XelderX's '88 323 Wagon

[mazkam]

Did you check if the ignition coil was hotter than usual? Your igniter may not be grounded properly.

[XelderX]

Did you check if the ignition coil was hotter than usual? Your igniter may not be grounded properly.

I'll check that today.

[Mazda_Powered]

yea i use to have an issue with a faulty MSD coil and the tach would drop before the engine would die showing a bad connection...did that happen at all? Tach dropped, car dies.

[XelderX]

yea i use to have an issue with a faulty MSD coil and the tach would drop before the engine would die showing a bad connection...did that happen at all? Tach dropped, car dies.

There is no tach in mine. I'm hunting for a cluster with a tach, but haven't found one locally yet.

The car stumbled like a second before it completely shut off. I'll check the grounds near the coil.

[XelderX]

I'm stuck on the side of the road again. Took the car to lunch today and it ran fine. Later, my girlfriend and I were going to a party. We made it about 300 yards from the house and it died again. I pulled the coil wire off the distributor and the was no spark while she tried to crank it. I walked home and got my extra coil and it fired right up. I took my girlfriend home to get her car and I decided not to go to the party. I took the car out for another test just to make sure and it went about 2 miles and died again. I guess it wasn't the coil, even though it fired right up after replacing it.

[me109]

Igniter maybe? This is puzzling. Oh, could it be the ignition switch?

[XelderX]

Igniter maybe? This is puzzling. Oh, could it be the ignition switch?

The igniton switch has been bypassed. I had some trouble with it years ago so I bypassed it with just an aftermarket toggle switch for the power an a momentary switch for the starter. I did some quick research online and it looks like the Mercury Capris had a lot of problems with their ignition control modules and distributors. There are several reports of other people having exactly the same problem I'm having, including where it will fix itself after sitting for a while.

Now I just have to decide if I want to gamble with replacing the ICM for $75 or the whole distributor for $275.

[BFMRGTX]

Bob Bundy is having the same issue on the yahoo forum, maybe you could chat him up and kick a few ideas around? He's a good guy to talk to.

[crazycanadian]

I would replace the ICM... Its to bad you didn't have a good graphing meter where you could check to see if the diszy was out puting a signal when the car crapped out..

[XelderX]

Bob Bundy is having the same issue on the yahoo forum, maybe you could chat him up and kick a few ideas around? He's a good guy to talk to.

GTX mailing list?

[XelderX]

Here is the report I found that is similar to the problem I'm having. With mine, it doesn't matter if you are slowing down or coming to a stop. It will cut off while on the gas.



MERCURY CAPRI:ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION:MODULE

MERCURY CAPRI 1991 Safety Report #10209379

MERCURY CAPRI 1991 car safety problem was reported on Oct 15, 2007.MERCURY CAPRI 1991, manufactured by FORD MOTOR COMPANY had a problem with ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:IGNITION:MODULE . DRIVING, THEN COMING TO A STOP OR SLOWING DOWN, WHEN SUDDENLY THE ENGINE STOPS RUNNING, AND WILL NOT RE-START. AT FIRST IT RESTARTED AFTER ABOUT 4 HOURS. NEXT WHEN IT HAD HAPPENED IT DID NOT RESTART UNTIL OVERNIGHT REST. THE IT STARTED RIGHT UP AND RAN FOR SEVERAL DAYS WHEN THE SAME THING HAD HAPPENED AGAIN. THIS STARTED THE SUMMER OF 2007, ABOUT A MONTH AFTER THE FOUR YEAR EXTENDED WARRANTY FROM THE RESELLING DEALER EXPIRED. CHANGED OUT THE "IGNITION CONTROL MODULE," NAPA REPLACEMENT PART #TP175. BUT AFTER A COUPLE WEEKS THE SAME PROBLEM STARTED TO HAPPEN AGAIN. ENGINE WILL NOT SHUT OFF WHILE IDLING FOR HOURS AT A TIME. ONLY WHEN DRIVEN AND COME TO A STOP, ALWAYS RESTARTS HOURS LATER! *TR.0 person(s) were injured.0 person(s) died.Mileage was 29150 miles.Vehicle Identification Number (VIN):6MPCT01Z9M8.Problem was reported in GLENVIEW, IL.

__________________________________________________ ________________________


The Capri I pulled the distributor off of looked to be in excellent condition so I'm starting to wonder if the owner was having similar problems and just decided to junk the car.

[BFMRGTX]

GTX mailing list?

Yes.

[mazkam]

I'm stuck on the side of the road again. Took the car to lunch today and it ran fine. Later, my girlfriend and I were going to a party. We made it about 300 yards from the house and it died again. I pulled the coil wire off the distributor and the was no spark while she tried to crank it. I walked home and got my extra coil and it fired right up. I took my girlfriend home to get her car and I decided not to go to the party. I took the car out for another test just to make sure and it went about 2 miles and died again. I guess it wasn't the coil, even though it fired right up after replacing it.

Did the coil seem hot in comparison to how it would normally feel. If it had gotten hot the car would shut off & when replace with the spare coil it will start, because the replacement coil is cooler. The problem is not a faulty coil. Something is causing the coil to over heat.

[XelderX]

Just finished installing the new distributor. Car cranked faster than it ever has. I'll need to put some miles on it before we can know for sure if it is actually fixed.

[XelderX]

I put over 50 miles on the car today and it is running better than ever. I'm thinking that it had a very small mis-fire in it before that wasn't very noticeable. I always thought it had a small skip in it while cruising at highway speeds, but with a stock exhaust and a 300,000 mile old chassis it was tough to pick out. The engine is much smoother now. It sucks it cost me $300, but it will definitely pay off in the long run.