UA-camrs this is how you are supposed to do it !! If theres an award for best diy/instructional video here is your next recipient !! Well spoken , on point , extremely knowledgeable and over and above instructional. Well Done sir thank you
You are the Absolute Master of the Chrysler Elecronic Ignition. Thank You very, very much for this Perfect Video content. I have been trying to fix the Electronic Ignition on a 1972 Dodge Dart for ages. I dont think I would have ever figured out how how go about this diagnosis process. No other source of information I have ever found on this subject provides anything close to the practical value of your integration of clear video, brief and correct dialog of how each part works, the benefit of your expert understanding of the system, the right tools for the diagnosis with part numbers, the process for the diagnosis,, and even the test values you should see on the Multimeter. From myself and all Mopar enthusiasts, Thank You very much.
Excellent discussion of the ignition system. Good to know the voltages we should be looking for. I’ve got a lot of late 60/early 70’s Chrysler car engines that I have converted to use this ignition system.
It's funny you mention a 73 Polara at the end of the video because that is exactly what I've got sitting in the driveway. Thanks to your expert advice in this video I just fired that car up for the first time in 16 years.
Thanks for posting this. My Charger lost all spark today and I was able to diagnose a bad pickup coil from your video. After replacing the pickup coil it started right up.
Thank YOU!.....I've been working on these for decades, and had never had a mopar pickup coil fail......So when mine did it had me stumped. Used your testing procedure to test it and solved my problem!
Ballast Resister at 1:20 Module Connector Terminal Test at 5:55 Ignition Module and wiring at 10:45 Coil Test at 11:53 Magnetic Pick Up Coil at 13:15 Bypass Circuit at 15:45 Module Connector wires Identification at 18:15
Excellent video. Note: Chrysler FSM states.."Never plug/unplug 4 or 5 pin connector from ignition module while key is in the "On" position." (That will pop a module quick.)
Thank you so much for sharing this! Extremely useful/valuable information. This helped me diagnose a hard start issue on my Roadrunner. I learned a lot.
Great information! Have dodge dart swinger with no spark. Went thru your check list but when I use test light to stimulate spark at times its strong then try again and nothing. Can a modular be intermittent when bad. Grounds are good. Pickup good also. Again thanks for your post, very helpful.
I just bought a 1974 w200 with a 318 in it I’m new to these old school distributor and carburetor motors I diagnosed everything side by side with your video everything checked out good except when cranking I didn’t have 200 mV coming out of my distributor. What should I check if I don’t have tension coming out of there? The truck has new spark plugs and wires,electronic module, distributor, coil.
Hello and thank you for the excellent video. Can you tell me where you connected the test light prior to testing if there is spark from the ignition module? I am assuming the positive side of the battery?
Thanks for doing this. My question is how important is the reading at the coil when the 5 pin to the control unit is unplugged? You showed 12v at the coil on both sides, my coil reads 5.6 on positive and 0.5v on negative. So when I plug the 5 pin back in there is very little change it reads 5.4 v on positive and 0.3 on negative. Does this indicate the ECU needs to be replaced?
Excellent video! I have an ‘88 dodge b250 that I just swapped an engine on( swapped my 5.9 for a rebuilt 5.9). I’m trying to diagnose a no spark issue. All of your tests seem to check out on my end except the test on the pick up of the distributor for amps while cranking. If that isn’t reading the number you described is it a bad distributor? 14:50
Good morning. Thank you so much for the thoroughness of this video. Where is your shop? I have this motor and a question. The motor runs perfect off the dock but after running for a little while it loses its low speed smooth idle; gets boggy. It will also at points loose the top end as well. We have changed plugs, wires, cap and rotor. Any guesses as to what would cause that problem? I know its a vague shot in the dark but I thought I'd ask. Thanks again.
I'm just learning my way around this ignition system. You do a nice job & I'm starting to catch on. Is there a way to test the orange box out of the car and 'on the bench' with a harbor freight type multimeter? Thanks.
If I'm not mistaken. The electronic ignition started out in 1973 Duster . Because I have had several Duster from 1970 - 1972 and all of those was factory point distributor and a friend's 73 came with electronic ignition
I have a question about my 87 Chrysler fifth avenue. Coil gets power but doesn't let any spark come out. What could stop it from sparking? Computer by carb? Relay? When sitting in on position to test coil with test light. Computer starts to smoke
I know the control module grounds when mounted but I have a live case and resistor when key in run position and grounded. Is this a sign for bad module? Great rundown on this system btw.
