Car won't start - Flooded mini FAQ
Car won't start - Flooded mini FAQ
Many forum members have written great how-to's on deflooding your FD.
Below are the precise steps on how to get an FD to start regardless of engine state unless you have zero compression on both rotors.
I have major tuning issues which are causing the car to run very very rich (killing the plugs) + compression isn't the best thus exacerbating the problem.
I tried every trick that I found on the forum and I found a combination that worked for a pain in the *** setup. The car would fire up and then die after doing everything I saw in the deflood posts.
So below is a method that I am certain will get your flooded FD started.
If your car has low compression, injector issues, vacuum issues etc they will only make starting the car more difficult but it should be possible to start the motor if the car was running before you turned it off previously:
0. Start charging your battery with a battery charger - only disable when you are actually running the starter motor. This is absolutely mandatory - do not waste your time unless you have a fully charged battery, if the starter does not spin at it's maximum RPM/torque then you have a very diminished chance of starting your car.
1. Buy new plugs - 7's and 9's - whilst they are on their way to you..
2. Disconnect EGI fuse (next to the battery)
3. Remove old plugs - jack the car up and remove them from the BOTTOM, do not bother trying from the top you will only give yourself an ulcer.
4. Remember where the leads go, they should stay roughly at position even if you move them out of the way. If you forget refer to the workshop manual (search for the links on this site)
5. Try starting the car for around 5-8 seconds around 3-4 times with a break of 10 seconds between each attempt. Whilst the starter is turning you should hear an even pattern of popping noises - if you do not then you have bigger problems than a flooded engine. How do you know when you have done it enough? There should be no fuel mist coming from the spark plug holes - if there is stilll mist you need to keep going.
6. Once you have completed the cycle, clean up the area with a little bit of degreaser and a rag.
7. Buy yourself some starter fluid if you don't have any($1.50 at big lots)
8. Buy yourself a flavor injector (Get one from big lots for $2)
9. Inject normal 5W-30 or 10W-30 non-synthetic motor oil directly into the lead spark plug holes (lower ones). Approximately 25-50ml will do or a good teaspoon per spark plug hole.
10. Clean up any excess oil
11. Put some anti-seize on the 'new' spark plug threads
12. Put the new spark plugs in, use a torque wrench with a setting of 14-17nm (I just did it by feel ;-)). Double check the correct spark plug configuration - blue stripes on top and no stripes on the bottom. Spark plugs actually say T and L on them as well and the motor has T and L embossed on the side so there's not excuse for screwing up.
13. Some members have hand cranked the motor with a wrench on the alternator nut, it's a massive nut so unless you have a special socket for it don't bother. The purpose of hand cranking is to increase the compression in the motor by making sure the oil that you squirted in the bottom holes is distributed in the motor evenly. I would look at doing this if the steps below failed to achieve results and would squirt oil into each side of the rotor face for good measure but don't put too much in there.
14. Make sure the battery is fully charged else you are wasting your time
15. Re-install the EGI fuse.
Now here comes the fun part.. starting the car.
16. Turn the key into the on position and put your foot flat to the floor
17. Turn the key to ignition and when the motor starts to catch take your foot off the accelerator and catch the RPM's if they start to drop
18. If you don't get lucky the first time stop immediately and spray some more starter fluid into your air intake or UIM if you have it open.
19. This may take around 5-15 seconds of cranking on healthy starter motor and battery. Just be aware that if you run the starter for more than 10 seconds you may burn the motor out so take a break after 10 seconds and try again.
Make sure you invest in a good quality gas mask, smoke like a bitch is an understatement. I almost gagged whilst trying to get my car down on the ground off the jack stands (the amount of steaming petrol off the exhaust was mind boggling and didn't do anything for me).
The key point I found here is the starter fluid actually made a massive difference. Doing everything else without the starter fluid actually made the car start straight away but it would die immediately and flood. Using the starter fluid with a good healthy spray into the UIM or air-intake made initial starting slightly harder but guaranteed the engine caught.
I think that covers it, I have spent hours on this unfortunate and sad event. What a waste of time! I hope this thread helps others in need of some help getting their FD's going again.
