I'm Back Again With More Questions,The Problem I'm Having now Is When I Drive The Car For about 15 minutes it dies on me and doesn't want to start or i start the car for a little while and let it run then shut it off and it doesn't want to start back up the car does run hot after 15 minutes but every thing far as the cooling system is new,my boss at work suspects the distributor being off by a tooth others think it's a faulty ignition module in the hei which if it is I would be upset its a brand new msd module as well as the cap i've tried backing off timing but the car dies out when i put it in gear and if i advance it, it will not start i just want to enjoy my car again it's been almost a year since the car has been down. I want to do maintence work on it but i'm afraid of driving it and it craps out on me I need help someone please point me in the right direction. the 403 is a rebuilt engine I have only put 10 miles on the engine. I have A performer Rpm Intake,And Holley 4165/4175 650 spreadbore ,It's also .20 over
and thats about it

 

What kind of distributor is in it? I'll ask the proverbial question: Is it an HEI and do you have a full 12v going to it?

 

When it dies, does it have a spark?

If it does, does it have fuel in the carburetor, as evidenced by proper streams of fuel from the accelerator pump?

- Eric

 

it's a stock hei with an msd hei cap rotor and module and it does have fuel and has spark

 

What year car do you have this in?

 

78 cutlass supreme brougham

 

What year is the car? That's why the question about a full 12V at the coil. If you have a car that was originally points you can't use the resistor wire for an HEI distributor because it drops the voltage down to about 8V while running and that doesn't allow the module to operate properly.

I HATE when people say "the distributor is off a tooth". It doesn't know where it is in the engine. If the posts line up and you have timed the engine it doesn't matter where the terminals are. You can drop a distributor in at any position and so long as you have enough ignition wire to route the firing order and turn the distributor to time the engine you're good to go. The ONLY reason you have #1 at a certain spot is so people know where to start with the wires and so that pre-made wire sets will fit a particular application.

 

OK..78...don't worry about the voltage then.

 

Everything you've said makes me think electrical. Heat is bad for any electrical part.
A few things:
1) You can't be off a tooth on the distributor. That can be made up by rotating the distributor far enough as long as you have room with the vacuum advance can.
2) My experience with modules is they are go no go. If it's shot it's shot and it won't run period. For the cheap money to try a new module I'd do that. I'd also check every ground connection on that thing or every connection for that matter. Also take the coil off and see what it looks like under there, you may be surprised.

 

Trip when I was younger and had a 76 Salon I had a REALLY odd thing with my HEI would just swap it with the one in the distributor and be on my way. Then sometime down the road it would die again and I would swap it back and be on my way. I never did figure out why that worked, but it did. There could have been an issue with the cars wiring, but I was never able to track that down.

 

Yes, but does it have a good spark, or a crappy spark?

- Eric

 

What starter? If it is the crappy small body starter, it will crank slow, my did when hot on my 403. Put a timing light on it and set it right. Make sure you have good rad, shroud, 7 blade fan with a good clutch and the thermostat is flowing enough. I had endless heating issues with my 403.

 

svnt442 I'm no expert on anything but all my advice comes from experience. Electrical connections or lack thereof are always a problem on cars.

 

Oh me either, just telling a tale of woe from days gone bye....an odd one at that.

 

Run a jumper from the battery pos to the batt+ on the distributor and see if it stays running. What this does is take away all the wiring in the ignition system. If it stays running then it's something screwy in the car wiring. If it does the same thing and quits, it's in your distributor. Please note, in order to turn the car off the jumper needs to be removed.

 

i'm just ready to rebuild my 350,the 403 is giving me more headaches than ever,now i have oil blowing all over my intake,i think the crankcase is pressurized.I will check the battery terminal for the distributor tomorrow, i drove the car for a few blocks and brought it back home after i shut it off i just wouldnt start, im also going to test my terminal on the back of the alternator to be safe because if i let the car sit overnight and i go crank it in the morning it will start the alternator is good but im going to check alot of stuff, good thing is none of the wiring in the car has been butchered everything is still in the shape it came from factory well except my aftermarket radio that was installed by a professional

 

Make sure your PCV valve is connected and working, for the oil problem. Did you understand what I said about running a separate jumper wire from the pos battery post to the HEI batt+ terminal?

 

I understand about the jumper and it's the module the car kept cranking but nothing today the voltage was at 12.4 at the wire and im just gonna buy another pcv,good news is im tearing into my 350 tomorrow at work gonna replace the bent pushrods and save and buy some flattops and put my #5 heads on it the 403 has to come out my car by next year my 350 ran better and never gave me crap until the lifters came apart and bent the pushrods thinking about chromoly

 

Let us know how it goes.