1990 Vert - Starter problem
 

A little back story on this bad boy.

The car is a 1990 Mazda RX-7. It has a non turbo 13B engine with an automatic transmission. The car has been sitting for 3-4 years and it was a gift to me. I know there is no batter in this car!!!! the battery is no good so i took it out. its not in the pictures. This car will not start, even with a good battery. It will not even turn over. When a good battery is installed into this vehicle, only the flip lights come on, and of course the parking lights. The radio does not turn on. The horn does not honk. the light inside does not turn on. the dash lights up yes. my dad did something with a screwdriver to the starter. it made a big WHIIIIIIZZZZZ sound and thats it. it did not start or anything.( he didnt mess it up) my dad will not help me with this car. i bought the manual. i know nothing about cars but i am willing to learn. i need this car to work because i have many dates planned and i can not get to these girls. and also its a sexy car and i dont want it to go to waste.

Correct way to insert pictures is with
using [] instead of {}

Your images:

what are those wires and the to cylinder black things going into that box

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a2...musical009.jpg

what are those blue things?

http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a2...musical010.jpg

what are these wires for?(automatic i know its lame)
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a2...musical012.jpg

Heres the engline
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a2...musical011.jpg

heres the whole thing.
http://i12.photobucket.com/albums/a2...musical014.jpg

The first two pictures show pictures of the leading and trailing coils. Those are kind of important. They go to the leading and trailing spark plugs.

check the starter, fuses and relays

Thanks
 

Hey thanks for fixing my images.

does anyone know what those hanging wires under the steering wheel are?

Nice looking car. Once you get it going I know it will be awesome. Sorry I can't help with the mechanical stuff.

No problem dude thanks for posting :]

i read the tips after i made this thread. . can you rename the topic?

Right, I'm betting that your father jumped a fuse with the screw driver if he did it under the hood. The fuse box is under the hood on the drivers side. There are more fuses... If you haven't already, I suggest you buy a "Hanyes" or other type shop manual for your year make and model. Good luck. Looks real nice.

Sounds like a bad fuse or wiring to me, if your starter moved when your dad did something, it doesnt sound like its bad. Like what the other guys are saying check all the fuses, im not exactly sure but your starter may not be in contact with the flywheel. Anyway if its spinning, it sounds like its not spinning what ever its supposed to be in contact with. Fly wheel in case of Manual trans, not sure for auto because I dont own an automatic. After you get it cranking make sure to do a full fluid change, or at least top everything off, but a oil change for sure, I recommend Royal purple 20w-50 if you can find it, but 10w-40 works great too. Just checking, when you say it doesn't turn over, it doesn't move at all right? or it does it crank and move but just not start? Ive seen alot of people confuse that word so yeah.

As for the wires hanging out of it, just dont rip any of em out if they are connected to something they most likly serve a purpose. if it has a after market security system it may be from that, it is like that on mine. Anything after market that requires wiring such as a electric fan may create some extra wires hangin around. just carefully zip tie them together neatly and tuck it away.

love the look of your car :D sorry not much help with the mechainics :S Good luck

Props on your car man, looks nice and clean. I have some info on your car, you may already know but this will help you if you use these key words in your quest for a fun reliable car. You car is a, 2nd gen S5 also known as FC3C the last C is for convertibles, so when you are looking for parts or info on how to fix it make sure you look at the correct info and make sure its not for S4s I did this a couple times and it messed me up a bit and decomissioned my RX for almost two weeks. I still think you just have a bad fuse and the problem is if it spins freely its not engaging the engine/cranking it/turning it over.

yeah buddy.

New Started..

New Fuel Pump (or a used in working condition one)

Fuel Injectors.

spark plugs

coils


Should Start right up!

exact same thing happened to my Friend.. FC sitting for 3 years...we got it started

bad fuel pump...all the other things ar ejust recomendations to you

Good luck

=)

Starting procedures
 

Ok so this is what I do and has worked for me to get it to start.

First, the three things that dictate starting or not. Spark, fuel, and air.

All three must be working and balanced with each other nicely, and to achieve this I follow these basic steps to eliminate the most common problems that prevent starting. For example if there is too much fuel in the chamber then it will be flooded and kill the spark or not ignite properly.

1- Check battery power and voltage - self explanatory

2- Check the spark plugs - look for excessive carbon build up, corrosion, or scorching/burnt badly. A brownish color or some carbon is fine it is normal. But if you want to be safe you should replace them because they are pretty cheap anyway.

3 - While checking spark plugs also take note as to whether or not the plugs are covered in fuel. Wave them towards the ground or to a place where fuel won't be a problem. If a you get a really noticeable amount fuel on the ground, about a couple drops worth or more, your engine is most likely flooded. I will cover un-flooding later on.

4- Check the fuses all should be in working order and of the correct amp.

5- Check the Starter ( I do not know how this is done because mine was working fine although yours seems to be working too)

6- Check air filter - The filter should be clean, if stained with something or covered in debris replace promptly.

7- Do an Oil and Oil Filter change!!! This is important, an oil change should be done at every 3000 miles max (for best performance and reliability) or every year if barely driven. The old oil is most likely used and the fact that its been sitting inside your engine for 3 years won't help at all. I use Royal Purple 20w50 here in CA because it almost never even reaches 0 Celcius and its 100% synthetic and cleanly burns away in the engine. I know this is gonna start a oil flaming session but me and my buddies use Royal Purple and we DO notice a slightly more lively engine. And its been proven to increase compression and fuel economy, and you and need all the compression you can get to start that rotor!

