MX-3.com

so i'm having this problem with my bpt. around 3000 rpm sometimes it stutters really bad. i went to the dyno thinking that maybe it was tuning (i have a haltech). he said it wasn't the tuning but it seems like it might be the crank trigger pick-up. i can't see a drop in RPM on the datalog when it happens. since my haltech picks up crank position through the disty i figured that could be the problem. i took off the cap and rotor and wiggled the little shaft that the rotor clips onto. there was some play. so i'm thinking that i need a new disty. what do you guys think? just want a second opinion before i spend that kinda $$$ on one.

would i buy one for a 93 protege lx? the plug on it is the same correct (4 wires)?

thanks for the help.

ok i searched on the ERDT website and the disty looks the same with the same plug and all...so only question left is that there shouldn't be any play in the disty should there?

Hmm, I've had similar problems in the past. My case, the Haltech was operating and tunned properly. I've had problems with the connection going into the distributor, but not the disty it's self. The connectors from junk cars are usaully not good because of corosion/ water damage. I replaced the connector and hard wired the Haltech/MSD wiring into the top of the disty. NO problems now, ever.

I don't think there is supposed to be any kind of movement in the disty. I'll have to check my extra to find out what you are talking about. It's been awhile since mine was apart. Other than that, check out anything else spark and fuel related that might cause a drivebility issue. Plugs for instance. I seem to have a problem going through these quite often...

yea i'll try new plugs first. my electrical plug seems to be in good condition, i sprayed some WD-40 on it today to clean it up a bit but it was already really clean so nothing came off of it. how did you hardwire it directly to your disty? small spade terminals? or did you take off that little plate that holds the electrical connector and splice directly into the disty wiring?

the part that has some play in it is the shaft that spins. it is connected to the cam shaft on one side and the rotor on the other.

the problem started right after i left the dyno the first time i went there.

there also seems to be a little bit of oil coming out of the disty...don't ask me how it got there but i took off the plastic piece behind the rotor and there was a little bit of oil on the back of the plastic part. a little oil had dripped down onto my radiator hose also.

anyone else have any ideas? i'll buy a new set of plugs (it sucks because i have to special order them and it takes 5 days). if that doesn't work i'll probably get a new disty. i've ruled out spark plugs wires and cap/rotor already. i installed all of those with no change.

well i put in new plugs...the car definetly needed them but it didn't fix my problem. i used a .030 gap (read from other posts that this was a good gap to run). I still have the missing at the same RPM range. sometimes it will miss at other RPMs too, it just usually happens around 3000. I've replaced pretty much everything in the ignition system besides the disty and the MSD box (which is new and seems to be working correctly).

i really need this problem fixed before it gets too cold for me to work on it

did you get around to checking out your spare disty jaydog? thanks for the help so far.

i will probably take off the disty soon too take a better look at it, i will need to get the #s off of it anyway if i am going to order a new one. other ideas anyone i'm really at a loss here. anyone know of things i should look for when i remove the disty?

Try regapping down to .025 . I have the same problem. 323 GTX guys told me to go to .025 and that should fix it.

really?? wow that's a really narrow gap. i'll try it though just to make sure. oh i'm running NGK BKR7E-11s in case someone is wondering.

this problem didn't start until i went to the dyno the first time. the car overheated once (didn't do any engine damage). but when i left it had this problem. i took it to the dyno again (different guy) and he was the one that said it wasn't tuning.

i'll double check my ignition settings in the haltech just in case.

it's nice to know some else has experienced something similar? did you regap yours yet? did it work?

keep the suggestions coming guys/gals

BuGS wrote:Try regapping down to .025 . I have the same problem. 323 GTX guys told me to go to .025 and that should fix it.

That seems to be way to small of a gap. I've had issues with missfires with a .035 and above gap. I would keep it btwn .029 and .035. The .030 to .032 is what I've been running.

ryanlindenberg wrote:did you get around to checking out your spare disty jaydog? thanks for the help so far.

i will probably take off the disty soon too take a better look at it, i will need to get the #s off of it anyway if i am going to order a new one. other ideas anyone i'm really at a loss here. anyone know of things i should look for when i remove the disty?