Hi i have simca 1307 with this ignition it have 5 pins so it should run on 4 pin modul? (I would prefer to get 5 pin module, but it is a problem to get them in our country (there was only little amount of cars with this ignition)) and sry im asking you explained that perfectly i just wanted to be sure thanks
Great video... Just couldn't pickup on two things... Where do the wires come from that are connected on the coil... And What wires are connected on the dual ballast itself... Working on a woodchipper that has a chrystler marine engine...lol.. and this is the best explanation I have found with a schematic close to it... Thanks again
Thanks for explaining the operating of the ignition system for the old mopars but my question is do you have any suggestions on how I can bypass the ignition module the five pin cuz I'm running an aftermarket audio system in my 74 Plymouth duster or, is there no way to get around that? will I have to keep that in the vehicle for the vehicle to operate properly? I bypassed the ballast resistor already, that helped keep the car from having a higher voltage drop but I also feel the ignition module is causing the voltage to drop as well and I'm wondering if I eliminate that will I eliminate my voltage problem when I have my audio system up, stepping on the brakes, headlights on, things start to dim and go down and voltage drop and my audio system goes in and out
That was the best video l have seen in two months l can't figure out why my pump won't pump fuel to the carb on my440 motor home motor. I have dump fuel in an it starts til fuel is gone out of the carb l put a new pump an it's still not getting any fuel to the carb. So l have a Question. This motor home was equipped with Cruz control which l took off ws that a no no.?
That shouldn’t matter is the cruise control is gone. Do you have access to a vacuum pressure gauge? I’d get one of those and disconnect both lines at the pump. Connect a gauge on the pressure side and crank the engine. Should have 4-6psi. Then connect it to the suction side. Crank it again and you should have 10-15inhg of vacuum. If these tests pass your fuel pump, push rod and cam lobe are good. Problem then mostly likely is you are sucking air someplace between the pump and the bottom of the fuel tank.
is it normal to see 20 to 25 volts dc at the coil + and at the power to ignition module while engine is running. the charging voltage at the battery is 13.5 volts.
I really hope this video will help me diagnose my ignition problem. Have a 70 Charger that is not able to idle, is fouling plugs and misfiring. I don’t know what I fried when I was removing spark plug #2 with a wrench and touched the output terminal screw on the alternator and experienced a spark ( stupid me didn’t disconnect the battery). Got a new coil because there was no resistance in primary windings and multimeter did not register anything when measuring resistance of secondary windings. Car will start and run, but not idle, is fouling plugs and is misfiring. What else could be the problem? Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Ok so I've got a question, ive got a 318 in a 1976 Trojan F26. Same configuration as you all the way down to wire colors and wire routing. I've got 12v to the coil with the box unplugged, 5v with it plugged, I get the correct 200mv from the distributor pickup and 8 get a spark from the coil with a test light when I flick the key on when it first gets energized. With the key on, I ground out the grey wire coming off the ignition box and cannot get the test light to flicker off the coil output. I tried touching the same wire to power just to see what would happen and nothing yet again. If with the key on I tap 12v power to the positive stud on the coil I get the test light to go off again. Basically my question is how do I get the signal wire off the ignition box to trigger the coil to discharge? Is there a checklist of things just for that wire? Should I be looking for anything not getting the right power? Could the coil be bad?... im just lost, everything checks out up to the point where I try to manual discharge the coil with a jumper wire from the grey ignition box wire.
The starter relay switch on my 1972 Dodge motor home I replaced and it ran good for a few days, then it failed, so I replaced it again. It ran good for a few days again and today it failed again. Burning too many starter relay switches.
Does this system still require a condenser to be hooked up to the negative side of the coil? I'm working on a '72 Challenger, someone had a condenser hooked up on the positive side of the coil... I'm just wondering if I should connect it to the negative side or take it off and throw it away...
My car would not start replace the ECM with a old one that I had a 5 pin. Not a 4 pin that was running with. Car started right up with 5 pin, so I purchased a new 1, it's a hirev 7500 4 pin car doesn't start . Put the old 5 pin back in starts right up. I have done all your tests the only thing I could find different, is coming off the ECM the connector for distributor was wired reverse. It runs this way with old 5 pin but will not run with 4 pin. Replace wire harness from ecm. With everything wired correctly Old 5 pin starts but hardly runs new 4 pin not starting. Thoughts
Hi I watched this video. I have a 72 stock 340 duster. My module has melted the epoxy but car still runs. I bought an aftermarket high performance module to replace. It does not start the car. I put the old module back in and it runs. The person sent a replacement and he Said he never had a bad module. Well the second one does not work either but the original on so works. I test as you video states and all is good but I do not get a milivolt reading from pickup coil. It ohms out good. I get spark with the new box if I ground out the harness side of pickup coil harness. So my question is can a pickup coil ohm out ok but not trigger the new box but will trigger the old one? I have a new pickup coming. Thank you. Great video!