If all else fails, clutch start the car in second.. and good luck!
Below are the precise steps on how to get an FD to start regardless of engine state unless you have zero compression on both rotors.
I have major tuning issues which are causing the car to run very very rich (killing the plugs) + compression isn't the best thus exacerbating the problem.
I tried every trick that I found on the forum and I found a combination that worked for a pain in the *** setup. The car would fire up and then die after doing everything I saw in the deflood posts.
So below is a method that I am certain will get your flooded FD started.
If your car has low compression, injector issues, vacuum issues etc they will only make starting the car more difficult but it should be possible to start the motor if the car was running before you turned it off previously:
0. Start charging your battery with a battery charger - only disable when you are actually running the starter motor. This is absolutely mandatory - do not waste your time unless you have a fully charged battery, if the starter does not spin at it's maximum RPM/torque then you have a very diminished chance of starting your car.
1. Buy new plugs - 7's and 9's - whilst they are on their way to you..
2. Disconnect EGI fuse (next to the battery)
3. Remove old plugs - jack the car up and remove them from the BOTTOM, do not bother trying from the top you will only give yourself an ulcer.
4. Remember where the leads go, they should stay roughly at position even if you move them out of the way. If you forget refer to the workshop manual (search for the links on this site)
5. Try starting the car for around 5-8 seconds around 3-4 times with a break of 10 seconds between each attempt. Whilst the starter is turning you should hear an even pattern of popping noises - if you do not then you have bigger problems than a flooded engine. How do you know when you have done it enough? There should be no fuel mist coming from the spark plug holes - if there is stilll mist you need to keep going.
6. Once you have completed the cycle, clean up the area with a little bit of degreaser and a rag.
7. Buy yourself some starter fluid if you don't have any($1.50 at big lots)
8. Buy yourself a flavor injector (Get one from big lots for $2)
9. Inject normal 5W-30 or 10W-30 non-synthetic motor oil directly into the lead spark plug holes (lower ones). Approximately 25-50ml will do or a good teaspoon per spark plug hole.
10. Clean up any excess oil
11. Put some anti-seize on the 'new' spark plug threads
12. Put the new spark plugs in, use a torque wrench with a setting of 14-17nm (I just did it by feel ;-)). Double check the correct spark plug configuration - blue stripes on top and no stripes on the bottom. Spark plugs actually say T and L on them as well and the motor has T and L embossed on the side so there's not excuse for screwing up.
13. Some members have hand cranked the motor with a wrench on the alternator nut, it's a massive nut so unless you have a special socket for it don't bother. The purpose of hand cranking is to increase the compression in the motor by making sure the oil that you squirted in the bottom holes is distributed in the motor evenly. I would look at doing this if the steps below failed to achieve results and would squirt oil into each side of the rotor face for good measure but don't put too much in there.
14. Make sure the battery is fully charged else you are wasting your time
15. Re-install the EGI fuse.
Now here comes the fun part.. starting the car.
16. Turn the key into the on position and put your foot flat to the floor
17. Turn the key to ignition and when the motor starts to catch take your foot off the accelerator and catch the RPM's if they start to drop
18. If you don't get lucky the first time stop immediately and spray some more starter fluid into your air intake or UIM if you have it open.
19. This may take around 5-15 seconds of cranking on healthy starter motor and battery. Just be aware that if you run the starter for more than 10 seconds you may burn the motor out so take a break after 10 seconds and try again.
Make sure you invest in a good quality gas mask, smoke like a bitch is an understatement. I almost gagged whilst trying to get my car down on the ground off the jack stands (the amount of steaming petrol off the exhaust was mind boggling and didn't do anything for me).
The key point I found here is the starter fluid actually made a massive difference. Doing everything else without the starter fluid actually made the car start straight away but it would die immediately and flood. Using the starter fluid with a good healthy spray into the UIM or air-intake made initial starting slightly harder but guaranteed the engine caught.
I think that covers it, I have spent hours on this unfortunate and sad event. What a waste of time! I hope this thread helps others in need of some help getting their FD's going again.
If all else fails, clutch start the car in second.. and good luck!
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