duo2999

iTrader: (1)

88 Vert N/A 174k Miles. Pretty much stock.

so the other day i was at school, left and went to a friends house. tried to start the car when i was going to leave my friends house and nothing. it would crank and crank and crank and sound like it wanted to start ever so often, but to no avail. I think it kept flooding itself; it also smelled heavily of gas (not the normal fc smell). So i had the car towed home to make a long story short.

So now the car is here at my house, I had the injectors cleaned and still nothing. replaced the leading spark plugs as one of them wasn't firing (fouled i presume). Not sure if i need to replace the trailing but i ran out of day light so i will check them tomorrow.

i don't know if its me or not but the car cranking sounds different. i guess because the injectors were leaky for a while i had to work the throttle to clean out the chambers. but that shouldn't be a problem anymore. So I'm not sure what to do. The car has been down since last wednesday.

Any suggestions on what i should check?

spark plugs? (all of them, but i was going to do this anyway)
coils?
something not plugged in at all or in the right place?
bad spark plug wires?

I'm pretty sure it has compression. i was going to do a comp test but i dont have any of those in my garage so i'll need to borrow one from a friend. when the spark plugs are out of the hole i can hear even "puffs" of air come out. So I don't think my engine is dead. but if the compression is too low, it wont start will it? so that means get a rebuild or a replacement one.

I also plugged in my light checker for the diagnostics but no codes are flashed. I know the leading coil is sparking for sure. I know I am still somewhat of a noob at this, but the engine wont actually start if all spark plugs are firing, correct?

farberio

iTrader: (7)

You did do the deflood procedures right?

duo2999

iTrader: (1)

do this right?

farberio

iTrader: (7)

Yeah that, another trick is to pull all the plugs, pull the egi fuse, and then spin the motor to force all the fuel out.

waldog

iTrader: (12)

What I did (88 vert).

Pulled the plugs/EGI fuse - cranked engine - let car sit over nite. Then - put plugs back in - cranked with the EGI fuse still out - Put EGI in. Charged the battery - unplugged the fuel pump wire (in trunk under plastic panel) - and cranked it till it wanted to start. Then plugged wire back in. Then I just cranked the **** out of it till it was about to start - then I floored the gas and it started. I left it run for about 30 minutes.

I know my method isn't what's posted on other sites. But this is what worked for me. I have never seen anybody say to pull that plug in the trunk. But a friend suggested it to me and that's what got it started.

Good luck man.

duo2999

iTrader: (1)

i got it going again. new problem though, the vacuum hoses. my dad put them on and i guess he didnt know where they went and he used new hoses so i have no idea where most go. so now i gotta search and check the manual to see where the vacuum hoses on the UIM and the TB go to...

hooray!

ericgrau

iTrader: (1)

You can download a factory service manual from a link in a FAQ.

Tip from experience: don't let your dad touch your car. Lock your doors to keep him out, even. Or else keep a hawkeye on him when you do let him touch it.

duo2999

iTrader: (1)

lol i try to do that. he has been a mechanic for over 50 years so i trust him, but i have a hard time telling him that these cars need certain things and do certain things. i also tell him not to do certain things like he would a piston engine.

the diagrams are a bit confusing but i'll sit down and study them. the car starts for two seconds, i hear a whining noise and it shuts down. the whining, i think, is coming from the alternator. so the alt is dying? or is the pulley just loose?

as far as the car starting and shutting itself off, i dont know. if i had vacuum lines going to the wrong places would it cause that?

farberio

iTrader: (7)

If you have a large enough vacuum leak, it will cause the car to die.

duo2999

iTrader: (1)

would it help if i put rtv on the gasket of the LIM and the UIM? or is that just overkill?

farberio

iTrader: (7)

RTV on the LIM and UIM is not necessary. If you suspect the problem is there, take them off and replace the gasket.

duo2999

iTrader: (1)

the gasket has been replaced when i got everything back together yesterday.

duo2999

iTrader: (1)

ok. still not sure whats going on. the hiss is gone and the alternator is fine. i had that tested.

it will start up. then die. like something cuts off the fuel.

gone from one problem to another. argh.

*edit

not sure if n/a's have fuel cuts though...

FelixIsGod29X

iTrader: (50)

Starts then dies? Check to see if your afm wire is connected and working properly.

minuteman7

sweet this thread just helped me out haha! but as always one problem down another begins!

duo2999

iTrader: (1)

the afm works. i know that. i plugged in my test light code check thing and it didnt throw me a code for that, or anything else for that matter.

and the little door opens and closes just fine.

im at my ropes end. i dont know what i should be checking.

FelixIsGod29X

iTrader: (50)

Hmm i'd look into your compression anyways and make sure your father didnt put the fuel lines on backwards.

duo2999

iTrader: (1)

update:

im still confused as hell.

so now it starts and runs just fine. sometimes i have to crank it a lot but thats because i put a jumper wire in this little harness on the right strut tower. i'm not even sure what it does but i saw that you jump that to prime the fuel system? so if that has to be jumped, does anyone know what that might mean?

did something go out somewhere else? the car drives like normal with that harness jumped. i will up pics of what im talkin about in a bit.

duo2999

iTrader: (1)

in this area


this white plug.

J-Rat

iTrader: (2)

That jumper bypasses the interlock in the AFM that stops the fuel pump when the engine is not running but power is on. You sure your AFM is good? Sounds like that may not be the case.

Got a multimeter handy?

duo2999

iTrader: (1)

tried a remanufactured afm from oreilly auto parts

didnt work. in fact it gave me the code for the afm.

put in one from a junkyard and no code but i still have to have that harness jumped. what else could this mean, besides the afm? are there any relays between the afm and fuel pump?

J-Rat

iTrader: (2)

Did you look in the FSM wiring diagram? Pg 4A 74 or 4A 54.

duo2999

iTrader: (1)

i did look at the page for the afm. i havent tested that yet. i just saw the one for the relay. i have two extra relays i picked up from the junkyard last weekend that i can test as well.

i just have to go get the multimeter from somewhere and hopefully this will solve my problem or at least get me closer to fixing it.

ParadoxToday

did u try cranking it with the AFM off? maybe the AFM needs to be replaced.

satch

iTrader: (1)

Gain access to the ECU and backprobe for readings. The ranges are listed in the emissions section of the FSM and will give you an upper hand at diagnosing your problem and by doing such you can possibly kill two birds with one stone.