I did and there shouldn't be any kind of play in the main shaft.

Check all grounds including the batt. cable conn. Make sure they are secure and free of corrosion. Again, I would switch out the disty plug and hardwire it with gold plated spade conn. from an auto store (Advance). That was a typical problem for my car. The Haltech is very sensative to any voltage drop.

ok cool, i'll recheck my disty one last time for play. i don't think it's the connector because it was working fine until i left the dyno...maybe it was just a coincidence that my disty went out on the dyno.

when you had the bad connector for your disty did your haltech lose the RPM signal? I data logged mine and it didn't lose signal or show any incorrect readings.

it seems like .030 should be a small enough gap especially since i'm running an MSD 6A. I read through an older post and they recommended .030-.032 too.

well, i'll take the disty out and give it a good look over and let you guys know. thanks

ryanlindenberg wrote:ok cool, i'll recheck my disty one last time for play. i don't think it's the connector because it was working fine until i left the dyno...maybe it was just a coincidence that my disty went out on the dyno.

when you had the bad connector for your disty did your haltech lose the RPM signal? I data logged mine and it didn't lose signal or show any incorrect readings.

No, but a wire from the coil to the dash, leading to the tach will give you some problems. You would need a tach adapter it sounds like.

i havn't been here for awhile but here's a little update on my problem. I rewired the haltech directly to the disty and there was no change in the misfire. ordered a new disty and still no change. i went through my haltech settings and some of them were wrong, fixed those, car runs much smoother now but i still get the misfire.

only thing i can think of is checking the coil...i don't think that is the problem but i'm gonna check it out anyway. any other ideas?

Have you checked the rotor phasing? It could be a crossfire across your terminals.. What is your base timing set at?

Have you regapped the plugs? I Havn't really messed with mine cause I havn't really been working on the MX-3 lately, trying to get my 323 running, but the 323 GTX guys told me .025. I am at .028 and I have a ignition stumble from 3000-3500 where the engine has the most pressure. I have upped the coil to a HUGE one, same prob. But ya, I just ordered my Iridium (?) Spark plugs for like $7.50 a piece, and those should help.

If you havn't regapped, try regapped.

You may want to restart with checking out all the ignition components over again. You said you rewired the Haltech into the top of the disty. If it doesn't have a great connection, the car will stumble, buck, missfire, the whole deal... You said you replaced the disty - problem still there. I believe you when you say the Haltech is working like it should via your tunning. That is a big part of how the car runs. I never had any major problems with my car running too rich or too lean, meaning the car never re-acted when it was running lean. It was running lean the second time on the dyno.

Plugs WERE a problem with missfiring - my case anyway. Gap was a big issue. If it was too large, it would missfirea nd buck under full load. You said it would do it only around 3000rpm though, which is interesting. Did it missfire under WOT too?

Look at the wires, cap, and rotor. Are they in good condition? IF they still are, then use a little dialectrical grease on every ignition contact you can. This may not solve the problem, but will lengthen the life of the parts. You can atleast, eliminate these parts as a cause. You can try another coil. I wouldn't spend xx amount of dollars on a coil though if your not certain it's causing the missfiring. Test it if you can, or if you happen to have axis to another coil, swap it for free.

Is this the first time the car has been missfiring since you swapped the engine and computer?

i have my plugs gapped down to .030. i do not have the misfire when at WOT, only at light boost/atmospheric pressure. the problem is the worst when i'm on the interstate and i accelerate slowly (3000-3500 RPM like BuGS). i have a MSD 6A so a .030 gap should be fine.

when i first installed the haltech i had none of these problems (with my engine untuned). i took it to a dyno a week later and then the problem has been there ever since...

Have you checked the rotor phasing? It could be a crossfire across your terminals.. What is your base timing set at?

i don't really know what you mean by base timing, i verified that the ignition crank angle was correct, and any timing other than that i can adjust via the ignition maps.

i'll give the entire ignition another good look over and then change the plugs again and see what happens i guess. i have a multimeter so i'm gonna test the coil with that. and let me know if the iridium plugs help BuGS. thanks guys.