Car would not restart

[Kenjt]

Originally Posted by Will N

In my mind, "would not crank" means that the starter is not turning the engine over. Is this what you meant? Or, was the engine turning over, but it was not firing? If the engine wasn't turning over, you could have a defective starter where some of the soldered connections on the armature are bad and there are dead spots on the commutator. If the starter happens to come to rest on one of these dead spots, it won't turn when the starter switch is engaged. But if it comes to rest on a good segment of the commutator, it will work. If you meant it wouldn't fire, I would still look at the ignition switch or wire connecting the lower plate to the points.



How long did it run before he backed it out of the garage? Long enough for everything to really heat up, or just a short while? When it stalls, does it pop and backfire and run poorly for a little while before it dies, or does it just stop dead like you've turned the key off? If it stops dead, my vote is a bad ignition switch. Even new switches can be bad. If it runs poorly before dying, I'd look for a short in the distributor.


Another thing to look at is fuses. Do you have a fuse in your wiring? A fuse holder with loose connections can cause intermittent electrical problems like you're seeing. The fuse holders that attach to the starter motor have been known to corrode on the underside making bad connections.

Thank you so much for your detailed reply.

1. Starter was just replaced. Engine did turn but would not fire.
2. Ignition switch was also just replaced. Car has started quickly each time after the switch was replaced.
3. Did not run the car very long before backing out. As I said, the car started right up and sounded fine.
4. No 'pop' or backfire - it just stopped.
5. First thing I did was check the fuse - it was fine. Like I said, the horn blasted just as it should with the wonderful Model A sound.
6. My mechanic is convinced the problem is related to the distributor. He already ordered a replacement just in case but will, of course, check everything related.

Thanks again for your reply.