Fox T-Bird/Cougar Forums  

Weird problems wit my car

August 01, 2005, 01:33:59 PM

Well a couple of weeks back i replaced the distributer cap, rotor, plugs, and wires. when i started my car it sputered and stalled. so i poped the hood and took all the stuf out checked and reinstalled. same problem , popped the hood and redid the firing order, still nothin. so like a week later i took it to a shop called LeMans, i left it there and went to work. when i got out my dad was in the parking lot with my car and it was running perfectly (better than when i bought it) so i asked him what was wrong with it and get this, the distributer was in backwards and somehow whoever had it before me had changed the timing so much that it actually ran. so when i changed all this stuff it gave it enough fire to show up. the mechaninc had to take the dist. out to figure it out. that had to have been alot of work to get it to run backward....... :hick:

Quote Selected

Re: Weird problems wit my car

Reply #1 – August 02, 2005, 08:26:24 AM

Well, there's no set rule that says the distributor has to be installed facing a particular direction, as long as the wiring can plug into the ignition module and vacuum hoses (if any) can be connected.

The previous owner likely had it out, put it back in wrong, and after having the same kind of sputtery-no-start problems as you, followed the standard advise of turning the crank to put cyl #1 at TDC, and seeing where the rotor pointed, then wired the plugs in sequence from there. Twist it so the timing light shows okay, and drive it.

You went and messed it up by putting the plug wires in the proper place! 

Quote Selected