Hi guys,

I tried starting my car tonight after it sitting for a bit and it cranks but no start. I had parked it about a month and half ago. Started it about two weeks ago to keep the thing lubed and battery up. Now tonight it just cranks. About every 6 or 7th crank it seems like it wants to fire but nothing. Any recommendations on where to begin? No good mechanics in my area McAllen, TX. The only thing I can think is electrical. Put on a vented hood a few months back. Maybe something got wet.

Thanks

 

it could be a stuck seal, if in the last month and a half, all you've let it do is idle.

It could also be flooded or the plugs could be fouled.

It's real hard to blown an engine when the car isn't running

 

Let me guess when you started it a couple weeks ago you let it run for a couple minutes and didnt drive it? Its flooded. Clean or replace the plugs and you will be as good as new.

 

yeah let it run for several minutes. I will try and replace plugs and unflood it. I am scared now though cause I came across a thread with this link:

http://www.aaroncake.net/rx-7/blown.wav

And my car sounds a lot like that sound byte! I am wanting to get it rebuilt at Gotham anyway next month but it would suck to have to tow it up there. I'll let you know what happens

 

Unless you are not telling the whole story, how could you blow you engine just letting it idle for seven minutes? Did it overheat, have no oil?

 

Sounds like the same problem I just had. Sam kind of scenario, would turn over but not jump into life but would make the odd pop and backfire then when I got it running it was only on one rotor. Everyone said is was either a sticky seal or a blown one but it turned out that water had got under the inlet manifold and lodged itself in the primary injector rail causing it to rust and stopping the injectors from working properly. In the end I pulled out all my injectors and had them cleand and flowed, sandbasted the rails and presto engine started first pop!!

Firstly do a compression test, check your plugs then make sure you have spark. if all of those come up good then try the injectors. Motors can sit for 10 years then start up straight away but they can also get stuck seals by sitting.

 

push start will pop the engine back to life (reverse is easier)

 

Try the above, and get back...

 

yeah, mine had that problem after sitting for about 2 1/2 months and it got flooded.

so you from McAllen? Bro, im from Harlingen...well in Japan right now but you know what I mean. Haven't been back home for a while now...hows the tuner scene there? Last I heard from my brother was that a lot guys in the valley were big into looks and not much into performance.

So no rotary mechanics in the Valley?

 

when i let my car sit for a long time, it also has a little trouble starting. The battery just slowly dies if the car is used, small energy from the battery is used to keep some electrics up and running plus cold weather will accelerate the battery dying. Roll start or charge the battery and then give it a go.

They seem to flood easy if you are forcing the car to start.

 

Ten to one it's flooded. I had these exact symptoms last week. Either push start it or rock the "5 sec crank with the throttle to the floor, 5 sec crank with the throttle completely off, repeat, repeat, etc" until it turns over. Get ready for the plume o' I-flooded-my-rx smoke when you get it fired up.

 

push start it. its easyer.

 

once it gets flooded from starting the engine to many times it gets harder to start the car, but a little push start helps!

 

What if it doesn't start by push starting? Did 4 attempts and nothing. Sorry. Don't mean to hijack.

 

there should be a manual fuel cut that can help drain the engine! ( I THINK I NAMED IT RIGHT)


WITH ME the problems i had alot was that the headlight got stuck and the motor drained the battery, as i tried to start the car it got flooded! but if i had enough voltage from the battery it would start. I should know as my low afr's flood pretty easily

 

Yeah there is a guy here that supposedly works on Mazda RX7-8 but I don't really know him so I am nervous about handing my car over. We'll see

 

Thanks for all the suggestions. Turns out the damn thing was just flooded. I have never had this car flood since I have owned it and I have started to move it in the driveway several times before. However, where I live is normally blazing hot and this time I moved it during the winter and also the first time I have moved it like that after the Power FC install. It was just running rich when I shut it down. Luckily it has not died yet!

 

Hi Guys,

I am freaking out here a little. I can't stop thinking worse case scenario. Any suggestions or help would be greatly appreciated. Here is my story (similar to original poster's story except I can't get mine to turn over repeatedly):

Superbowl Sunday (approx. 2 weeks ago) I drove me car fairly gently (some WOT to 4-5K at 9 psi) to my friends house and back, probably 4 miles total round trip.

Last weekend I wanted to go for a drive, so I started her up and let her warm up for about 15 minutes in the driveway. After about 15 minutes the car was iced over by a freak snow storm. I went back outside to shut the car off. Since the car had only been idling, I thought it would make sense to do one or two 4K revs just to clear the system. Then I waited another minute idling and shut off the car.

This weekend, one week later, I went to start her back up and it wouldn't. The car would crank/turn-over once (almost, but not really) and then go quiet. I tried 3 times total. Same thing happened each time. One crank (or maybe not even, but some sound of it trying) and then nothing. It was 28 degree F and I was hoping the weather is to blame and she will start up once it warms up outside.

I tried the next day in warmer weather and still nothing. I tried a 10 mph 1st gear push start and the wheels locked up and slid down the semi-wet pavement. Needless to say it didn't start. I tried a 10 mph 2nd gear push start, same thing happened. I tried jump starting it, Nothing.

Is it likely that the motor is flooded? Blown apex seals? I am hoping it's just a matter of changing the plugs. I couldn't even do a compression test to check the seals if I wanted to since the damn think wont even turnover. PLEASE HELP!!!!

 

like what people have said to the op-- its pretty impossible to blow seals sitting or idling. charge the battery, do the unflood procedure and go from there.. i've unflooded my fd like 5 or 6 times since i've had it. first time it happened to me the car sounded so dead i thought i had blown the engine. its scary but thats just how the car is when its flooded.

 

a healthy engine u will hear the compression pulses as the car tries to start..

if ur deaf enough that u can't hear it.. take out the leading plugs

if u hear compression.. then ur safe

make sure u have spark

make sure u have fuel

make sure u have a strong battery

cranking should be in the 200ish rpm range...


u guys worry too much

 

I am not going to hear the compression pulses if the motors not turning over.

I will give it a good long battery charge off my STi. If the car still won't turnover, does it even make sense to do the unflooding procedure or replace the plugs? Everywhere I have been reading about people just needing to unflood their FDs, their cars were all turning over.

Thoughts?

 

Flooding with rotaries is very common, and the deflooding procedure is easy. I'd advise charging the batter and deflooding to start.

 

But if I can't get the car to turnover after, say, dropping in a brand new battery, does it even make sense to do the unflooding procedure?

 

yeah...

If you can't get your car to start for any reason(other than you already know it's blown), it makes sense to do the unflooding procedure. I'd hazard to guess that flooded motors are the number one cause of no-starts in RX-7s.