Follow up on the travails of my GTV: I checked the voltage on the fuel cut-off solenoid wire and with the ignition key to 'ON' and the engine not running, it was already at 12v. The micro switch is always 'ON'. My symptoms are with full voltage at the solenoid. I assumed that if the switch was ON when I tried to start it, it would never start at all. But the cold start solenoid supplied enough gas to get it started but not enough to keep it running.
Next I traced down the low voltage at the coil. The big red wire from the battery was supplying 12v to the fuse panel (runs fuses 1-4 all the time). 12v was going to the ignition switch. With the ignition switch set to 'ON', I was only getting 9v on the green/black coil wire at the fuse box (#6 fuse) so there was a voltage drop at the switch. I removed the steering column cover to expose the ignition switch and checked the voltages at the red wire (12 v from fuse box) and the brown wire (only 9v going to fuse box) which supplies voltage for the coil wire. I pulled/replaced these two wires off/on each of the spade terminals on the switch and all of a sudden I was getting the proper 12v on the brown wire. Subsequent testing at the coil showed the correct 12v. Finally, an easy fix!! I think that the ballast resistor was incorporated after my GTV was manufactured. Bruce '73 GTV - working ! > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > Date: Wed, 12 Oct 2011 19:17:54 -0700 > From: Gene Brown <[email protected]> > Subject: [alfa] Re: SPICA GTV will start but not keep running > > Bruce, > Congratulations on getting your car running. Sometimes it helps to start > over again in case you missed something. > In regards to the voltage at the coil my 78 Spider had a ballast > resistor between the battery and the coil to drop the 12 volts to > something less while running. On the spider a green-black wire ran from > the fuse box to the resistor. Then a green wire ran from the resistor to > the B+ terminal on the coil. A second green wire ran from the B+ > terminal on the coil to the ignition switch. > This is commonly done to increase the spark when starting. I don't know > if your GTV has this arrangement but you might check it out. > > gene Brown > 1972 Montreal > Simi Valley, CA -- to be removed from alfa, see http://www.digest.net/bin/digest-subs.cgi or email "unsubscribe alfa" to [email protected]
