So I pulled my car into the shop at school today (we have an awesome auto program) to adjust the valvetrain because the right side has been tapping a little lately, more so than the Rhoads lifters usually do. It's tricky with the Rhoads lifters without removing the intake, but it's doable. I get it done, button everything back up, fire it up, it sounds like a sewing machine. Fantastic, so I warm it up for 10min while I clean up.
I pull out of the compound and gas it. Runs like a scalded dog, laying a good black strip down the road at 30-40mph. Get to the next light, gas it again...knock-knock-knock-knock. WTF. Let off, get back on a little, knock...knock...knock-knock... Pull over, intermittent knock from d-side vc, or so i think. Meanwhile, my roommate pulls up after getting out of class. We pull the vc, thinking maybe i forgot to tighten a rocker and it worked loose, hitting the valve cover. No dice, rockers are solid. Throw it back together, try to fire it to check oil pressure, has pressure while cranking...but won't fire. Check fuel, it's getting fuel. Check spark...no spark. WTF. Check coil with test light, coil is getting power. Still no spark.
Fed up for the night (it's dark by then), we run to town to grab a friend's trailer and come back. Trailer is a cluster in itself. Ramps can't be positioned properly for the width of the car, so we have to have one side right next to the rail, and have one tire half off a ramp. Then we couldn't get it up the ramp with just the two of us, so I called another friend who showed up with his friend to push it up onto the trailer. We then managed to put a gouge in my roommate's tailgate because he forgot to lock the hitch to the ball. After fixing that, we finally got the car on the trailer, put it in gear, applied the parking brake, and strapped the strut rods to the front of the trailer (completely insecure and unsafe), then pulled the car (slowly) back to school where it sits now. We then proceeded to drop off the trailer, come home, and drink, where I sit now.
Our thinking is that it's possible my $280 MSD Pro-Billet distributor crapped out. That would explain the knocking as detonation from failing timing control, and would explain the now nonexistant spark. That said, I've never even heard of a crapped out MSD distributor. MSD makes quality stuff, which is why I bought it instead of a cheapo Accel or something like that.
The other option is that the coil died, which likely wouldn't cause the knock, which then means that something else is knocking, which could be very, very bad.
I picked up new points/condensor and coil for tomorrow. I'll swap the points into my original distributor (which another Mustang buddy conveniently burned the Pertronix out of last month when I let him borrow it) and throw that in, then check the coil and see what's up with that. Hopefully I can get it fired and see if it still knocks. If it does...I dunno. I'll have to recheck the valvetrain (maybe with the intake off), then go from there.
I pull out of the compound and gas it. Runs like a scalded dog, laying a good black strip down the road at 30-40mph. Get to the next light, gas it again...knock-knock-knock-knock. WTF. Let off, get back on a little, knock...knock...knock-knock... Pull over, intermittent knock from d-side vc, or so i think. Meanwhile, my roommate pulls up after getting out of class. We pull the vc, thinking maybe i forgot to tighten a rocker and it worked loose, hitting the valve cover. No dice, rockers are solid. Throw it back together, try to fire it to check oil pressure, has pressure while cranking...but won't fire. Check fuel, it's getting fuel. Check spark...no spark. WTF. Check coil with test light, coil is getting power. Still no spark.
Fed up for the night (it's dark by then), we run to town to grab a friend's trailer and come back. Trailer is a cluster in itself. Ramps can't be positioned properly for the width of the car, so we have to have one side right next to the rail, and have one tire half off a ramp. Then we couldn't get it up the ramp with just the two of us, so I called another friend who showed up with his friend to push it up onto the trailer. We then managed to put a gouge in my roommate's tailgate because he forgot to lock the hitch to the ball. After fixing that, we finally got the car on the trailer, put it in gear, applied the parking brake, and strapped the strut rods to the front of the trailer (completely insecure and unsafe), then pulled the car (slowly) back to school where it sits now. We then proceeded to drop off the trailer, come home, and drink, where I sit now.
Our thinking is that it's possible my $280 MSD Pro-Billet distributor crapped out. That would explain the knocking as detonation from failing timing control, and would explain the now nonexistant spark. That said, I've never even heard of a crapped out MSD distributor. MSD makes quality stuff, which is why I bought it instead of a cheapo Accel or something like that.
The other option is that the coil died, which likely wouldn't cause the knock, which then means that something else is knocking, which could be very, very bad.
I picked up new points/condensor and coil for tomorrow. I'll swap the points into my original distributor (which another Mustang buddy conveniently burned the Pertronix out of last month when I let him borrow it) and throw that in, then check the coil and see what's up with that. Hopefully I can get it fired and see if it still knocks. If it does...I dunno. I'll have to recheck the valvetrain (maybe with the intake off), then go from there.
op Well? Waiting for the end of the story! Hopefully just something simple! Bad gas!
