No Start After Install Of Pertronix Unit

[Mariposa Mike]

There are other posts on this issue but this is a little different. I have a 66 383 with an older Pertronix unit installed and the car has been running well but I can tell it's been in there a long time and the Pertronix owner did not recognize the number on the unit. The cap looks well used and the rotor had some black residue on the brass electrode. So I wanted to update the unit and installed the Pertronix II unit and a new rotor along with a new cap. Now the engine will not start. Was not getting spark to the plugs. Put the old parts back in except for the new cap. Still will not start. No spark getting to the distributor from the coil. The ballast is doing it's job voltage wise but while the switch was on I noticed the ballast was HOTTER than a Saturday night special. Cannot touch the unit w/o burning your fingers. Is it supposed to be that hot and could it be the coil has been compromised with the new unit and ballast still installed? Coil does not get hot. I carefully taped the bat. + wire that goes to the coil before hand to be sure it's correct. Any idea what is going on? I cannot imagine why the old unit would not work until I saw that it's also not getting juice from the coil.

Ohms testing the coil wire I got a reading of 10 on I think it was the 20 Ohm scale. Moved it while doing so and remained the same value. Fixed a running vehicle

 

[Darter6]

Pertronix II

Pertronix II.Instructions say to by-pass the ballast. Also I just had a coil go bad that was on the car for only 3 years with little run time.
Checked the coil per service manual all checks good. ? Swapped for another coil and she fired right up !

 

[1967coronet]

Make sure to set your air gap with the provided gauge. New rotor never hurts.
Make sure yours is under the cap with the manet ring. ( yes I have forgot to stick a rotor on lol )
Yes bypass the ballast resistor.
The different pertronix models use different ohm rated coils.
Your ohm number should be in your paper work.
All that said any good 12volt coil will fire it up.
The ohm deal is just for longevity.
I'm pretty sure the instruction sheet will show you the ballast bypass.

 

[coloradodave]

Check the feed wire that it didn't get compromised where it passes through the distributor housing or at the connection to the pick-up, that is, it's not turned so that it's grounding on the mounting plate.

 

[Mariposa Mike]

Did notice the paperwork mentions to get the optimum performance bypass the ballast resister. And suggests using a power relay P/N 2001. Figured the old parts work with it so maybe the new ones will too. So my first thought was to investigate how to do that but put the old parts back in while figuring that out. But with no spark coming from the coil via the coil wire on the spark plugs something happened. And the hot ballast resister. Can someone tell me if those are supposed to get really hot? Maybe that is an indication of some kind of short. Maybe inside the coil. I can try another coil today with the old setup but the bypass wiring for the Pertronix II is a bit confusing on the wiring diagram provided.

Car is a 66 Charger and has a tach in the instrument panel. Hope it will still work when this gets figured out.

 

[Geoff 2]

The bal res[BR ] does get hot, but...........

- it could the correct res for THAT coil
- the coil could be faulty
- it is the wrong BR

 

[chrger1967]

Did notice the paperwork mentions to get the optimum performance bypass the ballast resister. And suggests using a power relay P/N 2001. Figured the old parts work with it so maybe the new ones will too. So my first thought was to investigate how to do that but put the old parts back in while figuring that out. But with no spark coming from the coil via the coil wire on the spark plugs something happened. And the hot ballast resister. Can someone tell me if those are supposed to get really hot? Maybe that is an indication of some kind of short. Maybe inside the coil. I can try another coil today with the old setup but the bypass wiring for the Pertronix II is a bit confusing on the wiring diagram provided.

Car is a 66 Charger and has a tach in the instrument panel. Hope it will still work when this gets figured out.

Did notice the paperwork mentions to get the optimum performance bypass the ballast resister. And suggests using a power relay P/N 2001. Figured the old parts work with it so maybe the new ones will too. So my first thought was to investigate how to do that but put the old parts back in while figuring that out. But with no spark coming from the coil via the coil wire on the spark plugs something happened. And the hot ballast resister. Can someone tell me if those are supposed to get really hot? Maybe that is an indication of some kind of short. Maybe inside the coil. I can try another coil today with the old setup but the bypass wiring for the Pertronix II is a bit confusing on the wiring diagram provided.

