Early symptoms of coil breaking down?

[danf_fl]

My '68 charger has had a problem with engine missing at 35 mph and backfire when accelerating.

Points are adjusted correctly and timing is correct. Plugs and wires test good.

Could my problem be that the coil is in early signs of breaking down?

 

[Lefty71]

yes, it could

 

[Darter6]

Only once did I have a coil go bad. It would start and idle but would not take any rpm off idle. If it is the 50 year old original it sure is possible.

 

[Bill Monk]

Check the cap as well, I had a cap that wasn't seated right and bent the contact arm on the rotor. I had just replaced it and didn't suspect it....drove me nuts until I found it

 

[91r/t]

Also, when a coil shits the bed, they can start surging or bucking under load once they get hot from underhood heat. Usually the hotter it gets the worse they get.

 

[dadeo]

Well if you are sure your points are good my bet is you have a bad condenser. Easy to try/fix.

 

[khryslerkid]

Well if you are sure your points are good my bet is you have a bad condenser. Easy to try/fix.

^^This^^

 

[Aeronet]

I had a condenser fail. It was only a couple of months old. At first I thought it was bad gas. The car ran real rough. Then it would sometimes start, but mostly wouldn't. Can't you check the coils' resistence? I've never had a coil fail. Seems like if the resistence values are within specs the coil should be good, unless it's leaking.

 

[kiwigtx]

Have you double-checked all the plugs?

I can assure you that if a plug is fouled, the engine will backfire and miss as described. Also, it is entirely possible to have a plug that 'tests OK', but is bad under load. Plugs are cheap....what sort are you using? Consider replacing them with another set - Autolite ATL-86 are good.

A coil breaking down is less likely than a simple failure on a plug.

 

[dvw]

Is it just one backfire? Or a series of fast backfires as long as the throttle is held down?
Doug

 

[danf_fl]

One backfire on giving gas, but my foot comes off the accelerator when it happens.

I've replaced points with "ignitor" kit and waiting for correct coil to come in.