slant six ignition issues..shuts off wont crank

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1971dodgedart/6

1971dodgedart/6

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jackson, NJ
have a 74 duster here, no mods at all, clean 52000 mile car. the ignition cylinder seems a little sticky, but when she cranks she fires right up and idles great. twice driving around today it suddenly shut off and when i turn the key theres nothing, on min later (about when i push the car to the side of the road) she will turn over and run. what is this????????? thank you-travis
 
Check you connections around the stater relay and is it a automatic? Try starting in neutral and wiggle the shift leaver back and forth while trying to start. If it starts after the wiggle it may be the neutral safety switch is out of adjustment. As far as the shut down while driving it may be the ignition switch or the ballast resistor or a loose wire. Idel the car and wiggle the wires around the coil/ECU and the bulkhead connectors.
 
alrght i changed the battery cables and i havent had a problem, they looked crummy so i think that is it. the ballast is on the way anyway wont hurt to replace it. thanks guys
 
out of curiosity , where ever did you find the (hopefully) correct , one-year-only positive battery cable for your '74 ??? The correct ones were unavailable for a long time ! Guess that being a 1974-only cable , no one saw fit to make 'em ...

now , regarding the shutoff problem :
powerwagonpaul mentioned the (dreaded) Ballast Resistor , which is the problem more often than not .
Moreover , check its connectors as well . They become loose with age , and have the tendency to work themselves off ever so slightly , causing the car to do a "clean" cutoff ( i.e. , no stumbling , no theatrics ; just POOF ! Off ! ).
Also , the plastic casing which covers the connectors becomes brittle with time / age , due to engine heat and general decomposition .
The only fix that I'm aware of is to buy a new ignition harness ( ECU-to-Ballast-to-distributor ) , or to buy a whole new electronic ignition conversion kit ( specifying the 4-prong ballast ) .
 
changed the ballast resistor and it still stalled.

let me explain it a little better. the car starts and runs just fine. it can be driven down the road just fine. as soon as i stop [like at a stop sign] the car stalls. there is still power because the lights and radio are still on but i turn the key and the car does not turn over at all. sit there for maybe 30 seconds and the car will turn over and start right up.
 
Sounds a lot like a faulty ignition switch or faulty wiring to me. These kinds of intermittent problems can be a real bîtch to track down.
 
yea i noticed that. sat on the side of the road broken down for an hour and a half pulling apart the starter selinoid, and all the wires the run from the ignition to the relay to the starter, i find when i mess with the bulkhead wiring it makes a difference... soo wiring hardness time, or find and obvious split that can be fixed either way..this is not fun, i appreciate the help and advice, just wish i didnt have to end up on the side of the road haha
 
Looks like you found the problem in the bulkhead connector. As long as you don't have burnt wires, I've had good luck using a glass bead blaster to clean the terminals in all connectors and then use some spray lithium grease to keep future corrosion down.
 
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