Smoke coming from defrost vent?

[tommyg29]

thanks guys,
my electrical schematic shows the brown wire (14g?) goes straight to the resistor. I will try at first opportunity to disconnect the resistor and the module as the msd instructions say.
I reconnected the brown wire seperately from the connector. The red connection still seems solid in the connector. All the copper stranding looked good, but the brown bullet connector was fried.
Eventually I guess I need to replace the whole steering harness to do this job right.
btw, the car is still there as of 5 minutes ago.

[dodj]

Whatever current went out on the brown wire, came in on the red wire. I would recommend replacing the red connection as well. Also, you should check the b/h connections for the red and brown wires as well. With that pic of the ballast resistor, it isn't hard to see that it could have caused a high current demand by shorting to ground with say, 1/2 to 3/4 of an ohm. (half of the 1.2ohm resistor). 12vdc divided by .5 ohms equals 24 amps. Well over the connectors abilities.

[tommyg29]

what are the b/h connections?
sorry, the rest is greek to me. I dont have an apptitude for electrical.
I know ohms are resistance, but I dont have an understanding of how it all works.
I know that incredibly complex and capable electrical systems, old school stuff using mostly just resistors and switches in the right places, have been used to control moon missions, missile guidance, etc.
I just wish I could comprehend how even this simple system works.

[dodj]

what are the b/h connections?

Bulkhead connector on the firewall. Just unplug the connector(s) that have the red and brown wires on them and check to make sure they are ok. If the steering column connection suffered from high current, the bulkhead connector may need some attention as well. If the connections were clean and solid, they may be fine. 

[swede-cuda]

 :wave:move your car,or at least you can track it.15 years ago my fresh painted 69 mustang convertible broke a valve between the garage and home,it was a carneval/mardi gras style in town and no friend could drive,so i thought, we can tow it tomorrow. well it was gone.never found it..but know now who stole it. ..be carefull,it can happend to anyone.get it out of sight.

[tommyg29]

thanks guys.
I just had it towed....to my garage!
I changed my mind after a good night sleep and decided to tackle this problem myself, with the advice and help of a few people that know more than I do!!
I figure when I'm done, I'll understand how my ignition system works, even if I have to replace the entire system from scratch.

I spoke to a guy I know who is a great corvette mechanic. He has a successful shop and he told me "if you're not racing that cuda, you probably should replace the msd and install pertronix in the distributor".
He swears by them. He says he's installed a bunch and never seen the same problem again.

I dont know if he's right, but he's been making a living on vettes for 25 years and lately "all american cars" cause he's needed to survive this economy.
I have the msd 6al with msd coil and billet distributor, and I'll do whatever I have to do to not only fix this, but make it reliable. Will pertronix fit the msd distributor?

Oh, and I'm going to upgrade the alternator to crank out a few more amps.

[73Chally]

If you're considering dumping the MSD (I would, but that's just me), why don't you buy a Mopar Performance electronic conversion kit.  I believe it is all pretty much plug and play.

http://www.mopartsracing.com/parts/electronic.html

you have to scroll down a little bit.

[brads70]

I have always liked MSD 6AL systems. I put them in all my cars. I find better fuel mileage with them. you can also install a toggle switch on the one wire to disable the ignition for a anti theft. rev limiter is a nice feature too. I have in another car used the adjustable timming dial also. Just my 

[tommyg29]

after looking at mopartsracing's ballast resistors, I see they sell at least two different 2-pin types?
I just picked up a generic ballast from the parts store and installed it. Could I have the wrong resistance rating, and that is preventing ignition? I'm thinking, since the resistor gets very hot, maybe this one has too much resistance?
Thanks.

[brads70]

I still don't think you need one with an MSD?

[tommyg29]

I know I dont need it but I dont know how to disconnect it properly.
I can tell you if I just disconnect it, the car will not start.

[tommyg29]

I dont want to start moving connections around trial and error to see what works. With my luck I will just end up frying the system.
 I think I will call msd.

[FJ5_440]

I know I am opening up a can of worms here, but I have used just about every ignition type imagineable.  If I were racing, I would use the MSD.  The Pertronix is also a great street setup for early GM cars like my Corvette and my old GTO, but on a street Mopar I don't think you can beat the Chrysler electronic ignition with a chrome box.  The wiring is really simple, it is really reliable with the weak point being the ballast resistor(throw a spare in the glove box).  If it does fail on the road, replacement parts can come from any auto parts store. It also looks "right" even in an earlier mopar.

[500Stroker]

I know I dont need it but I dont know how to disconnect it properly.
I can tell you if I just disconnect it, the car will not start.

  If you disconnect the ballast you then need to connect the 2 wires together that were on each end of the ballast to allow 12 volts to flow to the MSD box.


If you want to get away from the MSD set up change go to Mopar electronic.  Here's the kits for the conversion.

Mopar brand http://chucker54.stores.yahoo.net/mope.html

Mancini brand http://chucker54.stores.yahoo.net/manciniracing17.html

[tommyg29]

thanks stroker, I will try to connect the double brown wire to the blue wire w/white stripe and see what happens, but first, is it possible I have the wrong 2-pin resistor?