no spark at wires got spark at coil on my 1996 dodge ram van
Asked by wildman687 Jan 22, 2014 at 09:46 AM about the 1996 Dodge RAM Van 1500 Cargo RWD
Question type: Maintenance & Repair
7 Answers
Have you visually Inspected the Piston return sprigs for damage/cracked springs?
wildman687 answered 10 years ago
no I was driving it and it just stop I changed the coil getting spark at the coil to the cap but no spark from the cap to the wires.
Goodwrench707 answered 10 years ago
Remove the cap and check the posts on the inside. Also check the rotor condition. Disconnect the the power wires to the coil, and have someone crank the engine while you observe the rotor. Make sure the rotor is turning. If the rotor is turning, you will most likely need a new cap and rotor. I'm assuming you checked for "coil spark", at the distributor cap end of the coil wire, and not directly at the coil.
wildman687 answered 10 years ago
yes checked the cap and the rotor all seems fine checked the spark from the coil at the end of the wire im getting nothing from the cap to the plugs
Goodwrench707 answered 10 years ago
Check to make sure the spark supplied, is more than just one spark. I've checked for spark on some vehicles, and had to crank longer, only to find a lost spark. Meaning,... sparked 1-2 times, then nothing. Have you check for spark on more than one plug wire? If you are getting a steady spark to the cap, and the rotor is turning, I would be suspicious of the cap and rotor. I would doubt that "all" of your spark plug wires are bad. The only other thing I could think of is a jumped timing chain,....but I would think that it would backfire during cranking.
I agree on replacing the cap and rotor. Also replace the coil to cap wire. Often the cap and rotor look ok but are just worn out and the gap between the rotor and cap posts is too big.