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Old 07-24-2014, 03:15 PM   #1
AirSpeed
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Tach pulses at idle

I noticed my engine stumbling at idle, I looked at my tach and the needle pulses or bounces while the engine idles. The tack jumps about 20 rpm for just a partial second then does it again about every 2 to 3 seconds. What could cause this? A bad plug? Plug wire? I checked all the wires and they seem fine. The engine is a 350 with electronic distributor. I've never notice this happening before. Thanks for any suggestions!
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Old 07-24-2014, 03:17 PM   #2
GASoline71
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Re: Tach pulses at idle

Stock Tach? Or aftermarket?

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Old 07-24-2014, 03:21 PM   #3
AirSpeed
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Re: Tach pulses at idle

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Stock Tach? Or aftermarket?

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It's an aftermarket, AutoMeter Ultralite
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Old 07-25-2014, 09:04 AM   #4
engineer_gregh
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Re: Tach pulses at idle

Are you running a stock intake manifold or aftermarket? My big block has always done it, even after engine and carb rebuild. I went back with the same Edelbrock intake after the engine build. I've always thought the intake is the culprit but didn't replace it in the shuffle of everything else being rebuilt.
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Old 07-25-2014, 10:10 AM   #5
knomadd
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Re: Tach pulses at idle

You could always pull one spark plug wire at a time while it's running. If you don't notice a drop in rpm, you've got a dead cylinder. Could be the wire, a plug, the cap...
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Old 07-25-2014, 10:39 AM   #6
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Re: Tach pulses at idle

My truck was doing this last week. I found a spark plug with cracked porcelain. I replaced the plug and it idles smoothly now.
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Old 09-03-2014, 11:24 AM   #7
AirSpeed
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Re: Tach pulses at idle

I ended up replacing plug wires, cap, rotor and plugs. Tach and truck are running much smoother.
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