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18 years ago today I got the Charger. Today it left me stranded!

oldbee said:
Well, I’m trying to save stress on the body; that bending gets to you pretty quick! Plus when the wear block wears down your dwell/timing changes. Back when we were 18-20, we just re-adjusted! Now, I like to know it’s all just the same no matter the miles,lol.
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Hey, tune up a points system on a /6! lol. I always removed the dizzy to do them. Leaning tower of power and they have to put the distributor on the worse side :( At least the starter was VERY easy to swap out! 10 minutes if you were good :D
 
My MSD is my main worry when going on long hauls and not that I have anything against them it's just a bunch of parts that aren't readily available. I had a discussion with a very knowledgeable guy that's in the business of tuning and his advice was unless your cranking the rpms up to 7,000 rpm it's a waste. I'm seriously considering simplifying my ignition.
 
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Kern Dog said:
I blame MSD...sort of.
Their instructions do list that the coil is to be mounted vertically and I had it horizontal...for several years before it failed.View attachment 582445
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Can you post the directions where it says to mount the coil vertical . Looked at directions online says nothing about mounting vertical .

Edit : Found where it says to mount it vertical .
 
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How old is the MSD 6 AL version? What vintage.
 
- Blaster Coil, PN 8202, PN 8223, PN 8222 2 - Brass Nuts and Lock Washers (PN 8223 also is supplied with a 90° Plug Terminal and Boot) Note: This Blaster Coil Kit is intended to be used with an MSD Ignition. If installing on a stock, points style ignition system, a 0.8 ohm ballast resistor or resistor wiring must be installed. MSD offers this Ballast Resistor as PN 8214 or the Blaster Coil Kits, PN 8200 and 8203 are equipped with one. WARNING: Failure to use a ballast resistor could result in personal injury or component failure. The Blaster Coil is designed to mount in most factory canister coil mounts. MSD also offers a Chrome Coil Bracket, PN 8213. It is recommended to mount the PN 8202 and 8223 coils in an upright position. The High Vibration Coil, PN 8222, can be mounted in any position due to its epoxy potting compound.
 
Dang car did it to me again today. I came home from work with plenty of time to get to the scale to weigh it. I started it up, pulled it up to the the driveway and shut it off to say hello and goodbye to the Wife. It refused to start afterwards.
Again, no spark. It felt cold blooded when it first started it, just like last week. It was 60 degrees so it wasn't as if I was trying to start it in arctic cold.
This time it was the ECM, the chrome box that has never given me any trouble before.
This car has always been reliable but now it has acted up in the exact same manner two Mondays in a row.
As part of my style of diagnosing problems, I look for what factors are common and what factors are different from before. I don't know what actual trained mechanics do but this is my way.
In both instances, it was a Monday afternoon, reasonably comfortable weather. The car ran fine in the days beforehand. In both times, I revved the engine several times to keep it from stalling and to warm up a bit faster. All electrical connections are secure. This time the only difference from last week is the change to a different coil.
I may never know why this keeps happening. It is very annoying.
 
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In the late 70's I had the same type of problem with a 74 pickup. Got tired of buying junk ECU's etc from the local auto parts so I started going to the wrecking yards and picking up extra factory ignition parts from cars that still had the factory stuff on them (buying from the stealership was expensive!). They worked! In 80 I bought a 70 383 Challenger that had an Accel dual point on it and I left it on then in 86 I bought a 71 340 Cuda with the stock setup and left that on too. In 89 I bought my 66 Belvedere and it too still had the stock ignition and you know what happened with that one too.....yup. No failures!
 
Grounds,grounds; always the first thing that should cross your brain.
 
Today's update:

Years ago, I decided to just treat the car as a Spring, Summer and Fall driver. I did not drive in the rain or when it was below 50 degrees. The heater has never worked so I was fine with that.
Over the last few years, I have wanted to drive it more so I have been slowly making changes. Using the wideband AFR gauge, I have the carburetor adjusted to idle at mid 14s in gear....but the choke is not there because I removed the parts several years ago. The car runs choppy and lean until it warms up.
Last week, I was in a hurry to start it and get going, same with yesterday. I did not let it fully warm up so that it runs right. It kept stalling, requiring several restarts. The battery runs down and maybe....Maybe that results in the electrical failures???
I've tried charging the battery but think my battery charger is messed up. The car has an Optima. After thinking about this, I now recall that the battery charger has not been working right for awhile. Three different batteries have not fully charged with it even after multiple hours of "charging".
Today I let the car warm up, then went out to drive it. Everything was fine, no stalling or hesitation. I might test the MSD coil to see if it works again, along with the Chrome ECM.
 
Quick update on my issue. Pulled and replaced the fuel filter, nothing obvious seemed nice and clean. Removed one of the Holley front bowl screws and drained it to a clean glass jar, I think I see a wee bit of H2O in the bottom. Went to Shell and filled with premium and added some Lucas octane booster and went out and hammered the **** out of it for about 15 miles. OK for now keeping fingers crossed.
 