Could be. The transistor in the replacement modules may require a higher A/C voltage or more importantly A/C peak to peak voltage than the originals. Too wide of pickup coil air gap could also affect the output, especially at low speed such as cranking. The gap spec is .008-.012. Most newer transistors require at least 500mv A/C to react.
This looks very helpful but I'm not sure of one thing. At 6:00 you say "I've got my key on and my jumper wire. " I don't see where the jumper is going. Thanks
@@AJ-ox6yi It goes to the purple ignition wire on the marine engine harness. Basically that goes to the 12V sides of the dual ballast resistor and pin #1 on the module. It’s the ignition switch circuit on the engine basically.
Awesome video I just converted to the Chrysler box and I got as far as confirming the .5V on the pickup connector. I can't seem to get the coil to spark though and I have the same spark tester you are using in the video. When you hit the grey pickup wire with the test light, is the test light connected to ground? I'm assuming so? That's the only thing that wasn't clear in the video. Thanks for posting this BTW!
Test light is connected to ground. We are pulling the 500mv that the module puts on the Gray wire to ground and the releasing it quickly to trigger the transistor in the module.
*An important piece for conversion kits:* in this video there is a "middle" 2-wire harness between the ignition box and the distributor pickup. This harness is _critical_ in order to have the box see the proper signal from the distributor. While you're able to plug the grey 2-wire connector directly into the distributor pickup (orange & black), the polarity is reversed. The proper orientation does not connect being male-male & female-female, requiring that intermediate harness.
I got a question for anyone willing to answer. Couple of times my 360 lost spark but after pokin around it would come back and run again. But now it permanently lost spark. Replaced ignition module and I've followed everything in this video. So i put a spark plug on the coil wire and crank it, sparks couple times and stops or doesn't spark at all. 2 possible issues i think. no reading of mil volts on the magnetic pickup, and coil gives jumpy resistance readings but maybe that cause i didn't remove its positive or negative wires.
Hey Lakeland Auto & Marine, question I’m diagnosing a 77 Dodge D100 I’m not getting spark to the plugs. With the ignition in run position I use the 50850 hooked to the coil wire and I get spark when grounding the distributor pick up wire. But when trying to go through the distributor I get nothing. I replaced the pick up in the distributor but I’m only seeing .012-.050V AC at the pick up with my meter the voltage is jumpy. Should I still see .50V AC if I have a sluggish starter? Am I right on the voltage I’m seeing to little for it to signal the ignition box to fire the coil?
You need more A/C voltage to trigger the transistor. If you can trigger it with a jumper wire then you mostly likely have a pickup issue. Is the air gap around .010? If it’s too close or too far away that could be the issue as well.
@@LakelandAutoMarine I’m getting about .360 ohms across the pick up wires. I have set the air gap at various gaps .006, .008, .010 with the same result of a fluctuating AC reading while cranking the most I seen was .054V AC this is on my new pick up. Is there a way to test and see if this pick up is faulty out of the box? Any other suggestions on what to check for in the dist to cause such low AC voltage? Would the starter being a bit slow effect me getting .5V AC?
I’ve seemingly been over everything in this system and my 86 Ramcharger still won’t start. What’s funny is there is no spark at all while cranking, unless you let off of the key back to run position, they it will spark a little. It ran fine prior to Hurricane Ian (it was parked outside during the storm) now it won’t start :(
Have a cuda just recently started shutting off about 45min after driving no spark let it cool down for 5 minutes and good to go any ideas I’ve replaced the module as soon as it shuts off and and it starts back up making me believe the module is over heating but not sure as I’ve gone through three types of models and still the same problem thanks
I have no spark while cranking. With a dist. Connected out of engine, i spin it, and I get a good spark, but I have to spin it fast. Slow turning does not produce a spark. * I do not have the .5vdc on the pickup Leeds from the module. * is this the problem?
Yes, you should have .5V on the Gray wire on the engine harness. When you spin the reluctor at a faster speed it can produce enough electricity itself to trigger. Sounds like a bad module or connection.
@@LakelandAutoMarine Bingo! I thought so. Going to buy a new module and check it out. Not even the “Mopar Forums” mention this. I guess you would call this a BIAS voltage. Needed to produce spark at low turning speeds.
Everything on mine checks out but I’m having an issue with the pickup, it’s perfect at .300 ohms between the two wires. But when cranking we can o Lu get about .020v not the .250 bolts are so. Air gap is right at .008. Also, the coil negative wire stays negative all the time. I’m assuming because the pickup is giving a good enough voltage. Any pointers? Thanks!
