Over the winter, I installed headers/y-pipe and a high-flow cat on my car. Since getting the car back together, it won't start. It cranks hard, but just won't fire. I've checked and double checked all connections, including coil wire and have found nothing. The engine is getting fuel, and spark (we checked) and obviously is getting air. So why won't it start. The friend helping me install the headers convince me to widen the gap on my plugs to .050" when we installed them, we seemed high to me but is that enough to get a no-start condition? I have an accell coil and plug wires, so I would think the ignition would be putting out enough juice to bridge that big gap. One other thing, when I turn the key to "on" and leave it there, you can occasionally hear a fairly loud clicking sound, almost sounds like a hot, bare wire touching some metal, but I can't be sure. It sounds like it's coming from the manifold area. Anyone have any idea what that might be? Any thoughts on this are appreciated, I need my GTA back!!

For info purposes, the car is an 88 GTA, 5.7 TPI, auto with your basic bolt-ons. The car ran great before tearing it apart for the headers install.

Thanks,
Dave M
88 GTA

 

Go back to no more than 0.040" gaps and try again.

Double check the plug wire routing while you're there.

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Later,
Vader
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"Let the bodies hit the floor!"
Adobe Acrobat Reader

 

I already double-checked the routing, I originally had the plugs at .038 before changing them, so I'll go back to that and try again, thanks! Any thoughts on that clicking noise I hear? As I said, it sounds like bare wire or a really loud relay activating, but wasn't there (that I noticed) before the install.

Dave M
88 GTA

 

I just regapped the plugs to .039" and the car still won't start. I think the engine may be flooded right now anyway, and the battery's getting weak. Any other thoughts? I thought maybe the timing was off, but I don't know how the distributor would have gotten moved during installation. The engine still cranks, it just won't fire.

Dave M
88 GTA