I’m in a holding pattern on the fuel injection project until some parts come in. The big holdup is getting a new set of spark plug wires after the number four wire snapped off in my hand. I thought I had kept my old set from the Scout in the spares bin, but apparently I tossed them—all I have is a coil wire in the parts bag. As I write this, it occurs to me that I can pull one of the wires off the Scout and use that to test the ignition system (duh). Basically, the plan looks like this:
- Pull the #8 plug (International SV-series engines time off of the number eight cylinder)
- Spin the engine until # is at TDC, replace the plug
- Make sure the rotor is aligned correctly, pointing at the #8 wire
- Make sure the spark plug wires are routed in the correct order
- Check for spark at the coil
- Check for spark at the plugs
If all of those things check out, and the engine still won’t start, then I’m at a complete loss. I know I’m getting fuel, and the EFI system should be metering air, so the only thing remaining would be spark. I did fool around a little bit with timing last fall, but the truck ran after I adjusted that. So I’m thinking it’s got to be an issue with the ignition system. I do still think the starter needs to be replaced, but I want to sort out all of this other stuff before I start throwing more money at parts.