@@LakelandAutoMarine thank you for the reply, we ended up changing the pickup and now have .2-.3v while cranking and the truck runs good now. So it ended up being a faulty new pickup. Never count out new parts as being the fault
Sounds like a bad module. The module puts the voltage on the line. Make sure the module case is grounded good first. A bad ground will elevate the voltage.
When testing voltage at the coil, I got just above 12v with the Electronic Control unit unplugged. HOWEVER, when I plugged in the electronic control unit I got 6.7 volts on one lead of the coil and at the other lead I only got 1.3 volts. Does this mean there is a problem at the electronic control unit? I'm a newbie. Thanks
@@LakelandAutoMarine So my engine turns over and runs pretty good actually. I just wanted to diagnose the ignition system because it is all original (1974 360 duster) and sometimes the car will die randomly so I think it has to do with the ignition system sometimes failing. So once I plug in the ECU the voltage at the positive terminal of the coil drops to 6.5 while the voltage at the negative terminal drops to 1.24. Does this mean the ECU may have an issue? In your video I believe it drops to 5v on both sides of the coil with ECU plugged in. Also what was weird. When testing the wire coming from the Ignition Harness/ECU, it was reading -.029v where as in your video you read .5v. Coil ohm 1.6 Every other part of the diagnostic was up to par. Thanks for the video! Sorry for the lengthy response.
![No Spark Troubleshooting [Mopar Electronic Ignition with Ballast Resistor]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/RiC8OaSXMs8/mqdefault.jpg)
![No Spark Troubleshooting [Mopar Electronic Ignition with Ballast Resistor]](/img/tr.png)
UA-camrs this is how you are supposed to do it !!
If theres an award for best diy/instructional video here is your next recipient !!
Well spoken , on point , extremely knowledgeable and over and above instructional.
Well Done sir thank you
You are the Absolute Master of the Chrysler Elecronic Ignition.
Thank You very, very much for this Perfect Video content. I have been trying to fix the Electronic Ignition on a 1972 Dodge Dart for ages. I dont think I would have ever figured out how how go about this diagnosis process.
No other source of information I have ever found on this subject provides anything close to the practical value of your integration of clear video, brief and correct dialog of how each part works, the benefit of your expert understanding of the system, the right tools for the diagnosis with part numbers, the process for the diagnosis,, and even the test values you should see on the Multimeter.
From myself and all Mopar enthusiasts, Thank You very much.
Wow! Thanks your your reply. I wanted to show that you can diagnose it accurately using common and inexpensive tools.
This tutorial is awesome. You have answered so many questions for me. Thanks for posting this!
Glad it was helpful!
Excellent discussion of the ignition system. Good to know the voltages we should be looking for. I’ve got a lot of late 60/early 70’s Chrysler car engines that I have converted to use this ignition system.
It's funny you mention a 73 Polara at the end of the video because that is exactly what I've got sitting in the driveway. Thanks to your expert advice in this video I just fired that car up for the first time in 16 years.
Very cool!
Great job explaining this! Trying to get an old Dodge pickup running and this really helps.
Glad it helped!
Man you did a great service with this video. There's not a lot of chrysler ignition system videos out there.
Thanks for posting this. My Charger lost all spark today and I was able to diagnose a bad pickup coil from your video. After replacing the pickup coil it started right up.
That's awesome!
Thank YOU!.....I've been working on these for decades, and had never had a mopar pickup coil fail......So when mine did it had me stumped. Used your testing procedure to test it and solved my problem!
Excellent!
Really needed this video 3 months ago but glad to have seen it regardless
Very helpful. Great explanations. This helped me diagnose a no spark. It was the control module. Thank you
Great to hear!
these are much better than having to replace a computer!
Excellent, never really understood it, or had it explained that simply, thank you for sharing 🙂
Very informative, you’ve shown info i didn’t even know about and I’ve been using them for a long time
This the absolute best electrical video I have ever watched.....
Thank you
Wow, thanks!
Ballast Resister at 1:20
Module Connector Terminal Test at 5:55
Ignition Module and wiring at 10:45
Coil Test at 11:53
Magnetic Pick Up Coil at 13:15
Bypass Circuit at 15:45
Module Connector wires Identification at 18:15
Excellent video. Note: Chrysler FSM states.."Never plug/unplug 4 or 5 pin connector from ignition module while key is in the "On" position." (That will pop a module quick.)
Very informative..
Now I've got two of you guys I can reach out to as I go through my complete wiring issues on my 1970 T/A Challenger!
