Smell of ozone says there is high voltage sparking, like from bad spark plug wires, the distributor, coil... Moisture, humidity or carbon/ metal oxide dust (from a worn rotor) could compound the problem.

It would be nice if you could look at your engine running in a dark place to see if you can see any arcing.

 

HUH? where in this thread did you see a reference to an aftermarket distributor? He picked up a cheap-o ignition amplifier... stock, it is mounted to the side of the dist. and over time it was found to be best mounted in a remote location away from heat and vibrations...commonly by the coil. Many aftermarket parts are just fine...

If it were a HT lead arcing you would clearly hear a click noise as it was arcing... mini thunder if you will.

RobK - did you find a solution? I assume you have access to the workshop manual where all the test proceedures are spelled out for you to troubleshoot these types of issues. IF you need some help with where to start or what to look for just post up here again.

Later on

 

Sorry, misread the post.

 

So new rotor and cap and new OEM Lucas ignition module. I also added a bunch of wire-separators and carefully routed all the HT lines so none of them touch or come close to anything metal.

I crawled all over/under and around the engine bay looking, pulling, poking and prodding at any wire or plug that might be damaged or loose and found nothing.

Haven't done the continuity tests yet as the process seems fairly daunting and frankly I've been spending nearly all my spare time working on this vehicle.

5 minutes driving, and it stalled again.

When it stalled I wasn't able to test the ignition system (I was pressed for time), but will go through the ignition test specified in the manual next time it does, but I'm not confident that the issue is in the battery/modul/coil/distributor as so much has been replaced. The battery is about two years old and is a Optima Blue Top.

Is there a easy way to test the MAF and the TPS? Are there any other electronic components that effect air, spark or fuel that I'm over looking?

 

@Ringo - brought the truck in to the garage at night and just cracked the hood and saw no arcing.

 

Also - forgot to mention as the beasty is a '95, the module is on the firewall.

 

One last bit of data. There are two wires coming out of the bundle near the coil/module, one blue, one read, that go no where, just dangling. I asked the mechanic and he said not to worry about them. I have to assume they are not critical as the truck has run (albeit intermittently) since I bought it and they have always been loose. Nonetheless I'd love to know what they do, if anyone knows.

On a related note, there is a black wire that goes to what appears to be a small capacitor mounted on the coil, (about the size of half a AA battery). My father-in-law said it's to keep the spark from causing electro-magnetic interference with the radio. The wire has come out of it, so what ever it is, it's not doing it's job now! Anyone know if the Father-in-law is right?

 

...did I also mention that I replaced most of the vacuum lines?

 

Some users have disconnected their bad MAFs and noticed a slight improvement in engine performance. Next time it stalls, try disconnecting it and see if it will fire back up again. Even though you said it was running rich, put the key in the number II position next time it stalls and listen for the fuel pump. It should come on and cycle for a few seconds and then turn off.

 

"small capacitor mounted on the coil, (about the size of half a AA battery). My father-in-law said it's to keep the spark from causing electro-magnetic interference with the radio. The wire has come out of it, so what ever it is, it's not doing it's job now! Anyone know if the Father-in-law is right?"

Father-in-law is right. I'm surprised you don't hear ignition noise in your radio, especially AM. I've always seen these things on the side of the distributor, but there is no reason it could be near the coil.

Here is an idea from a novice: Could the fuel filter be so clogged that every now and then the fuel flow could suck up a clod of dirt floating in it and starve the engine? after is rests for a while the clod could fall away and the car start up again. Just a WAG (wild az guess).