- Joined
- Dec 7, 2008
- Threads
- 29
- Messages
- 150
- Location
- Colorado Springs, CO
- Website
- www.freedomjunkie.net
- Thread starter
- #21
Ignition coil is off on resistance checks, meaning it has to be replaced. Could this be the root of the problem?
Spits, sputters, dies
- Thread starter cosfj40
- Start date
This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.
- Joined
- Dec 7, 2008
- Threads
- 29
- Messages
- 150
- Location
- Colorado Springs, CO
- Website
- www.freedomjunkie.net
- Thread starter
- #22
I ALWAYS run premium unleaded in my rig.....(and, don't tell thethat I put regular in all the other cars).....:
Mum's the word! LOL
Pighead is a little fuzzy on resistance specs for the coil...IIRC, coils either work or they don't. Lean over the fender and grab that big wire coming out of the coil, have someone else turn the key to start and crank the engine...
- Joined
- Dec 7, 2008
- Threads
- 29
- Messages
- 150
- Location
- Colorado Springs, CO
- Website
- www.freedomjunkie.net
- Thread starter
- #24
Uh-huh...sure. LOL I sort of checked it that way against a bolt...very, very little spark at all.
points?
Do you have points ignition?
Your points could be the prob for weak spark from the coil or maybe not getting enough power to the coil-check gap and condition
To test your coil
1 disconnect all the wires from your coil except the high tension
lead
2 run a wire straight from the batt to the + term on the coil
3 strip the end of a wire bare and connect the opposite end of
the wire to the - term on the coil
4 touch the end of the wire coming from the - term on the coil to
bare metal quickly and repeat a few times while holding the coil
high tension lead gapped from bare metal to check for spark
If you get good spark out of your coil this way the coil is good and the problem is the points or wiring, ballast resistor etc
Do the coil check and let us know how that goes and we can talk more about the rest
if the coil check is bad replace the coil
When I check my coil I can usually just lay the high tension lead on its side letting the boot make the gap and it will jump even though that is a huge gap---with a good spark you can usually hear it as well as see it --it will snap/snap/snap!
To rule out fuel buy a can of ether and shoot it in the carb while cranking or pour a little gas in from a can--that's usually good for a few seconds of running properly
Hope that's helpful
Do you have points ignition?
Your points could be the prob for weak spark from the coil or maybe not getting enough power to the coil-check gap and condition
To test your coil
1 disconnect all the wires from your coil except the high tension
lead
2 run a wire straight from the batt to the + term on the coil
3 strip the end of a wire bare and connect the opposite end of
the wire to the - term on the coil
4 touch the end of the wire coming from the - term on the coil to
bare metal quickly and repeat a few times while holding the coil
high tension lead gapped from bare metal to check for spark
If you get good spark out of your coil this way the coil is good and the problem is the points or wiring, ballast resistor etc
Do the coil check and let us know how that goes and we can talk more about the rest
if the coil check is bad replace the coil
When I check my coil I can usually just lay the high tension lead on its side letting the boot make the gap and it will jump even though that is a huge gap---with a good spark you can usually hear it as well as see it --it will snap/snap/snap!
To rule out fuel buy a can of ether and shoot it in the carb while cranking or pour a little gas in from a can--that's usually good for a few seconds of running properly
Hope that's helpful
- Joined
- Dec 7, 2008
- Threads
- 29
- Messages
- 150
- Location
- Colorado Springs, CO
- Website
- www.freedomjunkie.net
- Thread starter
- #26
I'm rebuiding the carb, replacing fuel filter, coil, resistor and points...should take care of it. LOL It's probably just the coil, but I figured what the hell. It won't hurt to cover all the bases.
good luck
Okay, hope it all goes well and let us know how it turns out
Okay, hope it all goes well and let us know how it turns out
I'm curious to know what the cause of the prob was, though. Do the fuel filter first and see if anything changes, then the coil, then the resistor and points and lastly the carb rebuild. I'll bet you get to your problem before you get to the carb....I'm with you on doing it all, though....you might as well!
I had a problem with my 1978 fj40 and I thought i was having problems with the carb or something to do with the gas mixture. But you should check a fuse in the fuse box! i just erplaced the blown fuse and fix the problem. Maybe I could be wrong bit it worked for me
- Joined
- Dec 7, 2008
- Threads
- 29
- Messages
- 150
- Location
- Colorado Springs, CO
- Website
- www.freedomjunkie.net
- Thread starter
- #30
FIXED!!!
All right, the '72 FJ40 is now running as good as ever. It will run better than ever once the carb is rebuilt! The root of the problem was two-fold: coil was bad and the points were shot. Rotor was a bit on the charred side as well, but that has been replaced, too.
Here are some pics of the completed job. Full walk through and all photos will be available on FJ Series tomorrow! I'll add the link once posted.
I went with Accel Super Coil because it put out the exact OHMs required. It also came with the resistor (newbie warning: be careful when you torque the bolt to put this in place...easily breakable...I'll have to replace it eventually but breaking the casing had no effect on the resistor's performance). The coil was $60, higher than other coils, but well worth it since it came with the resistor, mounting brackets, etc. Speaking of mounting, the thing took some modifications because the brackets weren't wide enough to fit the holes the previous coil used, but it's done!
Oh, one other thing. I did cut some new wire since the wire that goes between the resistor and the coil wasn't long enough. While doing that I also replaced the wire with another longer one going from the distributor to the coil.
Everything I did tonight included replacing:
Coil
Resistor
Points
Condenser
Misc. wires
All right, the '72 FJ40 is now running as good as ever. It will run better than ever once the carb is rebuilt! The root of the problem was two-fold: coil was bad and the points were shot. Rotor was a bit on the charred side as well, but that has been replaced, too.
Here are some pics of the completed job. Full walk through and all photos will be available on FJ Series tomorrow! I'll add the link once posted.
I went with Accel Super Coil because it put out the exact OHMs required. It also came with the resistor (newbie warning: be careful when you torque the bolt to put this in place...easily breakable...I'll have to replace it eventually but breaking the casing had no effect on the resistor's performance). The coil was $60, higher than other coils, but well worth it since it came with the resistor, mounting brackets, etc. Speaking of mounting, the thing took some modifications because the brackets weren't wide enough to fit the holes the previous coil used, but it's done!
Oh, one other thing. I did cut some new wire since the wire that goes between the resistor and the coil wasn't long enough. While doing that I also replaced the wire with another longer one going from the distributor to the coil.
Everything I did tonight included replacing:
Coil
Resistor
Points
Condenser
Misc. wires
Last edited:
Good call, Pighead.....
