plug wires/distributer cap?
Thread Starter
Drifting
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 1,302
Likes: 2
From: colchester CT
plug wires/distributer cap?
I have an 86 that I put plugs and wires cap rotor and coil on. Fsm says firing order is 18436572. Here is my rookie interpretation of this info: If the top of the distributor cap were a clock face with 6 facing the front of the car I put the #1 cyl wire in the 5 o'clock spot on the cap. I then went clockwise around the cap with 8,4,3,6,5,7,2. Hopefully this makes sense as I don't really know what I am doing, just trying to follow the fsm. Is this the correct way of putting the plugs on the cap? When I looked in my haynes manual it shows the #1 cyl wire at the 5 oclock spot on the cap and then it looks like it's telling me to go in sequential order, clockwise from that first plug. so it would go 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8 around the cap. The car runs great so I am thinking I did it correctly, the first way mentioned above. Please correct me if I am misunderstanding something here. Feeling stupid just the same.
Thread Starter
Drifting
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 1,302
Likes: 2
From: colchester CT
I just need to add that my understanding is that cylinders 1,3,5,7 are on the driver side of the block, with 1 being in front. If I am also wrong about this please correct me and then promptly remove me from the forum for complete lack of hope. you should also take away my car before someone gets hurt.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 5,107
Likes: 171
From: Dublin CA
You did it correctly by following the firing order. And 1,3,5,7 are on the drivers side of the block. Since it is possible that someone in the past may have pulled the distributor and moved the rotor to a different position than your 5 o'clock position, it is always best to remove one wire at a time for replacement. This way you will not go wrong if the car was running before.
A friend got a 19 foot boat for free because he could not sell it since he could not get it to run when buyers came to look at it. It was a inboard-outboard based on a SB Chevy engine. I looked at it, we had spark and fuel but it would not even backfire. I put a timing light on it and discovered that the timing was way off. When the PO had replaced the plug wires, he was off by one position. This error resulted in the engine never firing. When I moved the wires back to the correct position on the distributor and rotated the distributor again, it fired right up.
You did well. Remember if you are going to time the car, to unplug the brown/white wire next to the wiper motor. Time the car. Plug the wire back in and then disconnect the battery to remove the error code set to the computer by the unplugged wire.
A friend got a 19 foot boat for free because he could not sell it since he could not get it to run when buyers came to look at it. It was a inboard-outboard based on a SB Chevy engine. I looked at it, we had spark and fuel but it would not even backfire. I put a timing light on it and discovered that the timing was way off. When the PO had replaced the plug wires, he was off by one position. This error resulted in the engine never firing. When I moved the wires back to the correct position on the distributor and rotated the distributor again, it fired right up.
You did well. Remember if you are going to time the car, to unplug the brown/white wire next to the wiper motor. Time the car. Plug the wire back in and then disconnect the battery to remove the error code set to the computer by the unplugged wire.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Feb 2000
Posts: 9,715
Likes: 27
From: Kempner Texas
I have an 86 that I put plugs and wires cap rotor and coil on. Fsm says firing order is 18436572. Here is my rookie interpretation of this info: If the top of the distributor cap were a clock face with 6 facing the front of the car I put the #1 cyl wire in the 5 o'clock spot on the cap. I then went clockwise around the cap with 8,4,3,6,5,7,2. Hopefully this makes sense as I don't really know what I am doing, just trying to follow the fsm. Is this the correct way of putting the plugs on the cap? When I looked in my haynes manual it shows the #1 cyl wire at the 5 oclock spot on the cap and then it looks like it's telling me to go in sequential order, clockwise from that first plug. so it would go 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8 around the cap NO, NOT CORRECT!
The car runs great so I am thinking I did it correctly, the first way mentioned above. Please correct me if I am misunderstanding something here. Feeling stupid just the same.
The car runs great so I am thinking I did it correctly, the first way mentioned above. Please correct me if I am misunderstanding something here. Feeling stupid just the same.
What confuses a lot of guys is the position/placement of #1. The engine does NOT KNOW or CARE where you put #1. I only matters that the remaining wires 8,4,3,6,5,7 and 2 and installed in a clock-wise direction in relation to #1.
The main reason most guys put #1 in a certain position is for clearance reasons (length of wires; ability to turn the distributor to set the initial timing, etc.
Since the engine's running and, presumably, NOT BACK-FIRING, you've done it correctly.
Jake
