Haven't started my 71 for 2-3 months. Have been having more and more trouble getting it started. All started after I retuned, new plugs, etc. Thought it was the carb--that was just rebuilt by Jerry MacNeish but a "friend" readjusted the carb--I thought it was running rich--lots of black smoke and it burned your eyes.

Now it turns over, getting gas; pulled all the plugs and cleaned/regapped them; getting a spark--not sure how to tell if it is a strong spark. Everything is new within last two years: plugs, ig wires, coil, carb, etc.

It turns over but doesn't ever fire. I can smell gas--so I backed the carb screws so they are out 1 full turn.

HELP!!!! Want to get it started so I can take it in to get it worked on.

It has transistorized ignition--it was rebuilt 2 years ago, too.

Thanks

 

have you adjusted the rocker arms for the lifters pre-load? .. A friend has exactly the same problems with a 350 engine and it turned out to be he tightened the rockers way too much to the point that the engine wont compress the air/fuel mixture at all.

 

I have not touched the rocker arms since I owned the car==was adjusted once at corvette shop several years ago.

 

Best stop d*cking with the carb settings for now. Once you're sure there's a decent spark, presume that the engine is flooded with gas and crank it with the choke and primaries manually held wide open.

 

and you might have to put a new set of plugs in if they were fuel fouled. You might put some like back in the plugs cleaning with a propane torch.
(I've heard horror stories about a fully fouled set of plugs wiping out the transistor box,but that could just be an old wives tale. )

 

How do you determine if the spark is adequate. There is a spark but how do I test if it is strong enough. Thank you for your help!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

If the spark is bluish and will jump a gap bigger than a typical plug it's good enough to get it running.

 

Blue is good. What I have always thought in the small dist caps is when all the plugs are fuel fouled the spark inside the cap doesn't always fire the cylinder the rotor is closest to.

 

Spark testers are easily available at any good parts store. If not, use a new plug set to 45 and well grounded, if it jumps the gap, you're good. Replace the spark plugs, period.

 

Typically when I see this happening progressively it's a distributor clamp that's come loose. I would start by double-checking the static timing - kind of a PITA to do, but worth checking.

Following that, I would have the carb professionally overhauled - the 3310-type carb isn't a tough one to overhaul, but given that it's a fairly rare beasty might as well have it overhauled and restored...

 

I am replacing all the plugs first and see what happens. They were very black and soaked with gas. I will let you know what happens.

 

Crank it over while the plugs are out to clear any excessive gas.
Look down thru the carb and see if there is any gas puddled in the intake.
Gently tap the carb near the needles and seats to free up a possibly jammed valve.

 

Replaced all the plugs and stuck a screwdriver in the choke to keep it open so it wouldn't flood with gas. Turned over but didn't fire one time. I'm at my wits end on this. This car started every time when I was driving on a regular basis. Gas shoots in when gas pedal is depressed. Got fire and gas but no start??????????????????????????????????? ???????????

 

Did you check the timing as previously noted?

 

but also, are you sure what you see shooting out of the carb is gasoline ? Could be water,its not uncommon if the drain around the gas cap plugs up and it rains ,the area around the cap fills and spills over into the tank. Just a thought.
Have you tried a shot of gas or starting fluid down the carb ?

Rereading your OP , you said the problems started after the retune.
Has it ever run after the retune ?
Is the new coil compatible with the TI ?
Is the coil wired correctly ?

 

The spark is so weak from the spark plugs that it won't trigger my timing light. I decided to order a new ignition coil. I replaced the rotor and dist cap today after replacing plugs and wires--still the engine doesn't fire. I will post the results when I get the new coil installed--if that doesn't solve the problem I'm in trouble.

 

You have to be really CAREFULL! testing a K-66 TI ignition for spark or missfires. I always use a test plug firmly grounded. I know for a fact that if you pull a plug wire off on a K-66 ignition while the motor is running you can kill the amplifier with improper grounding of the secondary high voltage wires. You can also cause a current spike while pulling off plug wires if your doing a cylinder balance test and kill the amplifier. These systems are pretty touchy in how they operate and conventional techniques of troubleshooting can cause expensive failures of the system.
The distributor magnetic pulse coil can be tested with an ohm meter and gives a strong signal that will show up on any tester (if you don't get a strong meter reading it is usually because the wires have grounded where they leave the distributor housing.)
You could temporarily drop in a points type distributor and use your Pink wire to power it up to test for ignition failure but the coil is very low resistance and will quickly destroy a set of breaker points during this test. I'm fortunate enough to have spare parts to swap when troubleshooting.
Another alternative is to get a points type distributor and install a Pertronix Ignitor unit into it, using an IgnitorII or III will alow you to use the K-66 12VDC (pink wire) to power the conversion.
Here is a link to troubleshooting the system: http://www.tispecialty.com/articles/...1diagnosis.htm

 

I had the entire system rebuilt by Dave Fiedler-T.I. speciality in March 2008 including distributor, amp box, and I replaced the entire wiring harness to the engine and TI system.. Since having the system rebuilt I have probably put 700 miles on the car.

 

borrow a good HEI distributor from a friend and stab it in, just to make sure that you have ignition problem and not anything else. The HEI is so simple to operate and needs no external coil, just feed it with a 12 volt and fire the engine.

 

Solved the problem. As usual something simple. The ground for the TI amp box needed to be cleaned. Started first time.