Allegro Club International

[louisebastock]

The Allegro conked out today

It started, we drove down the road, turned round and all was well until we made the turn across the main road where it conked out.

In a panic I flooded it, but it took about 5 minutes to get it going, then when trying to turn round to go home it conked out again. I didn't flood it this time, but again it took a good while to fire up. One of the local old dudes reckoned it was damp leads...

What should I get to cure/rule out this prob?

New HT leads?
New distributor cap?

(This is my first car with a distributor, so bear with me!)

[Laurence]

Hi Louise,

The problem could well be damp.

Remove the distributor cap, (you can leave all th HT leads attached) then turn it upside-down & examine the inside of the cap for moisture.

If there is moisture present, wipe the inside of the cap with a dry cloth making sure you don't snag/damage the central carbon bush.

Also check that the bush is intact & 'springs' in & out of the cap, like a little plunger.

Have a look at the inside surface of the cap for signs of 'tracking' you may see spidery viens from the central bush area to each/any of the electrode posts. If so renew the cap.

With the cap off, check the contact breaker points condition & gap, if the tips are burnt/blackened, renew the points & condenser. Check the points gap using a .015" feeler blade, if the gap is far too small, the points heel could be worn excessively so renew the points & condenser.

There are a few different distributors each with their own type of points, rotor arm, condenser, cap etc., so try to identify yours before ordering parts. If these items haven't been changed recently, you may as well renew them all along with HT leads & ignition coil & plugs. (about £60 all-in)

There are two types of coil used, there's one for 'ballasted' ignition & one for 'non-ballasted' ignition, if you fit the wrong type it won't last very long.

You can buy an ignition water-proofing spray, so once all the new stuff is fitted you can spray the cap & leads & end cap of ignition coil.