Ignition Amplifier

[goaferboy]

Any common factor as to when it cuts out? Such as when you give it a boot full, when you hit a pot hole etc

None that I can tell. It first happened shortly after giving it the beans down a motorway slip road, but it didn't cut out completely that time. Other times, it's been under normal driving. I very rarely give the car a damn good thrashing, since I'm a bit over protective of it to be honest.

I also don't recall any particularly nasty potholes before it cut out. I tend to swear a lot at the potholes round here, so I'd like to think I'd remember if there were any!

If the headlights and blower fan keep working, it's unlikely to be the ignition switch

From what I can tell, everything else works and it's just the ignition that cuts out.

[Nate]

coil is probably worth a shot, if you've got a spare you can substitute. also try wiggling all the wires around the ignition system and see if you can find a broken wire of dodgy connection

[Radorocco]

This sounds just like the problem I'm having on my GTX. Runs fine for a while then just cuts out for no apparent reason. We're now back to thinking electrical.

[goaferboy]

coil is probably worth a shot, if you've got a spare you can substitute. also try wiggling all the wires around the ignition system and see if you can find a broken wire of dodgy connection

I haven't got a spare coil, is there any in particular you'd recommend? I figure I may as well buy one since the current one is looking a bit tired.

I'll check all the wires and connections as I'm fitting a new coil.

[Nate]

I normally fit either bosch or beru ignition stuff.

[marcus]

The one I got from GSF is fine, I think it's Beru.

[goaferboy]

Cheers guys, I'll give it a try and report back.

[goaferboy]

Well, that didn't work either. It seemed to be happening more up hill/when I was giving it some just before a hill this time.

Anything else I can look at before I give up and book it in at my local mechanics/just leave it in the garage to rot?

[Tim_R]

Is your car carbed or injection?

[goaferboy]

Is your car carbed or injection?

Carbed (Weber)

[Tim_R]

Do you have a working warm air feed to the carb? Wondering if its suffering from carb icing, mine used to with a Weber without one and would splutter and completely die. Wait a few minutes and it would thaw and carry on, then do the same thing.

[farley381]

Had the same problem on a mk2 golf years ago, exactly the same symptoms. In my case it was the trigger head in the distributor failing when it got above a certain temperature. Proved it by swapping distributors with the GTX we also had at the time. I ended up buying a second hand dizzi. I was worried that the advance/retard would not be correct on the replacement (VW part numbers were different) so I dismantled the two units & put the "new" trigger head in my unit. Did the trick, never happened again. Good luck

[mark1gls]

Could it be the Webber carb problem with the fuel return needing a restricter fitted? There is info an this forum about this problem.?

[james butler]

i had a similer experience which turned out to be the hall sender chip inside the distributer had been rubbing on the metal roter because the spindle inside the dizzy was so worn and sloppy.
i put a new dizzy on it and fixed the problem completely.
although mine cut out and wouldnt restart in the end when the chip finally give out al together which made the problem easier to find.

[goaferboy]

Do you have a working warm air feed to the carb? Wondering if its suffering from carb icing, mine used to with a Weber without one and would splutter and completely die. Wait a few minutes and it would thaw and carry on, then do the same thing.

I don't think it is fuel related, as it doesn't splutter when it cuts out. It just alternates between full power and none, as if something electrical is being switched on and off.

I shall try the distributor and report back.