Car is a 66 Charger and has a tach in the instrument panel. Hope it will still work when this gets figured out.

The prior owner of my 67 Charger had a pertronix II in it. He used a stock coil and never bypassed the ballast resistor. After changing the coil I was able to get the engine running. It did run with the ballast resistor still hooked up, but I found it was harder to start when hot. So I just bypassed it and now it starts good even when hot.

 

[Mariposa Mike]

One thing I noticed on the resister is that turning the ignition on w/o starting the engine it gradually heated up. If I have to bypass it would you be able to explain how you did that on your Charger? Two wires are coming into the resister. I can look at the wiring diagram to determine where each are coming from and maybe going. The Pertronix diagram shows wiring going from ignition to the coil, I believe, but is it just a matter of connecting the wires going into and out of the resister? I plan to call the company today to ask about the issue I'm having and maybe get an explanation on the coil to use. But I'm, still at a loss to know why the car was running/starting fine on the old unit and will not now. If you can blow up a coil installing these units then I don't want to put a new one on there and destroy it.

 

[Don Frelier]

One thing I noticed on the resister is that turning the ignition on w/o starting the engine it gradually heated up. If I have to bypass it would you be able to explain how you did that on your Charger? Two wires are coming into the resister. I can look at the wiring diagram to determine where each are coming from and maybe going. The Pertronix diagram shows wiring going from ignition to the coil, I believe, but is it just a matter of connecting the wires going into and out of the resister? I plan to call the company today to ask about the issue I'm having and maybe get an explanation on the coil to use. But I'm, still at a loss to know why the car was running/starting fine on the old unit and will not now. If you can blow up a coil installing these units then I don't want to put a new one on there and destroy it.

I don't think the new pertronix was the source of your coil failure. Leaving the ignition on without running the engine likely was, or perhaps just age.

Both points or electronic replacement units simply pulse the negative side of the coil to negative battery. ( Complete the circuit)

And yes you can just replace the ballast with a jumper but your coil needs to be compatible with full running voltage and no current limiting (essentially 14v to last ).

 

[Mariposa Mike]

Just contacted Pertronix tech help. They sent me a trouble shooting guide to locate the problem. He said you cannot use the Pertronix II unit with the ballast resister in place and you need a different coil. 6 ohm resistance. You can use the ballast resister in the older unit (P-1) with a 1.5 ohm resistance coil and with the ballast resister in place but you cannot leave the ignition on w/o starting. That was the reason I went with the P-II to begin with. So either way if I'm to use one of these units I should by pass the resister. I'll be trouble shooting with their ignitor test sheet and post results. I may have burned the P-1 unit out while trying to get the car to start and maybe the coil is not producing enough voltage to run the P-II.

 

[Mariposa Mike]

Small update. Went thru the checklist and determined that the P-1 is still testing okay. So that does not tell me why when reinstalled the engine would not start. Tested the coil per the checklist and it appears to also be okay. 2 ohm resistance which is within the range. Three other coils I have, one which is new, all tested the same. Ordered a Pertronix 6 ohm coil and will reinstall the P-2. Will bypass the resister and try again to get this beast running. If none of this works I have a dual point distributer on the shelf and may try that. Not sure yet if I can run the 6 ohm coil with that but somehow I have to get down the road.

 

[Mariposa Mike]

Installed the new coil with the P-II unit, bypassed the resister with a jump wire and the engine started right up. Removed the resister and saw the metal conductor rod is broken. Might have been the cause of heating up and restricting voltage to the original coil. No idea if it broke before or after my work. Engine starts faster than before so the spark is possibly improved. What a relief to hear it start up. Thanks to all for the advice.