I really needa diagram of the wires from my distributor cap, i just did a tune up, plugs, cap, rotor, pcv and wires, and we wrote it all down, but now that its all connected it isnt starting. Maybe wires are wrong, or maybe something else? thanks. 87 305 4bbl. -matt

 

#1 plug is up front on cap and faces passenger side a little bit.

2 4 6 8

1 3 5 7 drivers side plugs

and the firing order is

18436572

have fun , I do this on a regular basis.

Has the whole distributor been removed?

 

Don't know if the distributor has ever been replaced, bought the car about 10k miles ago, seemed like it had a good deal of upkeep done to her, but dunno about the distributor, regardless, considering i had to charge a $5.99 socket wrnech extended today, i dont think i can afford a new distributor at the moment. I think i got the chart drawn out now, #1 is closest to the windshield, passanger side, and then they go clockwise around in the firing order, if i got you right. Trying to get this done so i can pass emissions 2morrow, and then drive to college in Pennsylvania Sunday, LOL, nothing like tight scheduled repairs. Thanks so much man, mad props. -matt

 

No, #1 will face the front of the car towards the passenger side. Not towards the windshield.

 

Alright, checked all the wiring, re-did all to make sure. Car Still doesnt Start. Maybe the spark plugs i put in are bad? i put in the Cheap, like $1.99 AC Delco's to replace the autolites and boschs that were in there. ive changed the Cap, The PCV, the Plugs, The Wires, And the Rotor today. Any suggestions on hoiw i could have messed any of this up and left my car immobile in my friends garage would be great. Thanks Andrew for your diagram BTW, very helpful. -matt

 

Not sure if a 4 bbl 305 uses same external coil as a 305 TPI ... but its easy to break the wires going to your coil, which sit just to the passanger side of your distributor. Make sure you didn't unplug them two plugs and that none of the wires are broken or frayed.

Other than finding TDC for #1 cylinder, there's no certain way to just tell you where your #1 sparkplug wire should go on the distributor cap. Normally, the #1 plug wire should be at the 5 o'clock posistion (pointing towards the #1 cylinder or towards your A/C Compressor) as your looking at the engine from the front of the car. That's how I set my distributors up when I install them, and I do believe my '87 IROC has it in the same place from the factory.

NOW..with all that guess work said... Lets do it the correct way.

Take your distributor cap off, and manually turn your engine until the line on the Harmonic balancer lines up with the deepest cut-out on the timing chain cover-timing plate. (you should be able to see this from the driver side front corner) When the line on the harmonic balancer lines up with the deep groove, the engine "should" be at TDC of #1. Look where the rotor is pointing at on your distributor and refer it to the cap. That should be where the #1 sparkplug wire goes.

 

NO NO NO! #1 terminal is on the driver's side!

Like this:

_____6___5
___3_______7
___4_______2
_____8___1


Plug locations:

___8_______7
___6_______5
___4_______3
___2_______1

Lines are used for proper spacing for diagram.

 

I agree with marc #1 is drivers side forward. This is insanely basic but did you plug all three connectors back into the distributor cap. One has two or three wires that go to the dis. The pink one goes to the Bat. and the black one goes to the Tach.

 

Note about finding TDC for the #1 cylinder.....Looking at the balancer only tells you the piston position. It doesn't tell you whether you are on the compression stroke or the exhaust stroke. If you set the distributor on the exhaust stroke the engine will not run. To find the compression stroke, take out your #1 plug and stick your finger lightly in the plug hole. Turn the engine until you feel/hear air pushing out past your finger. THEN continue turning the engine until the balancer reads TDC (not more than 1/2 turn.) Set the distributor so the rotor points roughly toward the #1 cylinder, and use Marc's wiring diagram to run your plug wires.

BTW the best way to turn the engine manually is with a socket and long-handle breaker bar on the balancer bolt. Be sure to turn it clockwise as you face the engine from the front of the car.

 

thats what i said too. but some are disagreeing with the rotor pointing to the #1 cylinder

NO NO NO! #1 terminal is on the driver's side!


auto shop 101, okay i'll spend a minute here. first, leave your distributor in the hole. second, take out the number one plug. That would be the one firstest forward, ie the front one on the drivers side. have someone crank the motor while you hold your finger over the hole-slowly, a little bit atta time. when your finger gets blown off the hole you should be near tdc-top dead center compression stroke for #1 cylinder. where ever your rotor is pointing is where you put your number one plug wire at. moving clockwise around the cap you add 8436572. 2468 are on the passenger side on a chebby and 1357 are on the drivers side, now, don't play with your car anymore!

Notice it says where ever your rotor is, start wiring from #1 18436572.

i dont think it matters where the rotor ends up. Mine points between 2 and four on my engine.

 

The only difference it will make is in the length of the plug wires. If you're like me and make your own custom lengths to keep everything nice and neat looking (and away from the exhaust) then it's very important whether #1 is on the front left or back right because some of the wires won't reach around to the other side of the distributor. Having the rotor point toward #1 is just the standard reference.

 

Brought it to a garage, guy looked at it 2 seconds, said "do u have a rotor in there?" i said "yup, we replaced her." "he popped the cap off, pushed the rotor down real snug, and she started. Whoops! lol. thanks for all the replies.

 

Um... Just Like I said.... #1 plug wire on the distributor should be pointing towards the #1 sparkplug... or TOWARDS the A/C Compressor on a pre '88 Car.