Thank you so so much. This video set me on the right path with diagnosing my system in my 72 Coronet. I really appreciate this.
Thank you so much for sharing this! Extremely useful/valuable information. This helped me diagnose a hard start issue on my Roadrunner. I learned a lot.
Great to hear!
Great video this whas just the video i needed to answer my questions. I am remaking my wiring of a Dodge w200
Thank you very much
No problem 👍
Great information! Have dodge dart swinger with no spark. Went thru your check list but when I use test light to stimulate spark at times its strong then try again and nothing. Can a modular be intermittent when bad. Grounds are good. Pickup good also. Again thanks for your post, very helpful.
I just bought a 1974 w200 with a 318 in it I’m new to these old school distributor and carburetor motors I diagnosed everything side by side with your video everything checked out good except when cranking I didn’t have 200 mV coming out of my distributor. What should I check if I don’t have tension coming out of there? The truck has new spark plugs and wires,electronic module, distributor, coil.
Amazing video that I continue to reference as problems arise. Thank you
Great video with awesome details!!!!!
Thank you!!!! so very helpful. Both modules are bad. Looks like time for HEI, since I have that laying around.
Hello and thank you for the excellent video. Can you tell me where you connected the test light prior to testing if there is spark from the ignition module? I am assuming the positive side of the battery?
Bravo! thank you for making this video!
Good job explaining it.
Thanks!
Thanks for doing this. My question is how important is the reading at the coil when the 5 pin to the control unit is unplugged? You showed 12v at the coil on both sides, my coil reads 5.6 on positive and 0.5v on negative. So when I plug the 5 pin back in there is very little change it reads 5.4 v on positive and 0.3 on negative. Does this indicate the ECU needs to be replaced?
Your video just saved my ass I'm a diesel guy so thanks very helpful
Excellent video! I have an ‘88 dodge b250 that I just swapped an engine on( swapped my 5.9 for a rebuilt 5.9). I’m trying to diagnose a no spark issue. All of your tests seem to check out on my end except the test on the pick up of the distributor for amps while cranking. If that isn’t reading the number you described is it a bad distributor?
14:50
Good morning. Thank you so much for the thoroughness of this video. Where is your shop? I have this motor and a question. The motor runs perfect off the dock but after running for a little while it loses its low speed smooth idle; gets boggy. It will also at points loose the top end as well. We have changed plugs, wires, cap and rotor. Any guesses as to what would cause that problem? I know its a vague shot in the dark but I thought I'd ask. Thanks again.
Excellent video......now I know how to get my 74 D100 to fire-up.
Glad I could help!
I'm just learning my way around this ignition system. You do a nice job & I'm starting to catch on. Is there a way to test the orange box out of the car and 'on the bench' with a harbor freight type multimeter? Thanks.
Not that I know of.
If I'm not mistaken. The electronic ignition started out in 1973 Duster . Because I have had several Duster from 1970 - 1972 and all of those was factory point distributor and a friend's 73 came with electronic ignition
California emissions debut in 1971.
I have a question about my 87 Chrysler fifth avenue. Coil gets power but doesn't let any spark come out. What could stop it from sparking? Computer by carb? Relay? When sitting in on position to test coil with test light. Computer starts to smoke
Ign module short to ground
Great explanation, helped me fix my no start.
Great to hear!
Great overview. Thanks
Great informative video! Thanx! 😊
I know the control module grounds when mounted but I have a live case and resistor when key in run position and grounded. Is this a sign for bad module? Great rundown on this system btw.
Hi i have simca 1307 with this ignition it have 5 pins so it should run on 4 pin modul? (I would prefer to get 5 pin module, but it is a problem to get them in our country (there was only little amount of cars with this ignition)) and sry im asking you explained that perfectly i just wanted to be sure thanks
Great video...
Just couldn't pickup on two things...
Where do the wires come from that are connected on the coil...
And
What wires are connected on the dual ballast itself...
Working on a woodchipper that has a chrystler marine engine...lol.. and this is the best explanation I have found with a schematic close to it... Thanks again
The + side comes from the resistor and the - side goes to the module.
Thanks for explaining the operating of the ignition system for the old mopars but my question is do you have any suggestions on how I can bypass the ignition module the five pin cuz I'm running an aftermarket audio system in my 74 Plymouth duster or, is there no way to get around that? will I have to keep that in the vehicle for the vehicle to operate properly? I bypassed the ballast resistor already, that helped keep the car from having a higher voltage drop but I also feel the ignition module is causing the voltage to drop as well and I'm wondering if I eliminate that will I eliminate my voltage problem when I have my audio system up, stepping on the brakes, headlights on, things start to dim and go down and voltage drop and my audio system goes in and out
Wow such a great educational video
Very well done!👍🏼
Great video
Help me a lot with my 82 ram D350 5.9
I like chainsaws - AND Chryslers! Just subscribed!
