spark problems on my 56 willy

hi so i just recently bought some land and in a barn was this jeep its a 1956 jeep willy(i think lol)it got a 4 cylinder in it (i think its a 2.2 but not sure on that either) but i got the thing to turn over but theres no spark it has a 6 volt coil which i replaced. along with new cap, rotor, plugs, and wires.but still no spark????this is the wiring setup i got theres a orange wire coming outta the wire harness on the jeep going to what looks like a ceramic reducer im guessing that cuts the power from 12v to 6v but the orange wire goes to that and the other end of the reducer theres a wire that goes to the positive on the coil.then theres a wire on the ground of the coil that goes to the side of the distributor...does this sound right????i checked the orange wire and with the key on there is power so idk why theres no spark can anyone out here help me this is def the oldest jeep ive worked on and it looks pretty simple which confuses me even more to why i cant get any spark any input would greatly help thanks.. oh yea and the numbers off the tag are 57548 45823 could any1 help in confirming that this is a 1956 cj5 with a 2.2 4 cyl

 

numbers show it to be 56, if i read that right. here is the link. http://www.public.asu.edu/~grover/willys/serial.html

As far as wiring goes i will have to look when i get home.

 

i had same prob in my 56', walt couch guided me on this one, should have batt votage on pos. side of coil and same on neg. side with the points open, with points closed it should drop to almost nothing. if its not droping when the points close its probably a ground issue on the dist. i pulled mine and cleand the corrosion put it back in and i had spark. of coarse it could be another grounding wire or some other issue, i also bought a new coil but i dident have to. this was just my experience, good luck. p.s. replace or clean the points also, if there not making good contact,the circut wont close and voltage wont drop. good luck

 

Congrats on the land and the Jeep score! And good luck with bringing her back to life, definitely worth saving. Some photos would be nice.

And FWIW, it's "Willys Jeep", not Jeep Willys. Willys Overland was the manufacturer (like Chevrolet), the vehicle was named Jeep, and the model is a CJ5. So you have a 1956 Willys CJ5 Jeep. And I do too!

 

well i really havent touched the distributor i just bought a new coil and hooked it like the old one was and then put the coil plud on just to see if there was spark and theres no spark coming out of the brand new coil?????im totally lost def got 6v power to the coil and its grounded right to the battery but still no spark and this is the second coil i bought so i know its good am i missing something here????and as for the pics ill get them on here asap

 

Re: spark problems on my 56 willys jeep

lol sorry about that and thanks guys im really gonna enjoy redoing this willys jeep...but i gotta get it running first and been messing with this for two days and still no spark and ignition experts i need some help...

 

You have to make sure you have voltage to the + (plus) side of the coil while in the crank mode. This is done by using a wire from the starter solenoid to the coil. Connect your wire from the + (plus) on the coil and connect the other end to the stud with the big cable on it that goes directly to the starter motor.

 

hey walt thanks i did what you said i got a wire from the starter the the positive and the ground to the distributor and still nothing???? we hook a spark generator up to the distributor and the engine fired but with its on ignition system it wont make spark??? any ideals why?? by the way i just had a guy here who now tells me it def a different engine in this jeep its not a flathead 4 like what should be in there its a overhead cam 4 cly. not sure exactly what year or type but i dont think that would have anything to do with the ignition system?

 

'56 would have an F-head 4cyl, not a flathead, nor an overhead cam engine. Are you just trying to get it to run, or?? What shape is the wiring in? Early CJ-5s had cloth covered wiring, usually rotted away and a great source for shorts, sparks, and fires. If you are just trying to see if it will run, I'd wire up a stand alone ignition circuit. If it's an original '56, you should have a floor starter button, w/no solenoid on the starter.

 

well heres the deal the wiring looks good the cloth covering is gone but everythings working lights horn turnsignals and the engine cranks.as for the floor starter button i dont think its still in there you gotta turn the key on and theres a push button on the dash you push to crank the engine and yes im trying to get it to run. i traced the wiring that the owner had hooked up to the coil the orange wire thats on the positive on the coil goes to the ignition swith and the ground on the coil goes to the distributor thats how it was when i got the jeep and there was no spark coming from the coil. i tried many different way to put the power to the coil just to see if its throwing out spark but nothing and its a brand new coil and this is a 6v system.like i said we hooked up the spark genorator and it fired just wont do it with the coil.and i did test the wire coming of the ignition swith and when the keys itn the on position it is live and throwing out 6v so idk im stumped???????

 

Sorry but know nothing about a spark generator or what it is supposed to take the place of? I do know that with the key "ON" and the dist points open, you will read 6V on both sides of the coil. If you rock the engine so that the points are closed, you will have 6V on the coil + (pos) terminal and zero or near zero on the - (neg) terminal of the coil. If you have these readings it should spark the coil IF IF IF the condenser is good.
P.S. What is this ceramic thing you speak of? A pic would help..

 

Probably a ballast resistor.

 

the first pic is the ceramic peice that is cutting the 12v from the battery to 6v i think lol and is that the original engine for a 56?????

 

Yes, on both counts.

 

Well there is something very wrong here. If you have a 6V battery and a 6V coil then you don't use a ballast.. If you have a 12V battery then you need a 12V coil labeled (for use with external resistor ONLY) if using a ballast, or coil labeled (internal resistor) with no exterior ballast.

 

so thats a ballest and im not using a 6v battery im using a 12v battery with a 6v coil i guess thats why the ballest in on there idk but still no spark?????

 

Ive read the entire thread and You do not once mention any thing about the points. how do they look ,are they adjusted properly? When a vehicle sets for a long time the point are apt to corrode and no workie. Point systems on older car, use 6v to 8v on the points any more volts that that will fry them thats why your system has a ballast resister installed. You have covered the coil, issue. I would suggest you replace points and condenser. there cheaper than coils.( condensers are more problematic than coils)

 

May be a problem and maybe not, but for info purposes, your ballast resistor is made for mopar (quad connectors) and don't know if your 6V coil is designed for POS or NEG ground. Ballast resistors are different values for different applications. Coils are internally connected differently for polarity change.. Don't know if this is clear to you or not?