1990 Dodge Colt Vista Logo

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Posted on Dec 10, 2008
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1990 Dodge Colt No Power to Spark Coil

I have a 1990 Dodge Colt, was running fine when sudden engine cut off.
Tested... no spark, no 12 volts to Spark Coil

What is the next test ?

  • 12 more comments 
  • craighook Dec 10, 2008

    Where is the relay and fuse you are talking about ? I checked visiably all the fuses on the pass side (under the hood) fuse block and those looked ok. Whats next ?

  • craighook Dec 10, 2008

    I believe it is the smaller of the engines... spark coil is square, appears good. When I connected 12v to the coil and cranked the engine it still would not start, however did not check for spark (darn)
    Coil has continuity on 12v side anyway.

  • craighook Dec 10, 2008

    power from ign switch had everything else on when in the "run" position. I disconnected the coil at the coil connector / harness. no 12 volts when switch on, tested with meter at the harness female connector.

  • craighook Dec 10, 2008

    no, I do not have 12 volts from the wiring harness to the coil

  • craighook Dec 10, 2008

    Alternator is ok. Was driving on the road about 45 mph when engine cut off suddenly.

  • craighook Dec 10, 2008

    there were 2 wires going to the coil from the wireing harness... one was black, the other I will have to check. I assume the black is common and the other is +12VDC. So, if I supply 12v to the coil via cheater wires, the coil should spark when cranked ?

  • craighook Dec 10, 2008

    There is a computer in this car that was replace a few years back.... does the power come from there ?

  • craighook Dec 11, 2008

    this is the small 4 seat sedan. is the Hall effect sensor wires at the bottom of the distributor housing ?.. there are some wires going in there.

  • craighook Dec 11, 2008

    Car battery is fine, cranks engine normally.

  • craighook Dec 11, 2008

    the only wires I saw coming out of the square coil were 2, on a connector and of course the spark wire to the distributor.

  • craighook Dec 11, 2008

    How can I test the Hall effect sensor in the Distributor ? 12/11/08 10:38 E

  • craighook Dec 11, 2008

    Battery is good

  • craighook Dec 11, 2008

    This is a Colt, NOT a Vista Wagon

  • mechanic144 Apr 16, 2017

    check under distributor cap. make sure the rotor contacts are NOT corroded severely or burnt off. this is called the rotor button, and if its wears off, it could cause that. also could likely be the pcm as that's what controls the signal to coil. make sure all is plugged in and tight. check around distributor and make sure connectors are not burnt through.

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8 Answers

Anonymous

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  • Master 492 Answers
  • Posted on Dec 10, 2008
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Replace fuse or relay.

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Check out the battery supply and then check the ignition coil and also the spark distributor....

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Lee Hodgson

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  • Master 4,810 Answers
  • Posted on Dec 11, 2008
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I think you aught to be looking at the starter motor itself, the car cranks fine but doesn't fire up by the sounds of it, also check the spark plugs themselvesas, one or more of them may have become degraded or just caked in oil.
If its a diesel car check the glow plugs for continuity (these are just like spark plugs but are connected together with a heavy duty cable)

Regards

  • Lee Hodgson
    Lee Hodgson Dec 11, 2008

    this is what the starter motor looks like sometimes tapping on these with a hammer gets them going again but eventually needs repalcing.

    This is what Glow plugs look like (if your car is diesel)

    The wire that connects to all the plugs may be degraded or a plug itself may have burnt out

    regards


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  • Posted on Dec 11, 2008
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There is a ground wire tuched to the car body,, check that wire is in place,

note -
1. without that wire there is no importance of your battery power (12 volt).
2. wire colore is green.

Thanks 

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  • Master 365 Answers
  • Posted on Dec 11, 2008
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The battery may be damaged and try to replace it and try.try to check whether there is any broken cables or not.thank you

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  • Posted on Dec 10, 2008
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What about alternator. It might be dead.
Distributor cap. It might be worn,damaged
What about jump starting. Does it help.
Also what about timing belt.
Good Luck

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  • Master 1,450 Answers
  • Posted on Dec 10, 2008
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Your power supply goes straight from ignition switch check this also if you have the 1.6 engine possible cause would be the power transistor

  • 4 more comments 
  • Anonymous Dec 11, 2008

    possibly the hall effect switch in distributor. you would have 12volts on one side.Is this car a colt or colt vista?or wagon??

  • Anonymous Dec 11, 2008

    yes it is in the distributor. they can give some problems.looking at the diagram coil gets its 12volt from power transistor

  • Anonymous Dec 11, 2008


        Connect the positive lead of an ohmmeter to terminal # 2, and the negative lead of the ohmmeter to terminal # 3. Continuity should NOT exist.
          Connect the positive lead of a 1.5 volt battery to terminal # 1 and the negative lead of the battery to terminal # 2. Continuity should exist, while the battery is connected.

          be sure to disconnect connector to transistor when doing this test.
  • Anonymous Dec 11, 2008

    this is how to check power transistor

  • Anonymous Dec 11, 2008

    this is not on the coil it is the power transistor should be on intake

  • Anonymous Dec 11, 2008

    STARTER?GL;OW PLUGS? WTF?????

    I have given you info on a colt.the info i have given is for the 1.5 as you say you have smaller engine. The power transistor is located close to coil check this

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  • Dodge Master 85,242 Answers
  • Posted on Dec 10, 2008
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12 volts is supplied by the ignition switch, test the switch and make sure it is working correctly, pay attention to the wire colors and whether or not u have a resistive wire to the coil from the ignition switch..

  • 6 more comments 
  • Marvin
    Marvin Dec 10, 2008

    There is no realy or fuse, that is incorrect.

  • Marvin
    Marvin Dec 10, 2008

    what is the voltage at the + side of the coil connector, coil connector disconnected, u must disconnect, if the coil is defective u can show no volts.

  • Marvin
    Marvin Dec 10, 2008

    What do u mean coil has continuity on 12 volt side, it does have 12 volts from the ignition?

  • Marvin
    Marvin Dec 10, 2008

    U have to trace that 12 volt lead back to the ignition switch, that is where the problem is, the wire to the coil may be the same color as it is at the coil, I did this kind of work 20 years and that is how I would approach the problem, Japanese ignition switch's are famous for just this kind of problem, only 2 companies make switch's for Japanese cars so they pretty much share the same problems.

  • Marvin
    Marvin Dec 10, 2008

    does the check engine light work?

  • Marvin
    Marvin Dec 10, 2008

    The black wire is not the common, it is the secondary of the coil, it is what is switched to cause the coil to produce a spark.

  • Marvin
    Marvin Dec 11, 2008

    Why do u want to test the hall effect sensor? if no power to the coil is the problem, u are really confusing us here, do the coil have power??

  • Marvin
    Marvin Dec 11, 2008

    My friend give it a rest, request a refund from Fixya and take it to a shop.

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