So.. The other day, my 87NA flooded before it started. Checked the compression - got about 100 (give or take about 3 psi) on each rotor. Replaced the spark plugs and it worked fine for a couple days. Drove two hours Friday night and then back yesterday afternoon. Let it sit overnight and now it won't start at all. What's up?

 

iis it flooded again?

 

my suggested list for getting a car running (assuming you've already done a compression test, which you have):

1. Pull the EGI fuses (or hold down the gas for an S5) and crank that bitch a bit... then replace the fuses and try again.

if that doesn't work...

2. Pull the leading (bottom) plugs, pull both EGI fuses, crank the engine (with paper towels over the plug ports)... this will hopefully get any nastiness out of the engine. Replace plugs and fuses, try to crank again.

If that doesn't work...

3. Pull the plugs, put them on their respective wires, and then lay the metal part of the plugs onto the UIM... at this point, disabling the fuel would be a good idea... either way, have someone crank the car while you check for spark (pedal down on an S5, or unplug the fuel pump on an S4).

4. If you have spark and the car still isn't cranking, jumper the green plug in the engine bay, and set the ignition to ON (not to START)... listen for the fuel pump. If you've got no sound, you've got no fuel, and this is your problem. Also, pull don't forget to pull the jumper :p

5. If you've got fuel, spark, and compression, but aren't flooding, you might have a clogged fuel filter, or have low fuel pressure... replacing the filter is a good idea anyway, unless you've done it recently, in which case it's probably fine.

Otherwise, if you have no spark, or compression, and aren't flooding... check the FSM. I haven't had either of those problems yet so can't really give much advice on them.

Other things to consider: bad fuel... if the car's been sitting for a long time, the parts of the gas that actually go boom (the lighter parts, which are actually used to run the car) might have evaporated, and only the heavy stuff (octane crap, additives, etc, none of which will run a car) is left over, although it will still look and smell like gasoline, of course...

Maybe a connector is loose? Low battery? Fouled (or wet) plugs? Poor grounds? etc, etc...

But of course, your car is probably just flooded.

 

the battery is becoming low.. but it's got spark and gas.. i can smell it LoL..
Actually I have a lot of experience with flooding.. The problem is that it's flooding TOO QUICKLY.. which makes me think you may be on to somethin with fuel pressure.. Thanks for those ideas guys and keep um comin.. I'm off to check a couple things.

 

You might have dirty/leaky fuel injectors...