QuestionDick, I can not fire the engine with the key. The wiring harness is new 5 years ago, all I did was push it through the firewall and back. When the key goes to run position the oil and gen lights come on and go off when key goes to start. No start. I can jump the solenoid and it will turn over. The brown wire going from ign switch to s term of solenoid has no resistence from end to end. If I put a jumper in, the engine will turn over with the key. Am I missing something between the ign switch and the solenoid? I have wiggled the wires looking for possible bad connection to no avail. What am I missing?
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Dick, I am detailing my uncle's 359 engine, the car is being sold at Barrett Jackson auction in Jan. I replaced timing gear and chain so the motor has been moved since pulling dist. I also took dist apart to clean and paint, advance/ret bracket removed. How do I reinstall? Where is no.1 cyl? Closest to radiator? Please point me in a direction. Thank You in advance.
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This is one of the most common questions I get! Here is the procedure I recommend:
1. Remove the spark plugs (to make the engine easier to turn).
2. Make a clear mark on the crank balancer on the "TDC" mark with something you will easily see.
3. Put a small piece of kleenex over the #1 (front) spark plug hole.
4. With a wrench on the big bolt on the front of the crankshaft, rotate the crank in a clockwise direction (as viewed from the front of the engine) until you notice the kleenex being puffed up out of the hole (now you know you are on the compression stroke). This may take as much as 2 complete revolutions of the engine, since this is a 4 stroke engine.
5. Now, in one continuous motion, continue to rotate the engine clockwise to TDC - slowing to a stop right on the mark without backing up. (If you overshoot, backup 1/4 turn and approach the mark again, slowly).
6. Now, with the distributor positioned over it's hole, and the spark advance plate loosely attached to the distributor assembly, and the rotor pointed at #1 spark plug wire, insert the distributor so that the rotor stays on #1. (You know the approximate rotation of the body from the location of the vacuum advance line from the carburetor.)
7. With a test light or an ohmmeter, measure the continuity from the side terminal on the distributor to ground, and rotate the distributor body clockwise until the points just barely open (the resistance goes from almost zero to very high, or the light goes out, with no wire connected external to the distributor). Make sure the rotor is still at or very close to the #1 spark plug wire hole.
8. The engine is now roughly timed to zero advance. Fasten the advance plate down so that the advance indicator is at "0".
9. 359s have a tendency to ping, so when you get the car back on the road, and AFTER you set the point dwell to 28-32 degrees, fine tune the timing so that you get almost NO pinging on premium gas at 30 MPH, with a thoroughly warm engine, at mild acceleration. This is the optimum timing for a 359.
If the car still has the original distributor, you may have to retard the timing a bit to get that setting. If you have access to a 1953 Senior distributor, you can get a bit better performance without ping, but since it is going to an auction, probably it isn't going to make much difference in what the car brings.
I assume you know the engine should be bronze in color (people will tell you that's wrong, but the 359 is unique amongst the straight 8s in that respect.)
Good luck at the auction - I'll be watching!
Dick
AnswerHi, again, Greg;
It is possible that the "Start" contact in the ignition switch is bad - the 1954s were the first use of "key start" in Packards, and the switches are somewhat failure prone. But before you go looking for a replacement switch, use your test light or meter to check the following:
Put the test light or meter on the "S" contact on the ignition switch (the one that is supposed to go to the starter solenoid) and watch the voltage on that terminal as you twist the key to the Start position. You should see 6 volts there then, and only then. If you do, the switch is OK. Next, get on the other end of that same circuit at the starter solenoid - see if you've got 6 volts there when holding the key in Start. If not, there is probably an error in the connections or the adjustment of the neutral safety switch. Depending on what part of the year the car was made, you may find the neutral safety switch at the base of the steering column, as part of the backup light switch, or it may be located on the transmission shift linkage - you'll have to follow the wire to locate it, but wherever it is, it must show continuity when the car is in Park or Neutral, but not at any other time. If the switch is not adjusted correctly, it may not be giving a good connection to the starter solenoid.
There is no magic here, you'll just have to check all the wire connections and the operation and adjustment of the two switches - it is not a complicated circuit - I'm sure you can find the open circuit with a little detective work.
Depending on the quality of the replacement harness, if the terminals were not soldered when the ends were put on, you may have a bad connection right at the terminals - again, you can check these for continuity also.
Dick
