The Ford Barn

700rpm · 01-25-2016, 07:39 PM

My Tudor started misfiring badly in early December. It had sat for a couple months, after running a 100-mile tour just fine, so I thought it was bad gas and drained it out and put a gallon of real gas in. It still misfired badly. Today it's warm enough to work in the garage, so I go out to see if I can figure it out. I find the trouble: it's not firing at all on #3 or #4. I pulled the plugs. 3 & 4 are wet, as I expected; 1 & 2 look OK. They're old Motorcraft plugs, and should be replaced anyway, so I put four new Autolites in. No go.

I replace the distributor body with a good one after checking continuity in it, and it's good, but ... No go. I reset the gap on my points because though they are new, they are a little wide. No go. Just for ducks, I check my lower distributor plate wire, it's good, so I reset my timing and .... No go. Hmmm. I pull plugs 3 & 4 and check compression. It's good. I pour a couple swigs of MMO into each plug hole and close it up and ... Hey! It runs great!

I don't know why.

01-25-2016, 07:39 PM	#1
700rpm Senior Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Portland, Oregon Posts: 6,039	Another Model A mystery My Tudor started misfiring badly in early December. It had sat for a couple months, after running a 100-mile tour just fine, so I thought it was bad gas and drained it out and put a gallon of real gas in. It still misfired badly. Today it's warm enough to work in the garage, so I go out to see if I can figure it out. I find the trouble: it's not firing at all on #3 or #4. I pulled the plugs. 3 & 4 are wet, as I expected; 1 & 2 look OK. They're old Motorcraft plugs, and should be replaced anyway, so I put four new Autolites in. No go. I replace the distributor body with a good one after checking continuity in it, and it's good, but ... No go. I reset the gap on my points because though they are new, they are a little wide. No go. Just for ducks, I check my lower distributor plate wire, it's good, so I reset my timing and .... No go. Hmmm. I pull plugs 3 & 4 and check compression. It's good. I pour a couple swigs of MMO into each plug hole and close it up and ... Hey! It runs great! I don't know why. __________________ Ray Horton, Portland, OR As you go through life, keep your eye on the donut, not the hole.