Starting After Sitting

MotownMachine

MotownMachine

Member
Hi all,

I moved last summer was not able to take my 'A' with me right away. The car has not fully run since August, but was running fine before then. Now that I can move the car, I can't get it to start.

In the past if my A wouldn't start, I always found the problem in the electrical as I'm sure most of you have. This time the battery is almost brand new and fully charged, I have 6 Volts at both sides of the coil, distributor wire is OK, points are clean, plugs are clean, distributor is greased, air filter is clean, oil is clean and full.

By now I am chasing gremlins and nothing seems to get it going. It turns over all right and every now and then I get a few kicks out the engine like it wants to start, but it never does. Any suggestions?

Thanks!
 
Clean the points. Place a small piece of 220 grit paper between the point contact surfaces. They probably have some surface corrosion on them which is nonconductive. We have started many old idle engines this way.
 
Very first thing to check when it will turn over and not fire is spark. Lift a couple of the spark plug straps so there is a small gap between it and the plug, turn the ignition switch on, and run the starter by hand from under the hood. You should see a nice hot blue spark jump the gap at a consistent rate. If not, then start the troubleshooting, most likely points need cleaning but CHECK THIS FIRST.
 
Try what is recomended in post #3. If that does not work get a can of wd-40, or as a last resort either. A small shot and be ready to step on the starter. If it kicks you know the ignition is fine, and the fuel system is the issue. And vice versa. You need to get a direction, or you will chase your tail for a long time.

And before everyone starts screaming...It's just a small amount for diagnosis!!!!!!!
 
Did you drain all the fuel out of the carb before leaving it parked (i.e. turn off the shutoff valve and let the engine run until it dies)?
A lot of gunk can develop if there was fuel in there that evaporated over time.
 
Got it running! Ended up sanding the points again, resetting the gap, and adjusting the rotor height. As soon as it kicked, I pulled the accelerator down all the way, and it started up and stayed running at idle
 
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