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Spit won't start...

To: british-cars@autox.team.net
Subject: Spit won't start...
From: pat@sbctri.sbc.com (Pat niemeyer)
Date: Tue, 14 Jun 1994 08:46:46 -0500 (CDT)

I think my '66 Spit is feeling negelected, having been left in the garage
since last summer, and has decided to cause me as much trouble as possible ;)

It doesn't want to start... looks to me like I'm not getting a sparc,
but perhaps someone can tell me how to diagnose this properly...

The engine turns over rapidly (I recently replaced the starter) and the
upper fuel filter and floats are full of gas (I recently replaced the fuel
pump and all hoses).  The coil (which is also new) is getting 12V when
the ignition is on...  The ignition wires (new) seem ok, and I have pulled
off the distributor cap and don't see anything obviously wrong...

I have tried pulling a wire off of one of the plugs and holding it up to
the engine while cranking - to look for a sparc...  No luck.  However I don't
really know that this *should* work.  I seem to recall having been able to
do this in the past, and I even seem to remember being able to just *feel*
the sparc through the high voltage wire.  None of this is true now.

I have also tried spraying some "starting fluid" (ether) directly into the 
carbs in the hopes that things just needed to turn over a little more 
robustly... no luck.  I don't think it even "caught" once.

In the back of my mind is the problem I was having last year in which the car
would run perfectly until warm and then sputter and die.  I recieved much
advice on this, but never was able to track it down...  I left off assuming
that I needed to get some help with the carbs.  I'm now wondering if something
could be *seriously* wrong with the carbs.

Well, as you can see I'm clue-less... ;)  Any help would be appreciated.


Thanks,
Pat


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