Dave it sounds like ignition is cutting out.  Check the wiring at the
coil.  I have had the end of the wire that plugs on to the coil go bad.  It
looked good but was sketchy electrically.

Also the two round plugs that plug into the idle stabilizer.  Be sure they
are seated properly.  The ignition signal goes through the idle stabilizer.

Finally it could be the hall sensor inside the distributor.  We have new
distributor or rebuilt units in stock if you need one.

Ken

On Mon, Jan 1, 2018, 9:13 PM David <fjazzbass@gmail.com> wrote:

> HAPPY NEW YEAR all... hoping you all are having a wonderful new year so
> far...
>
> I was on the way to pick up some new year's party supplies and drop off
> some stuff at goodwill when my engine decided to shut off while underway...
> tach dropped to 0 even though engine was still spinning... Got the van to
> the side of the road, messed around with some connections and she started
> right back again...
>
> Ran for another 5 minutes or so, same thing... swapped out ignition
> switches (I have 2 spares) and same no start issue... waited another 5 mins
> or so and it started up again...
>
> Rinse and repeat... until I bypassed my goodwill trip and got her home...
>
> I previously had a no-start condition similarly that pointed to the
> alternator that was not putting out all of the voltage I thought it should
> have... coil wasn't firing and battery voltage was pretty low... swapped
> out the alternator with a known good one and was back in business...
>
> Where to start on this? Since the issue is intermittent, I'm apprehensive
> to just take it on a trip to test it out. I'm thinking hall sensor could be
> an issue because of the lack of tach reading when the issue occurs... any
> other ideas?
>
> I've got a spare coil I could swap in as well...
>
> Thanks in advance for any hints or suggestions.... I may just have to bring
> the test light along with me when the issue occurs to see if I can get the
> coil to fire up when the condition exists.. other than that......
>
> Dave
> 85 1.9 GL manual naughty bus...
>