1958 Country Sedan project

Unfortunately the next fix happened yesterday. I washed the car, grabbed a camera and some good driving tapes to go take a few pictures for you guys and it would not start. Was low on gas so I borrowed a car and picked up two gallons and poured it in. Would crank and fire and sometimes run for as long as a minute. But then just stop.
No logic to it either. One time I made it a block away from home.
Checked fuel flow and even changed the fuel filter. Checked spark, the carb... everything! But the engine running and stopping seemed so .... switched. Not gasping or coughing. Just stopping, that I figured the ignition switch must be the culprit.
Pulled the jump wire I keep in the tool box, removed the ignition switch and with a combination of crossing the BAT and IGN posts and pushing the key into the socket it kept running.
Made it back home where it's now parked until CarQuest reports the new switch is in from the warehouse.

(Yes, I lost the receipt from the first ignition switch from last fall)

The problem I see is that this stuff from China is all crap and I am holding my breath till the next one goes out. What I really need is good old american made used switch!

 

That's exactly what I was thinking reading your post. Good luck!

 

Well, I am with-out wheels again. Got tired of fighting the electrical ignition problems and took it into the shop yesterday. They will probably get to it first thing this morning (maybe), and if all goes well I get to drive it home with a thinner wallet.



Before I surrendered the keys I drove to Bush Park and had a quiet lunch listening to Cheech & Chong on the 8-track. Snapped a couple pics and then headed to Parker Auto Electric. Seems there is a short in the primary ignition wires. Probably those running through the firewall as there's a big connector block that looks old and crusty. I was going to remove it myself but... rather let the pros do it right.

 

You have much more faith in "the pros" than I do, especially with the older stuff. Case in point.. had an old Datsun 620 pickup that I had a vacuum problem with.. Took it to a Japanese repair shop and they had no idea what the problem was. They futzed with it, but if anything just re-routed some lines and made the problem worse. They admitted that they usually work on the newer cars and it had been a long time since they saw a 620 come through their doors. One would think a 620 would be pretty darn basic compared to the newer stuff.. So I don't necessarily trust someone else working on my classics.. Just my 2 cents.

 

Wayne Parker Auto Electric has been in Salem for two generations. Wayne still comes into the shop, but he is retired now and only does fly tying and selling his custom made fishing lures. He's fun to talk to! At any rate, his son Russ now runs the shop, drives a Funny Car that's always being worked on by someone in the last bay and really KNOWS the old stuff. All the people in Salem who are 'in the know' (nudge, nudge, wink, wink), know where to take their cars for repairs and avoid the "chain stores".

 

Every time I take my '81 in to the shop, the owner grumbles that he'll have to work on it himself because the car is older than all of the his mechanics. I take pride in that.

 

I find this sad. Apparently, us old guys that are disappearing from the car scene, are the last of the old car fixers. This is not only sad....it amazes me. But, it's true. The younger guys today, it seems, can't fix anything unless they can plug in a code reader and fix what it tells them to fix. A car that HAS no plug in becomes a mystery to them. The fact is, if they understand the workings of the combustion engine, it should be EASIER to fix an old car. As cars go back in history they become more and more simple. The inability of some of these modern "mechanics" to fix an old car leads me to conclude that they AREN'T mechanics, but, instead, have been schooled in the art of computer software. I can see an older mechanic being confused by the advent of PCM's and the plethora of peripherals that it feeds, but, I can't understand the reverse situation unless the new "mechanics" don't understand the actual workings of engines!

 

Let's not EVEN start talking about Parts stores... sigh.

 

Sweet! First time I heard them was via 8-track .... groovy!

 

Here's my 2 cents to go with the rest. With any old vehicle over 25 years or so old ALWAYS REPLACE ALL FUEL AND BRAKE LINES before ever driving it. This includes the short flex lines, master cylinder and wheel cylinders. All of those parts are actually cheap except maybe some master cylinders. Even most of those are under $50.
The easiest way to replace the brake hard lines is to buy various lengths of prefitted line and couplers. A simple brake line bender can be used. Get a few lines slightly too long and make loops or bends to adjust the fit.
The entire brake line job will be under $100 and with wise shoping the wheel cylinders are not very expensive. You can rebuild the drive train, add a new interior, repaint, add fancy wheels and tires, add power steering or rebuild the old. But if you can't stop the rest doesn't matter! No matter where you steer that beautiful car it has to stop someplace.
As for electrical parts like switches, almost all of the replacements are just temporary junk. When possible get a few cheap wire testers and repair and replace your own. Most modern mechanics are just gonna experiment and hunt like you are anyway. The difference is you work cheaper.

 

Update:
Wagon is back home! Stops, starts, brakes, shifts and feels normal once again. Plus the "sometimes" turnsignals are working perfectly.

Even the clock is keeping time... not bad for a 54 year old machine.

Next project: Installing some good quality speakers in the back and smaller 6" speakers into the new Dennis Carpenter kick panels that came yesterday.

 

Cool Jairus, what did the shop find was the culprit?

 

As it usually is with electrical, there was no smoking gun. Just a suspicion of a single connector that was eliminated. I probably could have done it my self in the street with some connectors and black tape as I pointed at the possible culprit. But... I placed my trust in those who KNOW! And so far, it's been good.

$130 for the visit to the Pros and $22 for the new ign. switch I didn't really need. But the peace of mind is PRICELE$$.

 

At least you have someone you can trust who are willing to look at it and do the work. PRICELE$$ !

 

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Am happy for you! It's awesome to get all those gremlins taken care of.