Ok... So i have an 86 camaro 2.8L V-6... About two months ago my ignition control module went bad and i replaced that, and my coil pack at the same time... two months before that the distributor, rotor button, plugs, and wires were changed... Yesterday when i went to leave i made it to the end of my road and it cut off, and wouldnt fire... It is turning over, just not firing... Just wondering if anyone can shed some light on what i need to do?

 

Umm... checking for fuel and spark would be a good start...

 

Its getting fuel... I'm relatively positive it isn't getting spark... Im going to check in the morning... i didn't have time to today... also, its not throwing any codes...

 

You have an entirely new ignition system, unless you did something wrong or got a faulty part fuel seems a more likely culprit, shoot some starter fluid into the intake and see if it fires.

 

see... its done this three different times... every time has been after it snowed... so im wondering if im getting some condensation inside my distributor... which, in turn could be shorting out my icm... because last time this happened it wouldnt start for a day, then the next morning it started right up and ran for a 2 weeks, until it snowed again... and now its been three days and still no fire... i can smell gas when it turns over so i know its getting fuel... and its maintaining fuel pressure, and i can hear the fuel pump prime when i turn the key to the on position... any ideas? in all reality (and with my luck) i probably either got a faulty icm or coil pack...

 

I'll try to make this short and easy.

1. There's 2 vents in the bottom of the distributor, on either side of the pickup. Clean them.

2. If you're frying ignition modules that often, check for an AC voltage ripple coming out of the alternator. Getting rid of that thing is a real pain... It's killed 2 modules and 3 ECM's on me so far, even though I've replaced the diode pack in the alternator 3 times now. And make sure all of your engine grounds are clean and tight. Yes, even the ones on the back of each cylinder head! Especially those! G106 and G118 are ECM grounds!

3. Just because you can smell fuel doesn't mean you're getting fuel. This is a trick I learned in school a while ago: "No spark, NO squirt." Which means, if you're not getting spark, which could be due to a bad ignition module, you're not getting fuel injection either, as the ignition module is how our ECM's know if the engine is being cranked or running. The 2.8 has a 7th, cold start, injector, in the back of the intake manifold by the distributor, that squirts fuel into the intake whenever the key is turned to the "Crank" position. This will NOT squirt enough fuel to run the engine on its own, even if you were getting spark. So, you're not getting either spark OR fuel. Take the ignition module to be tested, and also check the wiring between the coil's black wiring harness connector and the 2-wire connector at the module as one of these wires may either be completely or almost broken. The lighter colored wire is how the module gets power, and the black one is the coil ground.

 

check the coil signal wire for breaks

 

thanks for the help guys... Maverick, i took my icm to advanced today and it wasnt shorted... it passed all the tests... i left my distributor in pieces while i was gone (and cleaned out around those vents which were blocked with dead leaves) and when i got back and put everything together it started right up... so i guess there was just moisture in there and it needed to dry out...

 

Don't you just love mother nature....I've seen some interesting things under hoods, my mom's GA had a whole bunch of little round seed ball things in her air intake filter box, my car had similar things in its lifter valley when I tore down the 2.8....how this stuff gets in these places is beyond me...

 

Don't just clean around the vents... If you can't see THROUGH the vents, they're still useless. And yes, you should be able to see through them. It's worth the 10 minutes or so to remove the dizzy, clean the vents and the plate, replace the gasket and o-ring, and put it back.

 

trust me... i went OCD on it... i got a toothbrush and cleaned out everything around there... haha... but replacing the gasket and everything is a good idea, didnt even think about that... that will be done tomorrow...

 

Oh, forgot to mention... If you take the dizzy out, also check to make sure that the pole pieces for the pickup coil aren't cracked. If they are, you need a new dizzy as they are too weak to work right (and throwing off the P/U coil signal). And check the signal coming out of the pickup coil with a meter set to measure AC volts while cranking the engine.

:edit: And how many times did the store run the module through the test? If only once, go back and have them test it until it's good and hot. I had a module test good when cold and fail miserably when hot.