Cutting out at idle - what might be causing it
Discussion
At least if its dead the fault has gone "hard" and should be a load easier to find. One thing that can cause your fault is a connection issue between the trigger head in the distributor and the amp. The trigger head gets moved by the vacuum advance, and if the wires are fractured the contact can come and go. This will kill the engine outright if it goes open circuit. If you unplug the amp you will see two tiny spades- Do a resistance check across them to see if there is conductivity (sorry I dont know the impedance of the top of my head, but its quite high). It will be open circuit if its knackered.
Literally the rev counter will drop like a stone, even when the engine is still rotating. Best seen on an engine that dies if you are driving, as the engine will keep spinning on the over run, and the rev counter will be stuck at zero. Difficult to catch at idle as the engine has little inertia.
Now that the fault is permanent, does the fuel pump still prime when ignition is switched on?
If not try connecting 12 volts direct to the pump contacts and see if it runs.
There are several plug/sockets in the fuel pump circuit a bad connection or intermittent connection could cause the fuel pump to stop. I had a similar problem a while back and cleaned all the connectors and the fault has never returned:
http://www.bertram-hill.com/fuel-pump-schematic.ht...
If not try connecting 12 volts direct to the pump contacts and see if it runs.
There are several plug/sockets in the fuel pump circuit a bad connection or intermittent connection could cause the fuel pump to stop. I had a similar problem a while back and cleaned all the connectors and the fault has never returned:
http://www.bertram-hill.com/fuel-pump-schematic.ht...
Long shot as I'm not a tecky, but I had a similar intermittent problem in the past. Car ran great in gear, put it into neutral and it died.Local garage couldn't find the fault but a very clever man in Chesterfield did. He pulled the bonnet and started the engine up at night and observed- hey presto and a blue arc could be seen coming from the coil. - new coil and problem fixed.
Hi BB it's been too long mate. I hope you're well.
The effing barsteward (and every other swear word) rotor arm is off. Now I need to hoover the dizzy because of all the chips off the effing barsteward.
The effing barsteward is corroded inside. Fingers crossed this is the cause and a new one might be the answer.
:goes.off.to.get.hoover:
No not you Hoover, the other one!
Back soon with an update.
The effing barsteward (and every other swear word) rotor arm is off. Now I need to hoover the dizzy because of all the chips off the effing barsteward.
The effing barsteward is corroded inside. Fingers crossed this is the cause and a new one might be the answer.
:goes.off.to.get.hoover:
No not you Hoover, the other one!
Back soon with an update.
Bingo. She fired before I had barely turned the key and has restarted 3 times since.
One thing worries me, though probably unduly, what if any of the chips off the rotor arm are inside the dizzy. I've never had one apart so don't know what's inside.
Can you take the top plate off and inspect inside ?
One thing worries me, though probably unduly, what if any of the chips off the rotor arm are inside the dizzy. I've never had one apart so don't know what's inside.
Can you take the top plate off and inspect inside ?
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