went out to move the ranger today and she wont start...


lately she has been running a little more rough than normal but i thought nothing of it i thought it had to do with the weather or whatever...

it is getting plenty of fuel but just wont fire...even if i prime the carb she wont fire ...i checked spark on one wire and there is weak spark but it is very irratic too...not a repeating pattern of spark


i checked the cap and rotor which are like new and i cleaned up
the edge of the rotor just to ensure a good connection...and the top piece that meets the coil wire point is making good contact.i am thinking about grabbing a boneyard coil and hooking it up to see what ive got...


any suggestions would be helpful

 

Hi,
Sorry to hear about your problem...Not like a Ford not to start.
I hate it when that happens.
Try these out and see if they help.
Safety First!!

Be sure that the truck is in neutral or park with the emergency brake set.

First, in the dark, let someone crank the vehicle (don't let them give it any gas) and with the hood up you look under the hood for jumping sparks by the wires plugs and coil. If you see some sparks then you will know what to replace.
If you don't see the problem like that then...

In a lighted area
Disconnect the coil wire where it plugs into the center of the dist cap and lay (don't hold onto it!) the exposed end near a piece of the truck body or frame but not near a gas vapor area . Crank the engine. Did it arc to the metal? No, then take it completly off and lay it out of the way.
Remove the #1 spark plug.
Be sure that the truck is in neutral or park with the emergency brake set.
Remove the dist cap.
Bump the engine over until you find TDC (compression stroke) for #1 and turn the key off.
As you bump the enging over check to see if the rotor is turning.
Is it?
When you find TDC for #1 check to see if the timing mark lines up on the crank pulley as it should.
From what you are telling me it will.
If it does then check to see if the rotor button is facing the proper place to fire #1 cylinder and that the plug wire is connected to the proper plug.
Possibilities include:
1, mis-matched rotor and cap (common parts person problem).
You can't have a spring loaded dist cap AND a spring type rotor. If this happens the spring loaded carbon tip in the center of the dist cap is usually eaten away by the spring loaded rotor button throwing small particles of carbon all around the inside of the cap. Sometimes these particles are hardly visible but will still conduct enough to send your spark everywhere except where you need it. If you get enough spark sent to the wrong place at the wrong time the vehicle will backfire but still may not run.
Was the truck backfiring at all when you last ran it?
2, Another possibility is that you have a roll pin sheared at the dist shaft end gear causing the dist gear to be out of alignment or the gear is bad.
Check these out and let me know what you find.
3-RANGERS

 

hey 3rangers ...thanks for the reply,and like you pointed out it is not like a ford to not start honestly since i got the truck it has not given me not 1 problem starting...whether it be 20 below out or 100 degrees

i will check all those possibilities tomorrow because it is late now and im tired but like you said about stuff inside the dist cap..my friend suggested the same thing so ill have to check into it actually later today since it is technically 1am tuesday...

 

update i got a new starter in it since i messed up the old one trying to get the truck to start and i charged the battery had my brother in law stop over here after work to see if he would pick up on something that im not seeing wrong...i put the battery in turned the key to on and crossed the underhood solenoid to show him "this is what its doing" and moved the throttle a few times while cranking the motor and that p.i.t.a. fired right up and ran well normal for the truck

so in essence all is well with the ranger except now the fuel guage quit on me...but ill get that figured out eventually