Car will not start, unable to figure out why.

[commando1]

What would you do in his shoes??

Listen to Big John.

 

[tim howe]

BALLAST RESISTOR, if bad It will not start at all! Replace, they were notoriusly bad

 

['66 Fury I]

I'm not saying this is your trouble, but 45 years ago, the 383 in my '63 Windsor baffled me for days. I changed parts, checked everything I could and nothing. Then I talked with the fellow who had first been unable to start it. I found he had pumped the accelerator many times. Guessing that the cylinder walls were dry, I removed the plugs, put a bit of engine oil in each hole, cranked it a little, replaced the plugs and started the engine. Just a thought. Lindsay

 

[rags]

Just a thought.

been thinking the exact same. sure wouldn't hurt to check the oil for a fuel smell. other thing of course is check the valve overlap event vs. the piston travel. i'm hoping he's gotten it running already by letting it sit and dry out and bumping the timing a few degrees.

 

[Sir Dodge alot]

Had a freak issue like this, everything was good. Just runs rough, barely if able.
Good Ignition/timing/good condition overall.

Turned out that chips of carbon that came off of the piston wedged it's self between the seat and the valve.

Tapped on the valve stems with a block of wood/hammer, loosened up the valve(s)
No more sputtering or rough running.

I suppose I need to take the motor out on an Italian tune-up.

 

[Old man Utah]

I've always used my cars daily. Every mopar I've had has always let me down with just one thing. It can be driving fine and I will park up somewhere, could be for 5 minutes or could be overnight but you get back in and it won't fire. I have to get out and pull or just move the wires to the ballast resistor and it starts again. I've squeezed the connectors together so that they fit nice and tight and also changed connectors and ballast resistor but when its ready to spoil your day again it will, always! It never cuts out when driving. Only ever happens when I've just parked. Had it happen on 360s, 400s and 440s many many many times over the years. A simple fix once you know what to do. It may be this. Good luck.

 

[Milo]

Did you check your timing marks on the front plate just maybe your timing chain has worn and jumped a tooth on the gears it would cause the problem you are having

 

[PurpleBeeper]

If you've turned the distributor that much and it still just "sputters and tries to start", then is sure does sound like a timing chain at this point. Before you pull the timing cover....check one more time, counter clockwise rotation for your firing order. Years ago I was stumped for 3 days before I realized I had the firing order correct, but the going the wrong direction around the distributor cap.....it sputtered, but didn't start

 

[65Polara383]

Sorry for not posting for so long, my friend had something come up and was unable to help. The car still wont run, I have checked the ballast resistor with a multimeter, it is fine.

Any advice for checking the timing chain with the motor in the car?

 

[3C's & a D?]

You stated in another thread that you had it running on starter fluid for a short time. If that is true, it's not the timing chain.

 

[65Polara383]

I pulled the valve covers yesterday, there was a single horribly bent pushrod. I have ordered a replacement, if I remember the car's valve layout correctly it was the cylinder 7 intake valve.

I am hoping that was the problem, thanks again for all the help so far.

 

[rags]

I am hoping that was the problem

would take a lot more than that. while the valve cover is off, you could pull a spark plug, turn the engine over by hand and watch the valve overlap vs TDC. if the overlap occurs after top dead then the cam timing jumped.

 

[Jim Garvie]

Hello, I last posted on here a couple months ago about my project car not wanting to start.
At the time I had very little experience with working on old cars. I have since learned much more, and I have repaired the entire fuel system.

Despite all my best efforts I still cannot manage to get the car to run or start without lots of effort.

The car is a 1965 Dodge Polara with a 383 motor and a 727 transmission.

Below is a list of what I have done:
Rebuilt carburetor, replaced fuel pump, and replaced fuel lines.
Verified that ignition is not 180 degrees out, replaced ignition switch and ballast resistor, also verified proper electrical current through all other ignition-related components.
Checked for compression, all cylinders read about 100-110 psi.
Replaced the starter with a factory high-torque unit.

I am unable to figure out why it wont run at this point.

Thank you all for any answers you can provide.

My 72 polara did this... finally found it was needing a new neutral switch on bottom of engine/trans... would not even crank... then has started perfectly every time; hoping you found the problem - jg

 

[65Polara383]

Thank you everyone for your help with this. The pushrod was the problem, the car starts and runs now.