No spark! Options

[Steve73]

I'm trying to bring a dead 914 back to life. I have done the usual prep work and have hooked up the electrical system. The car turns over strongly but there is no spark! No spark at the plugs, no spark at the coil. I have switched the coil out with one I had laying around but i'm not getting any better results. Could it be the voltage regulator located in the box where the fuel injected controls are? (mine has been converted to dual carbs BTW).

What should I try next?

Thanks in advance!

[Cap'n Krusty]

And where is he going to find bushings? The wrong bushings are apt to be worse than the old ones. Bosch never sold them for VW/Porsche applications. Besides, that, bushing wear is an overplayed issue, and rarely causes a serious problem. Worn out breaker plates (not in the 009, of course) are of much greater concern, especially their ground strap. Check the following parts, in order. The points. Are they opening and closing and do they have the proper gap? Using an ohm meter attached to the point wire and the distributor body, open and close the points and watch the meter. Ohms, infinity, ohms, infinity, and so on. The timing. Is it close, and are you on the right cylinder? The condenser. Is it shorted out against the body? They rarely fail. I'll bet I haven't changed an average of one a year over the nearly 40 years I've been working on cars professionally. Is the point/condenser wire plugged in to the (-) side of the coil (#1), along with the tach wire? The power wire to the coil. Is it plugged into the (+) side of the coil (#15)? Coil wire to the distributor cap good? You sure? The rotor. Continuity from center to tip? Does it turn when you crank the engine? The cap. No cracks, carbon tracks, obvious nastiness, and a good button in the center?Fix anything that's not right as you encounter it. Report back.

The Cap'n

Report back

[underthetire]

And where is he going to find bushings? The wrong bushings are apt to be worse than the old ones. Bosch never sold them for VW/Porsche applications. Besides, that, bushing wear is an overplayed issue, and rarely causes a serious problem. Worn out breaker plates (not in the 009, of course) are of much greater concern, especially their ground strap. Check the following parts, in order. The points. Are they opening and closing and do they have the proper gap? Using an ohm meter attached to the point wire and the distributor body, open and close the points and watch the meter. Ohms, infinity, ohms, infinity, and so on. The timing. Is it close, and are you on the right cylinder? The condenser. Is it shorted out against the body? They rarely fail. I'll bet I haven't changed an average of one a year over the nearly 40 years I've been working on cars professionally. Is the point/condenser wire plugged in to the (-) side of the coil (#1), along with the tach wire? The power wire to the coil. Is it plugged into the (+) side of the coil (#15)? Coil wire to the distributor cap good? You sure? The rotor. Continuity from center to tip? Does it turn when you crank the engine? The cap. No cracks, carbon tracks, obvious nastiness, and a good button in the center?Fix anything that's not right as you encounter it. Report back.

The Cap'n

But this guy asked why he is eating points. A worn dizzy will eat points.
Report back