1986 buick century limited 3.8 sometimes won't start


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1986 buick century limited 3.8 sometimes won't start

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Auto Repair Home>> Automotive Repair>> Engine Troubleshooting

granville
New User

Apr 1, 2015, 7:26 PM

Post #1 of 6 (1747 views)

1986 buick century limited 3.8 sometimes won't start	Sign In

having problems never know when engine will start. Runs good, engine light comes on sometimes but goes off. tried to get engine code but does not have one stored. the engine will crank but no fire. go back later and engine fires and runs good. can I get help?

Discretesignals
Ultimate Carjunky / Moderator
Discretesignals profile image

Apr 1, 2015, 7:37 PM

Post #2 of 6 (1744 views)

Re: 1986 buick century limited 3.8 sometimes won't start	Sign In

What is the 8th digit in the VIN?

Since we volunteer our time and knowledge, we ask for you to please follow up when a problem is resolved.

granville
New User

Apr 1, 2015, 8:13 PM

Post #3 of 6 (1728 views)

Re: 1986 buick century limited 3.8 sometimes won't start	Sign In

the eighth digit is 3

granville
New User

Apr 3, 2015, 3:28 PM

Post #4 of 6 (1671 views)

Re: 1986 buick century limited 3.8 sometimes won't start	Sign In

my buick wouldn't start again checked spark plug wire to see if I had a spark. It was very weak (orange color) then all of a sudden the engine cranked and had a nice blue spark. Later on the car wouldn't start again so I checked again to see if I had spark the same thing happened the spark was weak then the engine fired and had a nice blue spark. This is becoming a pain. Could use any help anyone could give me.

Discretesignals
Ultimate Carjunky / Moderator
Discretesignals profile image

Apr 3, 2015, 3:37 PM

Post #5 of 6 (1670 views)

Re: 1986 buick century limited 3.8 sometimes won't start	Sign In

Ah the good ole flat tappet 3.8L. Those were actually pretty good engines and very peppy on the low end.

That spark has to at least be able to jump a 3/4 inch gap. Does this orange spark happen on all three coils? I would test to be sure the ignition coil module has good ground and good power to it. Then test the crank sensor input during the no start. If all that checks good, it is probably getting ready to toast the ignition module. All the green puddy stuff start squirting out the sides.

Since we volunteer our time and knowledge, we ask for you to please follow up when a problem is resolved.

granville
New User

Apr 12, 2015, 11:33 AM

Post #6 of 6 (1630 views)

Re: 1986 buick century limited 3.8 sometimes won't start	Sign In

ended up changing out the ignition control box. seemed to fix my problem. thanks for the tip.

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