No spark

[BI8759]

"Doris the Wonder Car" has no spark from the HT side of the coil. I'm not very mechanical and am trying to be logical so have put a lamp from the negative terminal of the battery to both terminals of the coil and, with the ignition switched on, there is a circuit. Does that mean that the points/condenser are faulty or am I being too simplistic? Sorry if this is an obvious question but it's all black magic to me. Wishing I'd paid for AA Homestart

[Chris Edgar]

Check the LT side first:
with the ign switched on, take distributor cap off & flick the points open. i.e.. break the circuit.
There should be a small spark between the points when you do this...is there?
If there is, and you can see the points opening & closing as you crank the engine over with the handle, then possibly the fault is on the HT side.

good luck,
Chris

[bmcecosse]

Did this just suddenly happen ? Or did the car splutter and die at the roadside - or have you been doing some 'maintenance' ? Suspect the rotor arm first - bad connections at the coil 2nd - insufficient points gap 3rd and faulty condenser 4th!

[charlie_morris_minor]

if you can wait until sunday i could pop over and have a look.. i live in aldershot as well so it is not a problem..

[BI8759]

Thank you everyone for the advice. Turned out to be the braided LT lead had burnt out. When I replaced it I put the new wire on the wrong side of the insulating bush on the points. 20 years of driving diesels has obviously dimmed my memory, I guess.

[charlie_morris_minor]

glad you managed to sort the car