2nd Generation Specific (1986-1992) 1986-1992 Discussion including performance modifications and technical support sections.

installed a msd 6al box and it wont idle

Old Jan 17, 2004 | 03:30 PM
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installed a msd 6al box and it wont idle

just installed a msd 6al box on the s5 turbo and the car starts but it lowered the idle and it shuts off...do i have to readjust the idle or the s-afc? the way i hooked it up is to the leading coil and disconnected the wires that were already on there..do these wires(the cream & black) go back on the coil along with the others off the box?

thanx...any advice will be appreciated
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Old Jan 17, 2004 | 07:47 PM
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Pull the leading spark plugs wires to see if they are firing???


-Ted
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Old Jan 17, 2004 | 10:21 PM
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you shouldn't need to do anything. it's probably hooked wrong and not firing the leading coil.

the 2 wires to the coil that you cut. all 4 ends should be conected to MSD box wires.
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Old Jan 18, 2004 | 10:47 AM
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on the how to at fc3spro.com(which by the way this site is the ****)it show the 6a box and i guess this box has 2 xtra wires(thin red and a thin white that go to the cream and black of the ignitor my box doesnt have these red and white wires so do i put the cream and black on the the coil with the orange and black off the msd box?

thans, u guys for the assistance
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Old Jan 18, 2004 | 10:48 AM
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im going out to see if its getting spark now

(the wires off the ignitor are hooked up to nothing)
just the 2 wires off the box to the coil
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Old Jan 18, 2004 | 11:33 AM
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do i have to plug the white plug back in to the harness?
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Old Jan 18, 2004 | 12:13 PM
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i am not getting spark to the leading plug
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Old Jan 18, 2004 | 01:50 PM
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if your box doesn't have all the wires I would take it out and find out why... stop hooking up random wires. you're going to blow **** up. if you don't know what you are doing. don't do anything.

you need all 4 wires hooked up to the coil / igniter or nothing is going to happen. and power and
ground to the box. read your manual if your colors are different.

Last edited by Scott 89t2; Jan 18, 2004 at 01:54 PM.
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Old Jan 18, 2004 | 02:19 PM
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check your msd ground. when i installed mine i found out that paint covered metal doesnt ground very well.
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Old Jan 18, 2004 | 02:25 PM
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Originally posted by DubbayoC
check your msd ground. when i installed mine i found out that paint covered metal doesnt ground very well.
I think this is a bigger problem....

(the wires off the ignitor are hooked up to nothing)
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Old Jan 18, 2004 | 02:32 PM
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duhhh........ i need to learn how to read....if an illiterate guy like can install one so can you. go over the installation instructions make sure you got everything hooked up right.

Last edited by DubbayoC; Jan 18, 2004 at 02:35 PM.
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Old Jan 18, 2004 | 06:45 PM
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done deal i had to fish the white wire out of the box and the wires are hooked up correctly...but now my boost level is lower by a few lbs. did this happen to you guys?
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Old Jan 18, 2004 | 08:37 PM
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Ok, now the leadings are firing?

What was the boost level before?
What is the boost level now?

It could be the coils were misfiring, and that can cause more boost with less power.



-Ted
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Old Jan 18, 2004 | 11:16 PM
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yes the leading is firing and the boost was 12 psi and now its 8...my buddy has had this box on a shelf for a few years..is there a way i can check it to make sure its as strong as it should...is it possible it went bad or got weak?

thanx
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Old Jan 19, 2004 | 05:44 AM
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The CDI boxes are either working or not.  They rarely work intermittently, and I haven't come across one or heard of one that was working but weaker.

I think something is seriously wrong with your car prior to installing the MSD box.  The only thing I can recommend is get the car on a dyno to see if it's making more or less poewr with and without the MSD installed.


-Ted
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Old Jan 19, 2004 | 05:46 PM
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why would something be wrong with the car?...its was running good before i installed the box and its running good now that i finally got the box wired up right.it just lowered my boost 4 psi.do you think my ecu has something to do with it?i have a n374 that has been remapped my r-magic and was on a bridgeported rx7..i know they remapped the ignition and the fuel do you think that it might be programmed to fire stronger than the msd box?

thanx for the advice
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Old Jan 19, 2004 | 08:02 PM
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for about 2 weeks i had an ignition system on my old rex, but found it wasnt even close to as good as the stock one. i ran everything right, but it idled rough and didnt feel as good as it was at stock.

mine wasnt msd, but crane cams, one of the best they make too.

-scott
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Old Jan 19, 2004 | 08:12 PM
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Originally posted by calio64
why would something be wrong with the car?...its was running good before i installed the box and its running good now that i finally got the box wired up right.it just lowered my boost 4 psi.do you think my ecu has something to do with it?i have a n374 that has been remapped my r-magic and was on a bridgeported rx7..
Uh, a BP motor had radically different fuel curves versus a stock or street ported engine.  Something is very fishy - either the seller of that ECU was lying to you, or your engine is not running correctly.



i know they remapped the ignition and the fuel do you think that it might be programmed to fire stronger than the msd box?
It's almost impossible to reprogram the ECU to fire a stronger spark.


-Ted
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Old Jan 20, 2004 | 10:55 AM
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Originally posted by RETed
Uh, a BP motor had radically different fuel curves versus a stock or street ported engine.  Something is very fishy - either the seller of that ECU was lying to you, or your engine is not running correctly.
i bought a s-afc to tune the fuel because of the car running to rich with this ecu... will that fix the radical diffrent fuel curves?and inside the ecu it has this chip that says bridgeport kkk. should i take this chip out and replace it with another one since my car isnt bridgeported?

thanx
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Old Jan 20, 2004 | 08:24 PM
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can i just take it out ?and will it still run without a chip in the spot?

thanx
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Old Jan 20, 2004 | 08:30 PM
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can i just take it out ?and will it still run without a chip in the spot?

thanx
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Old Jan 20, 2004 | 08:33 PM
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no you can't take it out....


the reason it's running different now could be from frying the coil, ignitor, or MSD box from hooking it up wrong before you had it working....

try unhooking the MSD box and reconnecting the coil and ignitor in stock form. that will tell you if the the box itself is doing it.
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Old Jan 22, 2004 | 12:09 PM
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quote:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Originally posted by RETed
Uh, a BP motor had radically different fuel curves versus a stock or street ported engine. Something is very fishy - either the seller of that ECU was lying to you, or your engine is not running correctly.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



i bought a s-afc to tune the fuel because of the car running to rich with this ecu... will that fix the radical diffrent fuel curves?and inside the ecu it has this chip that says bridgeport kkk. should i take this chip out and replace it with another one since my car isnt bridgeported?

thanx
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Old Jan 23, 2004 | 08:00 PM
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sorry for being a post ***** but. i jus hooked up my msd 6al. and the rev lim. dosent work and it feels like **** when i hit 6500 rpm... any help please..
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Old Jan 23, 2004 | 08:25 PM
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because the trailings still fire when you cut the leading. that is worse then not having a limiter.

remove the limiter.
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