Troubleshooting MSD 6AL box...?? PROBLEM SOLVED.

[Greg72]

Is there any easy way to bypass a 6AL box to see if it's defective and still have the engine run?

I have a 6AL box feeding an MSD Pro-Billet distributor, and an MSD Blaster Coil... Can't seem to get spark to the engine and wanted to confirm the 6AL is working (or defective) with a simple jumper or bypass technique if anyone has one....


Thanks!

 

[broncoman6524]

Sure...what setup are you using? a 5 or 7pin? or 4 pin?

FOr the 4pin, pull the harness for the purple and green wire outof the dist. and put a stock ign module in. Wire it like stock. See what happens.

Same for the 5 or 7pin, but i forgot how that one is wired up.

If not, start from the basics, make sure you have power going into this distributer, and that everything is connected.

 

[mrk5]

Also MSD has a pretty good tech forum. I've posted in there with questions and I've gotten good answers back.

 

[Hossbaby50]

Go to MSD's website & open up the install manual for the box you have. It should have the troubleshooting for a bad box in the instruction manual. Also like said just reinstall the stock module.

Harley

 

[onetonbb74]

i have the master msd book and it tells you right in the back how to test any msd box if its working or not. lemme know if you need the instructions.

 

[Greg72]

Yeah....I don't have a "stock" module anymore. The HEI dizzy is long gone.

The Pro-Billet has (I think) a purple and a green wire going into it and that's about all. I'll have to take a closer look in the morning....

For the second time, the center conductor "button" on the distributor cap was completely blown away, like it burned off or something. I don't know if that's an indication of excessive resistance in the system somewhere else or not???

Weird.

 

[Hossbaby50]

The MSD manual on the website will be able to tell you how to test the box. You ground something out and if it doesn't spark the box is bad is the jist I believe if I remember right.

Harley

 

[sweetk30]

2 wire only dist then you wont run with out some kind of box. it only has a mag pickup window switch.

and msd can kiss my tail pipes. thay took my hard earned money and said sorry to me. we wont fix it. you can buy another box for 200 plus. offroad peice of sh!t box.

how i know mine was bad. truck died rounding corner. unpluged direct harnnes from tbi stuff. went back to stock and fired up.

 

[Greg72]

The problem ended up being the MSD Blaster SS coil.

I looked at my MSD instructions and followed the clues about how to check for spark.... jumper the green and purple and then crank while looking for a spark on the plug wire.

Couldn't get anything on the coil....though I did get a nice jolt when I accidentally touched the orange wire that connects to it!! YIKES!

Fortunately I had an MSD Blaster III coil (a conventional cylinder shaped coil) so I substituted that in place of the Blaster SS coil.....and turned the key.

KABLAAAAM!!!!

A shot rang out through the neighborhood as all the unburnt fuel in the exhaust from my previous attempts finally ignited as the truck sprang back to life.
Holy crap was THAT loud...

My neighbor came over to make sure I hadn't been shot and to make sure I was not crumpled in a heap in the driveway. We had a good laugh about it as all the excess adrenaline coursed through our veins.


Anyway, a bad coil was the culprit. I'm not sure if I'll get another one of those SS packs or if I'll just use the more conventional coil that's in there now...



.....and they all lived happily ever after. THE END.

 

[Hossbaby50]

I ran an SS for about 2-3 years with no problems. I would buy one again if it was me. I have never had the can style fail either though but they don't give quite as much spark.

Harley