Chevy C60 won't fire..

Aaron in IL · Sep 13, 2013

So today I washed our 1974 Chevrolet C60 grain truck. I washed some of the grease and dirt out of the engine bay, which yes, I know is not really a good idea, but this truck was pretty bad so I though maybe it wouldn"t hurt. I had the truck running when I washed it, and I strayed away from the distributor and whatnot as much as I could. The truck ran while I washed the engine bay, and it was still running while I washed the bed and frame, then it sputtered and died. I know I have spark from the coil to the distributor, but beyond that I"m not sure. If anybody has any ideas, that would be great. Thanks

rustyfarmall · Sep 13, 2013

Remove the distributer cap and dry it out on the inside.

ShadetreeRet · Sep 13, 2013

Being as cautious as possible is no guarantee that water will not get somewhere that will cause problems. Even with the engine running you still have dampness and steam. I would pull the distributor cap and make sure it is dry inside, then pull the wires from the cap and make sure the connections are dry, maybe even the wires from the plugs to ensure all connections are dry, even the large terminal on the coil. I would venture a SWAG that the problem is dampness somewhere. BTDT.
I remember when I was growing up, we had an old 48 Plymouth that if a dog peed on the tires it wouldn't run. Good luck and keep us posted.

gab · Sep 13, 2013

Take the distributor cap off and you will probably find condensation, blow it and the dist. out and leave the cap off for a while and you should be good.

Brent Zappe · Sep 13, 2013

I had a friend ounce who did this and like yuou said the engine stoped. He checked his spark, Pionts, cap, rotor, and then looked at his fuel in the tank thinking he was out of fuel. He checked his spark plug wires and after three hours he called me. I asked him if he has sprayed water around his gas tank? plus his fuel ines that ran from gas tank to engine? He said yes then I said have you check your eletricfuel pump fuse? problem sloved. Good luck.

petetx · Sep 13, 2013

shadetree dad had a 48 dodge said if it rained in caifornia wouldn't start and we lived in michigan

Aaron in IL · Sep 13, 2013

Alright, so dumb question, but how do you get the distributor cap off? I messed with it some this morning and it would move some, but it felt like it had springs holding it on. It was dark, so I really couldn't see all that well. Thanks for the help thus far!

36 Coupe · Sep 13, 2013

The screws are spring loaded hooks.Cant remember what year the HEI ignition came out but I was there.

ShadetreeRet · Sep 13, 2013

Like 36 coupe said, the screws are spring loaded. If I remember correctly, you push down with a screwdriver and turn half round to release.

notjustair · Sep 13, 2013

May be purely coincidence, but we had a 74 Chevy pickup that was really bad about that. Heaven help you if you got caught in a rainstorm or you needed to go anywhere after it had rained. That thing cracked dist caps like nothing. It went through dozens of them. The 73 pickup didn't. We finally got rid of that 74 and kept the 73.

I had forgotten about that.

2x4 · Sep 13, 2013

old spark plug wires are often porous & let water in that shorts them out. Had a '64 Internat'l Scout that did that one time. Rain or run thru a mud puddle, died right there. New plugwires, no more problem.

504-1 · Sep 14, 2013

HEI came out in the trucks in 1975. Take the cap off and spray the inside with WD40(WD stands for water displacement formula,#40) and put it back together.

Chevy C60 won't fire..

Aaron in IL

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rustyfarmall

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ShadetreeRet

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gab

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Brent Zappe

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petetx

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Aaron in IL

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36 Coupe

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ShadetreeRet

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notjustair

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2x4

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504-1

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