WTF- Stranded in Germany

[stock89]

Alright, after about 30 phone calls I got hooked up with a German guy who barely speaks english who collects Mustangs and has a few extra parts from junked cars. He sold me a complete distributor for E50, or about $65. Damn shame but had no choice....

Wish I could just run down to autozone to buy the socket but that's not an option here. I could try the dremel idea, which is what I'll do if this doesn't work out, to swap the TFI's.

I'll probably mess with it tomorrow since it's dark already. I'll send an update tomorrow!

Thanks for all your help so far, god I hope that this works.....

Rob

[tmoss]

OOPPS - missed you were in Germany!

[stock89]

Yeah TMoss, Germany, that's why this is such a problem. The people here barely know what a Mustang is much less help fix one....

Replaced the entire distributor, got everything lined up (10 degrees with the rotor on the #1 cylinder on the cap) and the damn thing still won't start! I'm about to eat a bullet over this one Even if it's not timed exactly it should still start right?

Again, I pulled a plug wire and put a paperclip in it and no spark while the wife was cranking it. I SHOULD get a spark right?

I don't know what else to do other than light it on fire and collect the insurance money.

Obviously I'm missing something here.

[tmoss]

Let me explain what it takes to get spark so you know all the pieces involved in case you don't know. The TFI has two 12v connections to it. One is a "run" 12v and is on when the key is in the "run" position. The other 12v is on when in "crank" - this is to let the EEC know to not vary timing until the car is started and the power comes from the "run" 12v power. When you turn the key to "crank", the Hall Effect sensor (pickup coil) inside the distributor sends a PIP signal through the TFI to the EEC and the EEC then sends the "fire" signal back through the TFI to the coil. When in "run", the EEC will retard or advance the fire signal according to engine monitoring sensors input.

Make sure both the 12v pins on the TFI are getting 12v power. If not, then a connection is bad or the ingnition switch is bad. We'll assume the TFI is good - even though new ones have beeb found to be bad. The pickup coil may be bad or the coil could also be bad.

I am attaching a pinout of the TFI. Pull the plug to the TFI and be sure your 12v power comes to the right pin for the two ignition positions. The "TFI power" is the "run" position. After that, it's replacement time for the pickup coil and/or coil.

[stock89]

Tmoss and others,

Thank you for all of your knowledge and assistance. I was about to become a SERIOUS alcoholic over this.

One of the previous owners had an alarm installed in the car, and one of the reostats that cut power to the coil (if alarm activated) had failed. The reostat wouldn't let any power thru. Of course it took two hours with a wire digram, tracing and prodding every 6 inches trying to find the cutoff. I honestly didn't even know that this reostat wasn't stock b/c it was buried in the wiring harness so well.

Anyway, it starts. We put whiteout on 10 BTC but timed it so that the whiteout showed in the circle of the timing guage thing on the balancer. It idled good but drove bad across the parking lot (it only drove 30 feet or so). Should've timed it to the blade end huh?

Anyway, if you could tell me whether to time off of the blade or circle that would be wonderful.

Thanks again everyone!!!

[mustangman4]

Congrads on getting it going. Time it to the edge of the timing pointer. Also make sure you pull SPOUT out before you time it and also make sure its up to operating temp before you adjust timing.

Brad

[stock89]

Alright guys,

I got it all timed up and ready to return to roaring down the open roads here. Nothing like going 130 MPH to work every day, and passing police cars (the first few times I did that I nearly panic stopped).

I did find a bunch of additional wires running off that reostat that went bad, running to god only knows, but that's not urgent.

Thanks again for all your help!!! Guten Abend!