My Monte Carlo was running on 6 cylinders due to a blown head gaskets before I redid the heads. We slapped on the heads down to all specifications and now when I try to start my engine, it just turns over. We are having two problems.

First is that there is spark coming from the coil to the cap, but not from the cap to the spark plugs. The dizzy is gapped and all internals are brand spanking new. Now the coil sometimes sparks and sometimes doesnt, almost intermittently.

Second problem is that there is fuel going up to the fuel filter, but not past it. When the fuel came out it was at a low pressure. So earlier today I replaced the filter and pump. Ran it but no fuel came from the line but I am presuming it is because it was just put in and has not been cycled through the entire pump just yet.

Either way, I am now out of mechanical knowledge other then taking off the fuel tank because my float is sticking. Anybody know anything about these engines? Any helping point is highly appreciated.

 

things that i would check is to check the wires that are going to the coil to see if there is a break or a wire worn its protective cover and replace it and see if it works. second is check the fuel lines as blow air threw them to see if there is air going threw them this part comes in handy when having a buddy to check. yes there is always some form of gunk forming in the lines when the lines are original. also did you replace the rotor under the cap of the distribiter also look up the wire diagram for the car right now i am getting ready to look it up to see if there can be a diagram for it

 

Found the diagram, found that my wires werent connected to the coil right. These pre-hei distributors are alot more simpler but there isnt **** for them on the web. Do I connect that single black wire from the dizzy to the negative or positive of the cable? Its all getting confusing without the proper books or internet knowledge on this.

We checked the fuel line and its good. I replaced the fuel pump and put on an even newer fuel filter in-line to the carburetor. Were gonna work on it once again and see what we can find out on it. I will keep this post updated.

 

The ignition wire connects to the + side of the coil, and the distibutor lead connects to the - side of the coil. If you are getting intermittent spark from the coil I would (as previously mentioned) check for tight, clean connections and that there is no fraying or worn insulation. If all that looks good I'd double check the hold down screw for the contacts to insure they aren't moving around on you, and also the cam lobes in the distributor for excessive wear.

 

Update: We got the car to turn on. We were checking for spark and got a spark by moving the dizzy with a spark plug in the coil wire. We plugged it back in and the engine turned on. We let it run for a bit and were adjusting the dizzy as we were giving it some gas to get a feel of where it should be by ear before we did the timing and the car turned off. Once it turned off, we lost all spark and are now stumped again.

Monte07/03SSLE, we are going to check what you posted right now. All wires are connected right, but we have another wire which we believe is our starter relay wire connected on the positive side of the coil.

 

Ok, so we got the car to run, but it will run for a bit then just die out due to no spark. We figured out that if we reset the points the car will restart again and run. When it does die out, we check the "spark plug in the coil wire" tactic and ground it to the header to check for spark that way. I dont understand how it can run for a certain amount of time and then just die. Everything in there is new, but maybe the pointers are defective also? Dont know anymore, just throwing ideas out there.

 

Sometimes on older vehicles the threads in the breaker plate for the screw that holds the contact points in place will become worn. When this happens the screw will work itself loose from vibration and change the dwell. If the threads aren't too bad you can put some Loctite Blue on the screw. Let it sit for a while before turning the engine over so the threadlock can cure. If that doesn't do the trick then you'll need to get an oversized screw to replace the original with. Use threadlock on it. Also check the threads on the screw itself to make sure they're not worn.

 

Ill be sure to check it out later on 03. I heard that there is a replacement for the pointers on it but not quite a HEI conversion I want to try. Im just tired of this thing sitting around and not getting the attention it rightfully deserves.

 

Your least expensive option may be to swap an HEI distributor in place of the original. It's been a few years since I've played with a pre-HEI system. The quality may have improved over the years, but the optical trigger conversions used to have a high rate of failure. I'd avoid those if at all possible and go with a magnetic trigger conversion if you decide to go that route.

 

Final problem was the points. They were pitted and shot. Replaced them and now the car is running, but its not producing anything like I thought a 350 should.