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Having electrical problems,no power at distributor,power washed car with front end off back in January had taken radiator out to have rebuilt then pushed car in garage.Now 10 months latter after getting all parts ready for clean up can't get started,replaced coil,points plugs,wires,cap.Not getting spark to points,what can I check ??? voltage regulator?? It's a 1940 110 4-door sedan straight 6 cyl. with overdrive tranny,will appreciate any trouble shooting tips

Do you have power at the coil when the ignition key is on?

Yes, but no power at distributor

Do you have the wire between the side of the distributor and the + on the coil hooked up?

Have you run a continuity test on the coil plug wire to make sure it is good?

Yes,everything is hooked up just like befre,that's what's buggin me, is it possible that the voltage regulator went bad or is there a fuse or relay i could check,1st time owning a packard,moved up from 48 chevy a lil cornfused about the positive ground & all the relays ,so excuse me

The distributor points cause that wire between the side of the distributor and the + on the coil to ground and unground, and this causes the coil to fire. Make sure the opposite side of the points is actually being grounded or the coil will never fire when the points open and close.

Am not sure exactly what you mean when you say no power at distributor.

Connecting one side of meter to ground, if you have 6 v at one side of coil, you should be able to remove the wire from distributor and and also have 6 v at that wire. If so all is good so far, if not, problem in coil.

If you connect the wire back onto distributor and measure 6v again there means contacts are open -- so far good. 0v there could mean contacts closed, and by cranking engine slightly you should see 6v when they open.

If not, then something inside distributor is shorted. Possibly capacitor or possibly the cloth insulation on the flexible wire connecting the outside terminal to the points has deteriorated and wire is touching metal (very common) or the points themselves are faulty at one of the insulating points..

The voltage regulator has no direct bearing on the coil. The voltage regulator is there to control the output of the generator. If you have 6.5v - 7v at the coil, that should be ok.

You may want to check the voltage at the coil while you are trying to start it to make sure the starter is not dropping the voltage too much and causing issues with the ignition.

OK,will do tomorrow ,thanks I really appreciate it, I have a set of new running board rubbers part # 30-0428-49 from steel rubber brand new in box for sale if anybody on here is looking for them $500.00 shipped ,i had bought them the guy said they would fit a 1940,which they did but not my modle 510-589-8658 JEFF

Thanks a lot Big Kev & HH56,for your help.It ended up being the capacitor after all ,must of got wet from power wash,first time owning a Packard, was lost