Need help with 89 escort

[leakyfaucet]

Hi, I'm helping a friend fix her car. It's an 89 escort with a 1.9L and throttle body injection. The car was said to be running poorly for about a year and a half before the other day when it just wouldn't start. The engine cranks over fine, which means the starter and the battery are okay. There are no obstructions to air, and the single fuel injector in the throttle body squirts fuel just fine at startup. So it has air and fuel, it just needs spark.

I started with the basics. The car had the original spark plugs, wires, pretty much everything. I replaced the spark plugs and and wires as well as the distributer cap and rotor. The car still won't start. This leads me to believe it is some sort of ignition relay.

I can't quite remember the name of it, but for any of you mechanics out there, the distributer has a 5th wire which goes to what I believe is called a coil or ignition module. My 5.0 mustang has the same thing. It's the thing that sends the electricity to the rotor in the distributer which allows the spark plugs to fire. Is it possible that this is what is failing? I can't think of anything else, either it is this or an ignition relay. Someone suggested I check the prong on the ignition module with a voltmeter. If I test it, should it be running a constant voltage or intermittent? I would assume constant. If so, what kind of voltage should it be seeing?

Also, does anyone know of any websites that would have to fuse box layout of this car? I need to know which relays are which. I checked all the fuses, however, and they are fine.

I was wondering if there was a way to test the coil/ignition module? I could probably get a voltmeter but I'm not sure if there is supposed to be a constant voltage on the prong or what.

PS: If it helps any, the original spark plugs were the proper brownish color, which means it was running a good A/F ratio.

Thanks!

[UnexplodedCow]

If it is ignition, all you have to do is take the spark plugs out and turn the engine over, but disable the fuel pump. Watch and see if the plugs produe spark. If they do, then it's not your ignition system.

[A. Souphound]

Originally Posted by leakyfaucet

Hi, I'm helping a friend fix her car. It's an 89 escort with a 1.9L and throttle body injection. The car was said to be running poorly for about a year and a half before the other day when it just wouldn't start. The engine cranks over fine, which means the starter and the battery are okay. There are no obstructions to air, and the single fuel injector in the throttle body squirts fuel just fine at startup. So it has air and fuel, it just needs spark.

I started with the basics. The car had the original spark plugs, wires, pretty much everything. I replaced the spark plugs and and wires as well as the distributer cap and rotor. The car still won't start. This leads me to believe it is some sort of ignition relay.

I can't quite remember the name of it, but for any of you mechanics out there, . My 5.0 mustang has the same thing. It's the thing that sends the electricity to the rotor in the distributer which allows the spark plugs to fire. Is it possible that this is what is failing? I can't think of anything else, either it is this or an ignition relay. Someone suggested I check the prong on the ignition module with a voltmeter. If I test it, should it be running a constant voltage or intermittent? I would assume constant. If so, what kind of voltage should it be seeing?

Also, does anyone know of any websites that would have to fuse box layout of this car? I need to know which relays are which. I checked all the fuses, however, and they are fine.

I was wondering if there was a way to test the coil/ignition module? I could probably get a voltmeter but I'm not sure if there is supposed to be a constant voltage on the prong or what.

PS: If it helps any, the original spark plugs were the proper brownish color, which means it was running a good A/F ratio.

Thanks!

Leakfaucet, I will try to clarify a couple of things:

"....the distributer has a 5th wire which goes to what I believe is called a coil or ignition module"
The wire coming from the center of the distributor cap goes to the coil. The sparkplug wireset should have had a new coil wire. (Sometimes the wireset has more than one coil wire and you select the correct length.)
The ignition module mounts in the distributor and has a connector with several wires attached.
Remove the connector from the ignition module and check for dirt or corrosion. Clean the terminals and connector, and try starting the car.
If it doesn't start we will move on to the next step.
Several things could be the cause ie. the coil, ignition module, or distributor stator, pick-up. Basic checks can be made using a Trouble light (12V) and a DVOM. Let us know what test equipment you have, and we will go to the next step.