can you be more specific when you say "shoot wires to the coil"? i am going to try the "new" relay tomorrow as well as repositioning the coil (cant hurt) but i am clear out of options.

i dont understand why the coil wont work (brand new) if the relay is working. could it be a computer problem? also, would running it straight to ground versus having the ground from the coil effect it differently?

 

i have an account with alldata pro so thats where i've been getting my diagrams and whatnot. i'm waiting on a multimeter to ensure that it is the relay, and if it is i will attempt to use the one my friend is bringing me. i've got a good friend at the dodge dealer that is gonna bring me one they had laying around (most likely used).

the coil is brand-spanking-new so im not sure what else it could be if it isnt the relay. could running it straight to ground versus having it run through the computer make any difference? could this end up being a computer problem?

@soundguy: it cranks, it just doesnt get spark to the coil. im not sure if a CPS could still be the cause though. EDIT: no codes. only one is 12 which i had disconnected the battery earlier but is also apparently normal.

 

OK well after you have confirmed that the ASD is good, you should check your grounds, as well as power to the coil. Also, these may be stupid questions, but how did you determine that you have no/intermittent spark? Did you use the whole screw driver in the sparkplug trick, and if so are you sure that you had the screwdriver close enough to the block of the engine? Did you test the wire coming out of the coil, or one of the sparkplug wires? If you have spark coming out of the coil, but not out of the sparkplug wires, you may have a bad distributor.

Basically I would grab a voltimeter and starting at the spark plug wires, trace all the way back until you find power. You can bet that the junction/fuse/relay/whatever which is distal to where you locate your power is being lost. Other suggestions such as crank sensor and such are also good ideas.

 

i took the wire from the coil to the distributor (i will call "coil wire") off the the distributor. i then held it near ground while i had somebody else try to start the truck. back when it first started this, sometimes sparks would jump and then i would plug it back to the distributor and it would start. but when now sparks jumped, which happens more frequently, i assume that there is no power coming from the coil. i assumed since it is a new coil that the coil is not the problem.

i have taken all the covers off the wires and traced both power and ground by eye. power seems good and solid, as does ground. still waiting on that meter (hopefully tomorrow) to actually check the wire itself.

 

Yeah, mine cranked too. Turned over just fine, but no spark. A bad CPS won't keep it from cranking.

 

since you have an '89, there is not a whole lot of electronics, so you should check your hall effect sensor inside the distributor. Best way to tell if it's bad and causing a intermittent no start, get a soldering gun (not the pencil type, the gun type w/ a manual trigger) and turn your key ON engine NOT running. Disconnect the coil wire and turn on the soldering gun and hold it next to the distributor. If you notice a spark coming from the coil wire, your problem lies in the hall effect sensor.