Great video sir. Sounds like you need some Jack Daniel’s to clear that shit up.
That was the best video l have seen in two months l can't figure out why my pump won't pump fuel to the carb on my440 motor home motor. I have dump fuel in an it starts til fuel is gone out of the carb l put a new pump an it's still not getting any fuel to the carb. So l have a Question. This motor home was equipped with Cruz control which l took off ws that a no no.?
That shouldn’t matter is the cruise control is gone. Do you have access to a vacuum pressure gauge? I’d get one of those and disconnect both lines at the pump. Connect a gauge on the pressure side and crank the engine. Should have 4-6psi. Then connect it to the suction side. Crank it again and you should have 10-15inhg of vacuum. If these tests pass your fuel pump, push rod and cam lobe are good. Problem then mostly likely is you are sucking air someplace between the pump and the bottom of the fuel tank.
@@LakelandAutoMarine thanks l will try that an let ya no what went wrong or right thanks again.
is it normal to see 20 to 25 volts dc at the coil + and at the power to ignition module while engine is running. the charging voltage at the battery is 13.5 volts.
I cant thank you enough for this video! much appreciated
What should Negative side coil voltage be with module plugged in? I have 6.7 volts positive side 1.2 volts negative side?
Thank you so much for the information.
I really hope this video will help me diagnose my ignition problem. Have a 70 Charger that is not able to idle, is fouling plugs and misfiring. I don’t know what I fried when I was removing spark plug #2 with a wrench and touched the output terminal screw on the alternator and experienced a spark ( stupid me didn’t disconnect the battery). Got a new coil because there was no resistance in primary windings and multimeter did not register anything when measuring resistance of secondary windings. Car will start and run, but not idle, is fouling plugs and is misfiring. What else could be the problem? Any help would be greatly appreciated.
I'd check the air gap for the pick up coil sounds the gap is to wide
Ok so I've got a question, ive got a 318 in a 1976 Trojan F26. Same configuration as you all the way down to wire colors and wire routing. I've got 12v to the coil with the box unplugged, 5v with it plugged, I get the correct 200mv from the distributor pickup and 8 get a spark from the coil with a test light when I flick the key on when it first gets energized. With the key on, I ground out the grey wire coming off the ignition box and cannot get the test light to flicker off the coil output. I tried touching the same wire to power just to see what would happen and nothing yet again. If with the key on I tap 12v power to the positive stud on the coil I get the test light to go off again. Basically my question is how do I get the signal wire off the ignition box to trigger the coil to discharge? Is there a checklist of things just for that wire? Should I be looking for anything not getting the right power? Could the coil be bad?... im just lost, everything checks out up to the point where I try to manual discharge the coil with a jumper wire from the grey ignition box wire.
Replace the pick up coil
The starter relay switch on my 1972 Dodge motor home I replaced and it ran good for a few days, then it failed, so I replaced it again. It ran good for a few days again and today it failed again. Burning too many starter relay switches.
Thank you!
Does this system still require a condenser to be hooked up to the negative side of the coil? I'm working on a '72 Challenger, someone had a condenser hooked up on the positive side of the coil... I'm just wondering if I should connect it to the negative side or take it off and throw it away...
Positive side. It’s just a noise capacitor.
@@LakelandAutoMarine Oh, ok... so it was correct. Thanks!
Excellent video thank you sir!
My car would not start replace the ECM with a old one that I had a 5 pin. Not a 4 pin that was running with.
Car started right up with 5 pin, so I purchased a new 1, it's a hirev 7500 4 pin car doesn't start .
Put the old 5 pin back in starts right up.
I have done all your tests the only thing I could find different, is coming off the ECM the connector for distributor was wired reverse.
It runs this way with old 5 pin but will not run with 4 pin.
Replace wire harness from ecm.
With everything wired correctly
Old 5 pin starts but hardly runs new 4 pin not starting.
Thoughts
What test are you failing when it doesn’t start with the 4 pin?
thanks this is extremely helpful
Glad it helped!
Hi I watched this video. I have a 72 stock 340 duster. My module has melted the epoxy but car still runs. I bought an aftermarket high performance module to replace. It does not start the car. I put the old module back in and it runs. The person sent a replacement and he Said he never had a bad module. Well the second one does not work either but the original on so works. I test as you video states and all is good but I do not get a milivolt reading from pickup coil. It ohms out good. I get spark with the new box if I ground out the harness side of pickup coil harness.
