OK, a little background. I got a GTA a couple of months ago. It ran fine when I bought it. I've done a fair amount of work to it, so I very well could have screwed something up along the way. Here's what I've done. New fuel pump, new exhaust (from collectors, back), new chip. I was trying to tune the new chip the other day, so I took it for a drive. Drove great for about a mile, then started running rough and died. Had it towed back to the house and it won't start at all. It cranks over just fine, but won't start, not even a hiccup. I changed the spark plugs, plug wires, and coil. Still nothing. I checked the spark and that's good. I can hear the fuel pump come on and can smell fuel after a while. Also, I can smell raw fuel from the exhaust pipe. This would indicate to me a spark problem, but when I pull the wire off with a plug and crank it over, it sparks. Anybody have any ideas?

 

sounds like it could be a timing issue.

 

After making the post, something dawned on me. I checked the spark directly from the coil, instead of a plug wire. Turns out, there is no spark coming out of the plug wires. So, I checked the cap/rotor and they are completely carboned over. I tried cleaning them up, but it still won't start, so I guess I'll wait till tomorrow and get a new cap and rotor. One thing was odd, though. The gap between the rotor and the contacts inside the cap is pretty large, like a 1/4 to 1/3 of an inch. Is that normal? I had always assumed that they were very close together, almost touching.

 

Now that you mention that, try replacing the ignition chip in the distributor. a good accell replacment from summit is only about $20.

 

I did some searches on the ignition module and I think it very well may be the problem. Its had problems where it runs rough when it gets hot. Sounds like the ignition module was dying and finally died completely. A lot of people have suggested only using AC Delco ignition modules due to bad experiences with other ones. I ordered an ACD but its on backorder until the 19th. Guess I'll just have to wait.

 

lol. yeah, my accell actually just died about a month ago after only having it less than 2 years. I replaced it with the old stock one out of my 72 nova...works great after all these years. lol.

 

That seems to be a common theme with aftermarket modules. I don't understand what is so difficult with an ignition module that a company like accel can't get it right. Maybe more surprising is that the GM ones last for decades.