Dastardly!?!?! :shocked:Where’s Muttley?? Ah..good times...good times....Stop that pigeon, NOW!!:biggthumpup:

Yes Steve-O, I didn’t cave to your pressure. Although I was close, but I don’t like being defeated by a mechanical entity I know I’m smarter than! I think..:dunno:.

Bill, straight up the Turnpike from just North of Miami. Straight shot!:burnout:

More over the weekend..

Cheers:beers:
Dave

Hope it works! If not, I’ll take that frustrating, [used to be] crusty ‘cuda off your hands.

Fingers crossed ;-)

The interesting thing is that I had an issue with an M&H harness too, on the Trans Am. Most companies would tell you to pound sand but M&H does have great customer support and the guys there actually seem to enjoy it when they run into a weird "stump the stars" gremlin issue. Like I said before, they sent me a brand-new, free harness two years after I purchased the one with "issues".

“I won? Wow, a speech? Oh geezeum, who to thank? :dunno: Let me start by thanking the man upstairs. The big cheese. The head Kahuna. You know who I’m talkin’ bout! The Bob-a-Boni!:worship: It was his constant emails and calls saying!’You better get that friggin’ car running, or you’ll be banned from not only my show but the entire state of Chicago! Gnome’ sayin, flyboy?:mad2:’ And let’s see, there’s thanking my supporting fans in New Jersey that somehow resulted in me feeling like Gilligan on that episode with the Voodoo tribesman:blush:. I accept this award, and as a parting statement of inspiration, please remember something encouraging someone else said to you at some point in your life. :scholar: Thank you!” :biggthumpup:

Yep, these guys at M&H are really good. No complaints on the level of their support. :headbang:

Cheers
Dave

Congrats!!! Burnout video coming real soon?

Dern tootin’ brutha!!!:burnout:

Cheers
Dave

https://media1.tenor.com/images/036c...itemid=4735830



Hope that's what it is..

Keep us posted, Dave. I won't leave the house until we get an update......

Dave,


This sounds very promising. I hope the hypothesis proves true.



Jason

:haha:


Yeah well Tim, now that is not really much of a sacrifice, is it? :dunno::naughty:

Woohoo!!! I’m happy to report Steve’s voodoo doll is still working!:bs:

Not only was that not it, the diagnosis via a volt meter trouble shooting this has resulted in complete disbelief from what I was seeing. Key cranking I wasn’t getting 12v at the coil. Then, key in the Run position, 12 volts on both sides of the ballast. Then key off, key on, no volts. Key back on, 12 volts at the coil. Yep, beats me too. :dunno: Basically there’s no repetitive consistency on the readings. I’ve thrown in the towel and ripped out the dash harness, boxed it up, and it’ll be headed to M&H Monday. When will I get it back? Beats me!:frown: If they tell me the harness is good, that’ll be the end of this hobby for me!:eek2::biggthumpup::biggthumpup:

So it’ll sit, once again, at least for another month.

More to come.....eventually!:thumbsdown:

Cheers:beers:
Dave

I would take that off your hands without the harness. No worries!!

That is frustrating.

What about the ignition switch? Would that cause this? I know it's new, but that doesn't mean it isn't bad.

:-(

Is the “new” ignition switch an original Chrysler part? I’ve had terrible luck with aftermarket ignition switches not having the correct internal switching position compared to where the key was.

What are the voltage readings if you hold the key just past “run” but not engaging the starter?

I may have an NOS ignition switch in the basement. I’ll have to search tomorrow.

Oh, never fear! I’ll get this figured out! But at this point I’m 100% confident with a 25% assurance that this is the problem.:tongue: But the good news is that in fact, yes, I do have the key-in-buzzer feature. Why? Because all 70s did! Frankly, I’m a 68-69 guy and that wasn’t standard on B-Bodys during those years. This being my first 70 and an E-Body to boot the learning curve is steep. So Darrell still gets some props for a correct guess.:smile:

And I did get that fixed along with the other electrical issues I thought I was having, so now the dying cat sound when the door is open and key is in waifs through the cabin much like it does in the alley behind an Italian restaurant in New York City.:hmmm:

It’s aftermarket, but no fluctuation of voltage between any key positions, Steve-O. There’s a short somewhere internally in that main harness. Gotta be!!

Cheers:beers:
Dave

Fire it up without the harness in it, like a few posted. Simple and quick. Peace of mind.

Dave is from Jersey. He should know how to hot wire a car!

Say what? I can’t believe (cut splice) you’d say something (pull, twist) so degrading to all people from New Jersey (crank crank..vrrooommm).....Bye!:burnout:

Yes, that’s a good point. I’ll do that and test it.

Cheers:beers:
Dave

I thought if there was no load present the voltage should be equal on both sides of the ballast resistor ? ie. The resistor only drops the voltage if there is draw across it.

You have to be actively cranking the motor to check the cranking voltage and then again when its running. It should be something like 12 volts cranking and then 9 when running. You are correct: if you test a ballast resistor of the car it will be the same reading at both terminals if there is no (engine running) load on it.

Here's the original chapter from my 72 Trans Am saga with the wiring harness glitch. Has all the voltage testing info:

https://www.yenko.net/forum/showthre...ts#post1095635

BTW, what do the contact surfaces of the points look like? Mine were a really pretty, iridescent purple color from the high-voltage effect, down the arm from the burnt point, contact area.

That is actually incorrect. A ballast needs no draw of power, it just needs power supplied to one end for it to be reduced on the other end. By the basic dynamic function of the ballast, power going through it from one side to the other through the ceramic reduces the voltage to the determined level. Draw on one end does not affect the voltage drop. A ballast does the voltage drop by just doing what a ballast does, but it doesn't need a load on it. The 12V brown wire is needed on the ignition 1 circuit to bypass the ballast due to ballast limiting the volts through itself.

Cheers:beers:
Dave

Huh, I just asked what time it was.......:dunno::hmmm:

and perhaps I would be feeding you fake advice to get you more frustrated? Hmmmmm