So my question is can a pickup coil ohm out ok but not trigger the new box but will trigger the old one? I have a new pickup coming.
Thank you.
Great video!
Could be. The transistor in the replacement modules may require a higher A/C voltage or more importantly A/C peak to peak voltage than the originals. Too wide of pickup coil air gap could also affect the output, especially at low speed such as cranking. The gap spec is .008-.012. Most newer transistors require at least 500mv A/C to react.
I haven’t got the new pick up yet. I did set the air gap to .008 with a brass feel gauge. Thanks ago for your help. I will keep you posted. Mike.
This looks very helpful but I'm not sure of one thing. At 6:00 you say "I've got my key on and my jumper wire. " I don't see where the jumper is going. Thanks
The jumper wire is going to the positive post of the battery.
@@LakelandAutoMarine Yes, I see that but where does the other end go?
@@AJ-ox6yi It goes to the purple ignition wire on the marine engine harness. Basically that goes to the 12V sides of the dual ballast resistor and pin #1 on the module. It’s the ignition switch circuit on the engine basically.
@@LakelandAutoMarine Great! Thanks. This is a real help.
Awesome video I just converted to the Chrysler box and I got as far as confirming the .5V on the pickup connector. I can't seem to get the coil to spark though and I have the same spark tester you are using in the video. When you hit the grey pickup wire with the test light, is the test light connected to ground? I'm assuming so? That's the only thing that wasn't clear in the video. Thanks for posting this BTW!
Test light is connected to ground. We are pulling the 500mv that the module puts on the Gray wire to ground and the releasing it quickly to trigger the transistor in the module.
*An important piece for conversion kits:* in this video there is a "middle" 2-wire harness between the ignition box and the distributor pickup. This harness is _critical_ in order to have the box see the proper signal from the distributor. While you're able to plug the grey 2-wire connector directly into the distributor pickup (orange & black), the polarity is reversed. The proper orientation does not connect being male-male & female-female, requiring that intermediate harness.
Worth gold! thanks!!!
So is it better to get rid of the lean burn system?
Marine engines didn’t use lean burn. Parts are probably hard to find these days so yes, I’d probably would remove it if you are having trouble.
Is there a diagram on how to bypass the ignition module for the old mopars like that duster I'm speaking of
You can’t bypass it to my knowledge. You need a device to tigger the ignition coil.
I got a question for anyone willing to answer. Couple of times my 360 lost spark but after pokin around it would come back and run again. But now it permanently lost spark. Replaced ignition module and I've followed everything in this video. So i put a spark plug on the coil wire and crank it, sparks couple times and stops or doesn't spark at all. 2 possible issues i think. no reading of mil volts on the magnetic pickup, and coil gives jumpy resistance readings but maybe that cause i didn't remove its positive or negative wires.
Does it spark every time when you trigger the pickup coil?
Hey Lakeland Auto & Marine, question I’m diagnosing a 77 Dodge D100 I’m not getting spark to the plugs. With the ignition in run position I use the 50850 hooked to the coil wire and I get spark when grounding the distributor pick up wire. But when trying to go through the distributor I get nothing. I replaced the pick up in the distributor but I’m only seeing .012-.050V AC at the pick up with my meter the voltage is jumpy. Should I still see .50V AC if I have a sluggish starter? Am I right on the voltage I’m seeing to little for it to signal the ignition box to fire the coil?
You need more A/C voltage to trigger the transistor. If you can trigger it with a jumper wire then you mostly likely have a pickup issue. Is the air gap around .010? If it’s too close or too far away that could be the issue as well.
@@LakelandAutoMarine I’m getting about .360 ohms across the pick up wires. I have set the air gap at various gaps .006, .008, .010 with the same result of a fluctuating AC reading while cranking the most I seen was .054V AC this is on my new pick up. Is there a way to test and see if this pick up is faulty out of the box? Any other suggestions on what to check for in the dist to cause such low AC voltage? Would the starter being a bit slow effect me getting .5V AC?
Awesome
Just Awesome! Bravo
Many thanks!
I’ve seemingly been over everything in this system and my 86 Ramcharger still won’t start. What’s funny is there is no spark at all while cranking, unless you let off of the key back to run position, they it will spark a little. It ran fine prior to Hurricane Ian (it was parked outside during the storm) now it won’t start :(
Coil is probably bad
So if you don't have 12v or whatever at the coil when cranking, would it be a fuse?
Could be a fuse, or a bad ignition switch. I suggest you aquire a wiring diagram for whatever you are working on to see the "players" in the circuit.
My spark at the coil on the "20" setting is not that bright! I can't even see it and can only hear it faintly. Could that be an issue?
