Hey, well yeah got a 74 camaro with a 350 in it, not sure what cylender, man i suck at vocab, but anyway. im only 15, and this car was given to me by a family member, he said he would help me fix it up, but he works too many hours, so im giving it one last shot to make this car work. my problem right now is i cant get it to run. It turns over quite easily, and occasionally will sound like its about to fire, but then it dies back down. Ive tried using engine starting fluid, with no luck. winter is coming and it hasnt ran since last winter. i really need help with this.

 

is it getting fuel,or spark,these are some things you need to look for.

 

First off, forget the starting fluid.
Look down the carb with a light and move the throttle a little, do you see gas squirting down into the engine? If so, you are getting gas. If there is not any gas you need to check a few things. Is there gas in the tank? If there is check the fuel pump, follow the line from the carb down to the pump. Open this line and crank the engine. If fuel comes out the pump is good. If pump is good there is a problem with the float in the carb, if you are new at this you need help. Carburators are not for beginners.

If the fuel being squirted in the carb, you may not have any spark. Pull a spark plug out, connect the wire, put it where the body of the plug is grounded and crank the engine. If you see spark, you should be OK.

If both of these are fine (fuel & spark) the problem is elsewhere. Did the car run when it was parked? By your description it sounds like it could also be the timing chain. Cranks over fine, will sound like it wants to start, then quits firing. If you continue cranking will the cycle begin again (crank, fire, quit) ?

We will help you here but be sure to gather as many facts as you can BEFORE posting. Also, be as descriptive as possible, it is hard to diagnose a car without seeing or hearing it

 

Another thing to check for is vacuum leaks going off the carb. I have a 79 camaro and that was the problem it would start sometimes after crankig it over for a long time, but it would only pop then stall. so check card for vacume leaks. Also follow all the lines that go off the carb also make sure they are all hooked up. cap them with tape to c if it will fire. Try not to use to much starting fluid it will hurt the cylinder walls along with the pistons dont want to vapor lock the motor which will cause it to turn over very hard good luck.. Let us no if these things dont help wee will get it runnig for u!!!

 

Thanks, i just got in, but tomorrow ill check for those things. what do you mean with the whole spark plug thing?

 

Since starting fluid didn't make any difference, I'm putting my money on the ignition being the problem. 1974 was the last year with "points and condenser" ignition (not electronic): Ignition Points
It's common for the points to wear and the contacts can get burned, or corroded from sitting. The points' wiper that rides on the lobes of the distributor cam also wears down and eventually the points stop opening. The condenser could also be bad. I would get a repair manual or look it up online so you know how to set them up. Then get a newpoints and condenser set and throw them in.
When trying to find why there is a"no fire" situation on a points style ignition, the points should be the first thing you check. It's a mechanical part, and it does wear down.

 

man you could go all day with the potential problems here. After checking all go back to make sure there are no vacume leaks, that is one of the most over looked small problems I ran into.