1984 Laser: Dying at Normal Speeds

My 1984 Chrysler Laser Turbo died three times on a trip.
The first time I was driving along at 60mph. I was able to
re-start as it coasted to a halt. The second time I was also
driving about 60 mph. It died. I cranked it almost until
the battery was down. Then I coasted it down a hill; it
started at the bottom of the hill. I thought it might be
a clogged fuel filter so replaced it. It died a third time
this time driving about 30 mph in a city. Again I had
difficulty re-starting after it had stopped.
What are the possible causes?
Thank you.

 

pick up plate? fuel pump? a fuel problemm will slowly loose power then cut
off, an electrical problem as a pickup plate will just shut quick,

 

When's the last time this beast had a general tune-up? You know, plugs,
wires, injector cleaner, air filter etc? Also, an elderly battery and/or
alternator might be causing marginally low voltage. Often when cars get old
they have multiple problems, none fatal in themselves, but in total add up
to a sick puppy.

 

My mechanic obviously has problems fixing a car when it is
working fine for him. When it has died and won't start are
there any simple things I can do along the side of the road
to determine what the problem is?

 

It takes fuel and spark for the engine to run. Pull the air cleaner and see
if you are getting fuel. Pull a plug wire and see if you are getting spark.
An inductive timing light or neon strobe light may help here....

 

I had this exact problem in my 1985 Omni GLH (2.2L turbo, same as your
car). In my case it turned out to be bad pickups in the distributor,
which I replaced with junkyard parts.

To diagnose this, turn the key on (but don't start the engine).
Normally you'd hear the fuel pump prime. If it doesn't prime, it
could well be the pickups. (You might have to have a helper listen to
the pump, or connect a voltmeter to it.)

IIRC, after unplugging the bad pickups, the fuel pump would prime.
That's probably how I diagnosed it. It was a long time ago so the
memory's hazy. If you go to a junkyard to find new pickups, make real
sure you know what yours look like, because there are at least two
versions.

 

Like many have said, it could be a faulty hall effect sensor (pickup sensor
as others have called it) or it could be a bad ASD relay or decaying fuel
pump or ignition switch etc. When it won't start it would be useful to find
out if the positive side of the coil is being energized during engine
cranking. If not then you have to look at your tach and see if it moves
during cranking and if it does then you should look in the direction of the
ASD relay. if the tach doesn't move the check out the hall sensor, wiggle
the wires from the base of the distributor with the engine running and if it
coughs or sputters then the wires are hooped and you can either attempt a
ghetto repair of the wiring or replace the hall sensor.