Possibly. What does your coil ohm out to?
Have a cuda just recently started shutting off about 45min after driving no spark let it cool down for 5 minutes and good to go any ideas I’ve replaced the module as soon as it shuts off and and it starts back up making me believe the module is over heating but not sure as I’ve gone through three types of models and still the same problem thanks
Is the module in the stock location? What year is it?
72 and it’s mounted on the firewall beside the voltage regulator to me it’s the original spot as the hole bolt up perfectly to the module
Did you ever figure out your problem? I have a 72 dodge pickup, and has the exact symptoms that your having.
good video!
Is that system more or less a work/ not work system , or could there be issues under load at higher rpms like around 3200 or so?
It's electrical, anything can go wrong! lol
What’s the box that says marine used for? My 440 on my 81 motor home has that same box. Thank you.
What are you refering to?
Marine SAE J1171
What could cause a weak spark?
I have no spark while cranking. With a dist. Connected out of engine, i spin it, and I get a good spark, but I have to spin it fast. Slow turning does not produce a spark.
* I do not have the .5vdc on the pickup Leeds from the module.
* is this the problem?
Yes, you should have .5V on the Gray wire on the engine harness. When you spin the reluctor at a faster speed it can produce enough electricity itself to trigger. Sounds like a bad module or connection.
@@LakelandAutoMarine Bingo! I thought so. Going to buy a new module and check it out.
Not even the “Mopar Forums” mention this. I guess you would call this a BIAS voltage. Needed to produce spark at low turning speeds.
I have a 76 dodge w200 with the same setup and I been messing with it for more than 3 years and I can’t figure it out at all won’t crank ever
The starter won't crank or you have no spark while cranking?
@@LakelandAutoMarine it wouldn’t crank turning the key but I just figured it out it was the neutral safety switch ground
Everything on mine checks out but I’m having an issue with the pickup, it’s perfect at .300 ohms between the two wires. But when cranking we can o Lu get about .020v not the .250 bolts are so. Air gap is right at .008. Also, the coil negative wire stays negative all the time. I’m assuming because the pickup is giving a good enough voltage. Any pointers? Thanks!
Do you have spark? Can you trigger it with the test light?
@@LakelandAutoMarine thank you for the reply, we ended up changing the pickup and now have .2-.3v while cranking and the truck runs good now. So it ended up being a faulty new pickup. Never count out new parts as being the fault
i followed everything on the video and the one problem i had was at the half a volt on the gray wire i have 2 volts and no spark off the coil
what would you do to fix this?
Sounds like a bad module. The module puts the voltage on the line. Make sure the module case is grounded good first. A bad ground will elevate the voltage.
@@LakelandAutoMarine i checked the ground its at .2 of a volt on the case with the key on
i cleaned the surface it was on to bare metal and i cant get it to go any lower then that. im still having the same voltage
@@LakelandAutoMarine thanks i changed the control module and it works great now! thanks so much for messaging even a year after posting
Do you think Chrysler engines are wortha rebuild or repower to Chevy ?
Yes. Chrysler made good engines.
When testing voltage at the coil, I got just above 12v with the Electronic Control unit unplugged. HOWEVER, when I plugged in the electronic control unit I got 6.7 volts on one lead of the coil and at the other lead I only got 1.3 volts. Does this mean there is a problem at the electronic control unit? I'm a newbie.
Thanks
Which side of the coil has what voltage? What does your coil ohm? I assume you have no spark. Can you trigger the module with the test light?
@@LakelandAutoMarine So my engine turns over and runs pretty good actually. I just wanted to diagnose the ignition system because it is all original (1974 360 duster) and sometimes the car will die randomly so I think it has to do with the ignition system sometimes failing.
So once I plug in the ECU the voltage at the positive terminal of the coil drops to 6.5 while the voltage at the negative terminal drops to 1.24. Does this mean the ECU may have an issue? In your video I believe it drops to 5v on both sides of the coil with ECU plugged in.
Also what was weird. When testing the wire coming from the Ignition Harness/ECU, it was reading -.029v where as in your video you read .5v.
Coil ohm 1.6
Every other part of the diagnostic was up to par. Thanks for the video!
Sorry for the lengthy response.
Would the module have to do with misfiring or backfire through exhaust pipe?
It could. He controls the coil.
Throw that to the trash replaced with pertronix,hei,firecore,progressive Ignition, thank me later.
They weren't that bad it was mostly the modules that failed other that it's fine
With a Blue Quadra Jet
I have a bounching volts gauge !!!
Please drink some fucking water.
And what did you hook your test light to prior to jumping the spark tester gap?