i have a 87 buick regal with a chevy 383 with an hei distributor. i drove my car all day with out any problems. suddenly when i went to go to the store my car would crank but wouldent start so i popped my hood with the key turn forward and noticed my fuel pump nor electric fans were working. i checked my fuses and they seem fine. so i grabed some old wire out the garage and twisted it in with one of the wires coming off the coil and connected the other end to the battery and then my fuel pump and electric fans turned on. could this be a bad ignition, coil or a short in a wire. ive traced the wire i have coming from the distributor to the turn light signal switch and didnt notice any damage. headlights interior lights are all workiing including the buzzing sound i get when opening the door.
What all is tied into that wire from the coil? I don't recommend anything be tied into your coil feed wire, others disagree but IMO it's to prevent what just happened to you.
If it's a clean run to the ing switch, then your switch is bad or the hot wire feeding your switch. Get a light test probe and with the key off, check your hot feed to the switch....... turn the key on and test the output from the switch, that should get you started.
Be careful attaching a hot wire from the battery to the coil and letting the fans and fuel pump run..... that's alot of amps flowing thru a small wire etc.....
Quick process of elimination. A few squirts of starting fluid and see if you get it to fire yet die after it burns off. If so then you have a power loss to the fuel pump. Then check your fuel pump relay. That's where I would start......
havent been able to look at it much today because of rain. i dont have anything twisted in with the coil wire except the wire i mention going to the turn light switch. i did notice a pink wire i have running down the passenger side of the engine thats tied in with the electric fans and choke from the carb. i dont know where the fuel pump is tied in at the moment because i have to take off the plastic wire protecters. i played with it a little and took a wire and connected it to the under hood wire for the light and the other end to the pink wire i mention and then the fuel pump came on. then i touched it with the electric fan wire then it quit working. i know that was dumb but i just wanted to see if any of the wires were hot because i couldent find my test light. when the weather clears im going to try to get you guys some pics. thanks for all the replys
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