The Old MOPAR Curse....

[bob32268]

I took the 69 Charger out for a test drive today...I was about three miles from my house on the entrance ramp to Route 22 West when my car just died on me... I called my son and he came down with some tools etc. The car was not
getting any spark.... Couldn't find problem so we called for a rollback to take it to his shop (about 1mile away)... While waiting for the rollback I noticed that the ballast resistor was cracked (badly).... the rollback arrived and we got it to his shop
and we called the local parts store and he had one in stock ! What luck ! I removed the old one and the parts store delivered the new one in about 10 mins. I installed the new one and it fired right up on the first try and back on the road again. These
ballast resistors were a big problem back in the 60's, a lot of savvy people kept a spare in the glove-box, which is what I am going to do from now on.

 

[pnora]

That is a newer style dual ballast. Came out with electronic ignition in late 1972.

 

[WileE]

ballast resistors were a big problem back in the 60's, a lot of savvy people kept a spare in the glove-box, which is what I am going to do from now on.

what I've done since the 60's ...

 

[bob32268]

I was driving GTO's back then so I never had this problem. A lot of buddies with Roadrunners and SuperBees did.

 

[RemCharger]

I was driving GTO's back then so I never had this problem. A lot of buddies with Roadrunners and SuperBees did.

You were more of a bum starter guy

 

[69 Sleeper Bee]

These days when you buy a new back up ballast resistor try it out first to make sure it is good before storing it in your glove box. I keep 2 in each vehicle just because I am paranoid I guess.

 

[RJRENTON]

That is a newer style dual ballast. Came out with electronic ignition in late 1972.

And subsequently, the two (2) prong resistor came out later replacing the origional four (4) prong unit and the ECM (Orange box) was redesigned to not require the origionl 4 prong resistor. IMO....aftermarket resistors can be open back or closed back, usually manufactured by DALE. it is my experience that the closed back resistor run significantly hotter and are more prone to failure. OEM type Mopar open back are better but cost more than the closed back design. Personally, I use the open back resistor, with the correct coil but with the Prestolite Dual point distributor, but if using an electronic ignition system, use the open back resistor that matches what ever coil you are using.......and .....keep a spare resistor in the glove box and maybe a spare ECM box as well......BTW, I've never had a resistor failure in the 37 years I've owned the car.......
BOB RENTON

 

[tonysrt]

Electronic ignition started in 71, I had a 71 340 Duster with points, but in B bodies in the 440's etc. the electronic ign. started. 72 was the year all cars got it.

 

[F4R/T]

I’ve never had a resistor fail just one distrubutor pick up otherwise all good, I do carry spares.

 

[DeltaV]

I’ve never had a resistor fail just one distrubutor pick up otherwise all good, I do carry spares.

Ditto

 

[WileE]

I was driving GTO's back then so I never had this problem. A lot of buddies with Roadrunners and SuperBees did.

Did you afterwards get a Mopar since you liked the look of their taillights ?

 

[DeltaV]

Shameless plug:

I bought my spares from Ray @HALIFAXHOPS

 

[71RRHI]

I’ve never had a resistor fail just one distrubutor pick up otherwise all good, I do carry spares.

Ditto

Me too. But now we probably jinked our self by saying so.

 

[twecomm]

In my 66 Charger I keep a basic " Survival Kit " in the trunk. Luckily, never needed any of the stuff, but figure I'll be able to get it on the road again by covering the most typical issues with these cars.

* Basic tools
* LED work light
* Multi Meter
* Spare coil
* Spare ballast resistor
* Spare ECU orange box
* Spare starter relay
* Couple 4 ft. long #16 ga. wire alligator clip wires.
* Duct Tape
* Spare thermostat
* Gallon of coolant
* Few quarts of oil

 

[Runcharger]

I do carry a spare one but in over 50 years driving these cars I've only had one fail. In a pinch you can jump the terminals with a wire to get home.

 

[Mackman]

And subsequently, the two (2) prong resistor came out later replacing the origional four (4) unit and the ECM (Orange box) was redesigned to not require the origion 4 prong resistor. IMO....aftermarket resistors can be open back or closed back, usually manufactured by DALE. it is my experience that the closed back resistor run significantly hotter and are more prone to failure. OEM type Mopar open back are better but cost more than the closed back design. Personally, I use the open back resistor, with the correct coil but with the Prestolite Dual point distributor, but if using an electronic ignition system, use the open back resistor that matches what ever coil you are using.......and .....keep a spare resistor in the glove box and maybe a spare ECM box as well......BTW, I've never had a resistor failure in the 37 years I've owned the car.......
BOB RENTON

I logged 100’s of thousands of miles in Mopars in the 70’s and early 80’s. Only had one resister failure, that in a ‘73 Satellite.

 

[Armyvet25]

you could have saved tow bill by jumping the ballast, it would have supplied full 12v to the coil, but for a short ride would have gotten you home

 

[bob32268]

Did you afterwards get a Mopar since you liked the look of their taillights ?

I liked ALL the musclecars from the 60's... my fastest ride was in a friends 65 Tri-Power 4-speed GTO, that one was a rocket with tires ! I bought my first GTO in '68 and had quite a feww since then. I always loved the 68 - 70 Chargers but could never get any kind of a deal from the local dealers back then, so it went on my "bucket-list" and I finally got my current Charger in 2016 and have been enjoying it big-time. I still have a 70 GTO and like using it too.

 

[bob32268]

you could have saved tow bill by jumping the ballast, it would have supplied full 12v to the coil, but for a short ride would have gotten you home

I was considering this but was unsure of how far I could safely go with a full 12V going to the coil.....

 

[68BabyBlue]

I drove for decades with a spare in the glove box and never needed it until 2022. I took my Hemi GTX into the muffler shop to get the stock resonators put back in place. The car cranked with no start when the tech tried to move it out of the bay. He shook his head in disbelief when I popped the spare resistor in place, and the car fired right up.