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  • March 28, 2024, 11:10:01 AM

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Author Topic: Engine shutting down while driving  (Read 32628 times)

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Offline eaglefreek

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Re: Engine shutting down while driving
« Reply #15 on: June 26, 2014, 06:35:18 PM »
Where are you getting the power from for the HEI? I would suggest running new power and ground wires to the HEI to eliminate that as the cause. Is it possible you may have some crap in the float bowl that is clogging the jets?
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Offline carnuck

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Re: Engine shutting down while driving
« Reply #16 on: June 26, 2014, 11:22:00 PM »
make sure the thrust washer between the dist gear and body didn't disintegrate! Too much upward play lifts the rotator away from the pickup coil and kills the spark.
AMC/Jeep gauges are for amusement only. Any correlation between them and reality is purely coincidental!

Offline Nightpath

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Re: Engine shutting down while driving
« Reply #17 on: June 30, 2014, 12:01:14 AM »
HEI has something wrong internally. Eating and ruining the ICM constantly. I've replaced it with the original ignition system and swapped my carb out, running fine now.

Have to send the HEI back which sucks a lot. Can't wait till I change to the new engine.

Offline JayRamb

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Re: Engine shutting down while driving
« Reply #18 on: June 30, 2014, 03:41:33 PM »
I have heard a LOT of bad with HEI's. Even my buddies installed HEI was terrible and he went back to the OEM. Hmmmm. Maybe Eagles aren't meant to have HEI's!?
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Offline ISOAR

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Re: Engine shutting down while driving
« Reply #19 on: June 30, 2014, 07:15:16 PM »
I had a similar experience as Mudkicker with a fusible link on a Vette I had. It would be running great and then just die. I turned out the fusible link had burned but the insulation was still intact. When it got hot from driving, it would stretch and break contact and cause the engine to die. After cooling, the insulation would shrink allowing the two sides of the wire to make contact again and would run fine....until it warmed up enough to stretch again.

Offline IowaEagle

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Re: Engine shutting down while driving
« Reply #20 on: June 30, 2014, 07:19:50 PM »
Are these the Skip White units or used components, or .....?
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Offline carnuck

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Re: Engine shutting down while driving
« Reply #21 on: July 02, 2014, 12:51:00 PM »
If you assemble the unit yourself from a junkyard dist and the rest all new parts, keep in mind there is a ground strap for the in cap coils that is 100% needed! Otherwise you get backfires, cut outs and lots of other horrible running problems or not running at all. DON'T use the Motorcraft dist gear on them! The center hole is too large and the gear will wallow around on the dist shaft and self-destruct, often taking the cam shaft with it!
AMC/Jeep gauges are for amusement only. Any correlation between them and reality is purely coincidental!

Offline Nightpath

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Re: Engine shutting down while driving
« Reply #22 on: July 02, 2014, 09:31:07 PM »
This is indeed a Skip White HEI distributor.

I might take it apart a bit to see if I can notice anything. It has a lifetime warranty but it's $30 to send it back :/

Offline Nightpath

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Re: Engine shutting down while driving
« Reply #23 on: July 03, 2014, 07:10:01 AM »
So it's not the HEI. It's not the old ignition system.

After about 15 minutes of driving it starts to :censored: the bed. Just dies rampantly.

I have replaced the whole :censored: ignition system from the original to HEI to the original I had in my other Eagle. 3 ignition systems and identical issues.

Only thing I can see now is the starter solenoid. Maybe it's heating up and something internally is disconnecting. I know they're simple but I remember a few months ago working on a friends winch that the solenoid went bad in.

Anyone have any other suggestions??

Offline Mernsy

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Re: Engine shutting down while driving
« Reply #24 on: July 03, 2014, 07:43:31 AM »
Fusible link?

Check for heat in the solenoid and in the wires coming off the solenoid.

Offline Nightpath

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Re: Engine shutting down while driving
« Reply #25 on: July 03, 2014, 09:58:43 AM »
Is there a fusable link in there that could be causing it?

Reason I ask is that the battery goes to the solenoid, which goes directly to the distributor.

Since I've replaced ALL parts of the ignition system 3 times, the only real thing that's left for me to replace is the solenoid. I've even replaced the alternator along with new wiring for that.

The shut down is almost on queue...15 minutes of driving then it starts to turn off repeatedly and randomly. This leads me to believe it's a heat related issue definitely.

Offline carnuck

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Re: Engine shutting down while driving
« Reply #26 on: July 03, 2014, 02:43:30 PM »
I had that problem when my alt had a shorted diode that caused it to make AC instead of DC voltage.
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Offline BenM

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Re: Engine shutting down while driving
« Reply #27 on: July 03, 2014, 02:48:09 PM »
How's your fuel system? Is the bypass filter installed with the bypass at the top? Are the vent and return lines clear? Is there a hissing sound when you remove the gas cap?

A clogged vent line can cause problems.

I'm trying to think of things that change from a cold start. Those are the MCU, several temperature electrical switches, and the CTO or Dual CTO switch. After it dies and restarts, do you get another 15 minutes or is it bad from then on out?
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Offline carnuck

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Re: Engine shutting down while driving
« Reply #28 on: July 03, 2014, 02:53:49 PM »
Another possibility, if you are running a manual fuel pump without a filter before it, is crud in the line is jamming the inlet valve open or the tank fuel sock is collapsing and locking the inlet.
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Offline Nightpath

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Re: Engine shutting down while driving
« Reply #29 on: July 03, 2014, 03:26:36 PM »
I swapped the solenoid to the original and the car ran non stop for a half hour which it hasn't done since I put the new one in.

Going to run it like this for a few days before I swap the hei back into it.

 

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