302 sometimes wont start
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Senior User
Joined: Jan 2006
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From: northwest Georgia
302 sometimes wont start
this post might be a tad long so sorry. my 85 f150 has a fuel injected 302 and i've been having the hardest time with it. to start it, you have to make sure you have the gas pedel pressed until it picks up. if you don't, it will stumble for about half a second and then die and wont start again for about a day or two. i know its not a fuel problem though, because one time when it wouldn't start, i tried some starter fluid and it didn't respond at all. i also know its not an ignition problem because i can take a plug out when it doesn't start and its firing very well. i think it has something to do with the timing because the first time it happened, i saw the distributor was turned to where the clip that holds the cap on was against the coil. i turned it back and it fired up. well, it did it again and i was it was back against the coil again. so i moved it back but it still didn't run. i moved the distributor around a bit but nothing, not even a stumble. finally it started after a bit on its on, but i know its only a matter of time until it does it again because its back against the coil. so does anyone know what this could be? a bad distributor, a bad wire, or something else? any help is greatly appriciated. again, sorry for the long essay.
Posting Guru
Joined: Sep 2005
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From: Kiefer, Northeastern Okla
Is the whole distributor moving, or just the top portion where the cap is? You shouldn't be able to move the dist. at all by hand unless you loosen the hold-down clamp at the base.
Pete
Pete
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Joined: Jun 2004
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From: Sweden
When I had it act like that, it was because the timing chain was shot. Curiously a few times I had it where it wouldn't start unless I let it sit for awhile. Actually I still ran it for awhile but then it totally jumped time and there was no way to start it.
Postmaster
Joined: Jun 2005
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pull the distr. it might be siezing up inside...I have had the bushing go bad but never that bad. If it's been moving around like that for a wile the wires to it might have broke....
also check the retainer that holds the distr. down it might be worn down to where it wont hold the distr. anymore. also check the base of the distr. for wear, if it's been loose for a wile it might have wore down the base and now it wont tighten.....
also check the retainer that holds the distr. down it might be worn down to where it wont hold the distr. anymore. also check the base of the distr. for wear, if it's been loose for a wile it might have wore down the base and now it wont tighten.....
Thread Starter
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Senior User
Joined: Jan 2006
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From: northwest Georgia
i'll pull it out today but since i tightened it down before to where it wouldn't move but it still did, i think it will be a matter of the timing chain or the gear on the bottom of the distributor.
Postmaster
Joined: Jun 2005
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the timing chain or distr. gear would have nothing to do with the distr. moving by it self. I would think it's what is holding it....
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Thread Starter
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Senior User
Joined: Jan 2006
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From: northwest Georgia
well, i pulled the distributor out and the gear looked good. i cleaned the hole it goes in and put some gasket sealer on the lip and put it back in. i also put some threadlocker on the retaining bolt and tightened it down as hard as i could so i guess we'll see if it still gives me problems.
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Thread Starter
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Senior User
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 135
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From: northwest Georgia
no it looked fine. it still has something wrong though. now it acts like the battery is low on charge. it will rotate for a second them stop then rotate then stop until it starts. it will run but i can hear a stumble in the exhaust.