Hello All. It's been awhile since I have posted here - you have been very helpful to me in the past. Here's my story:
I had not diven my car in about two months, so I decided to take it for a drive last week. Upon turning the key, I found the battery to be dead. I put the battery charger on it for about half an hour in the "Charge" mode, and then switched it to the "Engine Start" mode and got in and turned the key. I used this same procedure last year with good results. This time, however, when I turned the key, besides hearing the fuel pump buzz, there was a separate loud buzz, and the starter did not run. After turning the key twice and hearing this, I thought I should stop and just let the battery charge in the normal mode. A few minutes later, while I was working around the car, I accidentally bumped the charger cable to the negative post off, and it contacted the positive post. There was a spark, and the charger shut itself off. I reconnected the cable and the battery charged for awhile longer. I then disconnected the charger and the car started. I let the car idle for ten minutes, and turned it off. An hour later I started it again and took the car out on the road. I thought I could feel a slight hesitation at one point while cruising at about 50 MPH, but then it went away. A mile down the road, I came to a stop light, and the engine died. It took a little cranking, but the engine finally started. About two miles later I came to another stoplight and the engine died again. This time it would not start. While trying to start it, I could tell the battery was wearing down. I also noticed white fumes from the tailpipe. Fortunately, I was up a slight hill, and put the car in neutral to glide backwards off the road into a driveway. I let the car set for about 45 minutes and was able to get it started, and home (with no stops). I called Pelican and spoke to Steve about this. He was VERY helpfull. He suggested it could be a bad battery, poor ground connections. or the electronic ignition system (Pertronics?) I put in might have gone bad. Steve Thought the white fumes were unburned fuel. I took the battery in to have it checked (It was 6 years old). The battery was bad. I purchased a new one. After installing it in the car, I drove the car around my niegborhood, came to a number of stops, and the car worked perfectly (As it always did). But when I got home, I decided to let it idle in the driveway so the engine would get hot. I came back to it after a few minutes, and the engine was dead. I tried to start it, and the starter turned over, but it would'nt start. Again, I let it cool down, and after an hour the car started. The fuel pump is not in the engine compartment, so I know that's not getting too hot. THAT'S MY STORY. Thanks for reading all of it. Can any of you tell me what the problem could be?
Oh yes - it's a 1973 1.7L.