Kern Dog said:
Today's update:

Years ago, I decided to just treat the car as a Spring, Summer and Fall driver. I did not drive in the rain or when it was below 50 degrees. The heater has never worked so I was fine with that.
Over the last few years, I have wanted to drive it more so I have been slowly making changes. Using the wideband AFR gauge, I have the carburetor adjusted to idle at mid 14s in gear....but the choke is not there because I removed the parts several years ago. The car runs choppy and lean until it warms up.
Last week, I was in a hurry to start it and get going, same with yesterday. I did not let it fully warm up so that it runs right. It kept stalling, requiring several restarts. The battery runs down and maybe....Maybe that results in the electrical failures???
I've tried charging the battery but think my battery charger is messed up. The car has an Optima. After thinking about this, I now recall that the battery charger has not been working right for awhile. Three different batteries have not fully charged with it even after multiple hours of "charging".
Today I let the car warm up, then went out to drive it. Everything was fine, no stalling or hesitation. I might test the MSD coil to see if it works again, along with the Chrome ECM.
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If you have an Edelbrock carb with manual choke I will give you a new manual choke for it if you want to pay for shipping.
 
themechanic said:
If you have an Edelbrock carb with manual choke I will give you a new manual choke for it if you want to pay for shipping.
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I've always liked manual choke vs auto but auto is good too when it's set up right.
 
That is very kind but I have an 850 Demon on it.
 
I got a lucky break today. I was rained out at work and during a brief dry period, I was able to get to the weigh station.
3940 lbs.
Now I can proceed with the parts swapping!
 
Kern Dog said:
Dang car did it to me again today. I came home from work with plenty of time to get to the scale to weigh it. I started it up, pulled it up to the the driveway and shut it off to say hello and goodbye to the Wife. It refused to start afterwards.
Again, no spark. It felt cold blooded when it first started it, just like last week. It was 60 degrees so it wasn't as if I was trying to start it in arctic cold.
This time it was the ECM, the chrome box that has never given me any trouble before.
This car has always been reliable but now it has acted up in the exact same manner two Mondays in a row.
As part of my style of diagnosing problems, I look for what factors are common and what factors are different from before. I don't know what actual trained mechanics do but this is my way.
In both instances, it was a Monday afternoon, reasonably comfortable weather. The car ran fine in the days beforehand. In both times, I revved the engine several times to keep it from stalling and to warm up a bit faster. All electrical connections are secure. This time the only difference from last week is the change to a different coil.
I may never know why this keeps happening. It is very annoying.
Click to expand...
Maybe it just doesn't like Mondays.
 
MSD never let me down, my woes always bulkhead or fuel,when running an electric pump.
4050 with me in it. I go 208.
 
Kern Dog said:
I too noticed some oil film on the coil. I put in that generic coil. It was dry but with flaky paint and a few dents.... it started up, but I could not just leave that ugly coil in there. I had a new Mopar Performance coil in the parts shed so I swapped that one in.
For distance trips, I always bring all the electrical spares: Coil and ballast, TWO spark ECUs, starter relay, even a whole distributor. I have never needed them but they are always in the trunk. This was the first time ever that the car left me stranded. That is a stretch of a statement though, I was only 5 miles from the house and the Wife was there to help in short order.
I do plan to bring it to Van Nuys next month but I am just getting started on the A/C retrofit. I have everything here except the actual water pump. It all hinges on the first step: Getting the car weighed. I am interested in seeing what the car weighs before and after the work. It was a 318 with A/C when new but I never put the stuff back on when I switched to the first 440 in 2002. It still has the stock HVAC box inside and compared to the replacement CCA box, it looks like I'll lose a few lbs there. The compressor and condenser will add weight but the aluminum WP housing saves about 8 lbs. All the back and forth of the parts are still going to result in some weight gain. My bonehead estimate is approx. 20-25 lbs.
The car weighed 3660 with the 318, 904, 8.75 axle and 1975 Dart front disc brakes.
It was 3751 with the iron head 440, 727 and dual exhaust. Since then I have added aluminum heads, frame connectors, torque boxes, bigger wheels and tires. lighter rear disc brakes, lighter seats, sound deadener and a stereo. With all of the back and forth, I am guessing it is under 3900 now. It is raining so I have to wait to weigh it. The guy that installed the windshield a few years ago didn't seal it right and it leaks right over the $1200 gauge cluster I installed 2 years ago. I do not want to risk damaging them. I should just pull the glass and reseal it myself.
Click to expand...

Also, do not forget to add an extra radiator hose, fan belt and jumper cables. Each of my "older" cars have a tool box and these extras plus more, only needed them a few times but when you do, its priceless to have them.
 
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