8- Get FRESH GAS! if the gas has been sitting in your tank for 3 years it could have gone bad, this will be a good chance to drain the gas tank and empty out anything other then fuel that might have found its way inside. just undo the gas tank drain plug located underneath the car and make sure to dispose of it properly or use some of that fuel restorer sold at places like target to use it again later (which I know you would want to, to save that Muhnay like me)

Once all of those steps have been completed and if it still doesn't start. It is most likely flooded. Flooding can happen at any time and will be a part of owning a RX7 that your just gonna have to live with. To tell whether or not its flooded check the spark plugs like stated earlier, or look for a white vapor coming from the exhaust. There are two main ways to un-flood an engine. The first will work for slightly to mildly flooded engines and can be done without the use of any tools and is easy to do. The second will definitely clear out anything and everything inside and can be used for even badly flooded engines, but will require you to take out the spark plugs with a wrench.

Before doing any un-flooding procedures try starting it with the gas pedal floored, YES FLOORED! This cuts off fuel to the engine during the start up sequence and will produce an un-flooding effect. If this does not work proceed.

Type one - Fuse Trick - this is very simple just pop open the bonnet. Look on the drivers side of the engine bay and you will find a black rectangular fuse box with white labels on it. Open it up and pull out the fuse that is closest to the engine it should also be labeled EGI fuse on the cover, this is for the S5, on the S4 there will be two separate fuses labeled with EGI comp. and EGI inj. on it pull both of them out. Once you have the fuse(s) pulled get back in the car and crank the engine for about 10 to 15 secs with the gas pedal floored again. THE CAR SHOULD NOT START! Now put the fuse(s) back in where they belong, don’t get it mixed up. Get back in and crank the car again with the gas pedal floored this should start the car. If it doesn’t quite do the job and it dies out just try again but don’t do it more then 3-4 times.

Type two - Spark removal - The steps for this is exactly the same as the Fuse trick but you also uncap and remove the spark plugs from the sockets at the time you remove the fuse(s). When uncapping the spark plugs and unscrewing them, first make sure to undo the negative? (I forget which battery terminal was supposed to be undone, if done backwards I think it produces very small sparks so check which is correct) to prevent shocks or possibly igniting the fumes. After the plugs are removed reattach the battery cables and crank the engine for about 10-15 secs with the pedal in all the way again. Finally put the spark plugs back in recap and crank the engine with the usual pedal to the floor. This procedure produces a lot of friction at the seals because it really is emptying everything out including the injected oil. So many other owners say to add a teaspoon full of ATF (Automatic Transmission Fluid) into each of the spark plug holes to lubricate it and create more compression after cranking it and expelling the excess fluids.

Finally if none of the above mentioned work. You will need to look at your fuel pump and or other various things such as timing and grounding.

Good luck, \(^~^)/

Masahiro Kanehara

P.S. If you starter sounds like its free spinning (like a power drill) then its out of alignment re align it and do the above to make sure you get a clean and nicely running engine. You dont want to leave all that gunk in there. Just imagine after you finally get it up and running you kill the engine just because you left the old oil in there, or if there isnt enough coolant so top off all fluids!

Here is the key to solving this.

I think it's one of three things:

1.) Main fuse in the engine bay fuse panel.
2.) Bad Ignition Switch.
3.) Wiring harness damage.

First things first, check the fuse block under the hood. It's near the driver's side, on the shock absorber tower. Remove the cover and look inside for the fuses.

All of them have a clear window. Inside the window, you should see a small copper piece. Tell us if any have a burned or broken copper piece.

Report back and we'll move on to the next step.

Wow you guys are a huge help. Ill check the fuses tomorrow when i get some light.

Also, when i say it wont turn over i mean when i put the key in the ignition and turn the ignition all the way. there is not reaction from the car at all. i was using my roomates battery when i tested this.

Ok just checking, you put the key in and turn all the way to the ignition. And you have no movement / response from the car other then some accessories (i.e. lights radio and such) turning on.

If so then its most likely the fuses, the fuses seem to be made of copper, and copper oxidizes, just like iron and steel oxidizing to rust. Copper will make usually make a green powdery substance. I guess if its been sitting for a couple of years those could have gone bad. other then that I cant imagine anything going wrong because other circuits and wiring go bad with use usually, not nessesarily age.

P.S. to any of the more experienced members, Im still just a noob, just had lots of troubles with starting, doing regular maintenance, and fixing up external lights and doors. So im just experienced with that.:lol:

Thanks to everyone!!! ill take all of your advice and ill come back with results. Ive a got a lot of new things to fix on my car. the main fuse box was good but i think its the CPU. since its a vert it leaks and he told me that once the whole car flooded and it didnt start for 3 months. we had some rain in so cal and the carpet is wet again. it didnt flood too bad just soaked behind the drivers/passengers seats. im going to try to tear the carpet out i guess and check the cpu out. im also having light issues nothing works :( lol

Hey i dont know how to edit my post but here i made a video of something :D

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQ9eaSmcznU

Lol, your narrating is funny. :) If you are trying to access the CPU though... you are on the wrong side of the car. The ECU is where you were digging. That handles management of the engine components such as air/fuel mixture, monitoring codes, et cetera. To get at it, just pull the carpet towards the seat further to reveal a metal plate you will have to unbolt to see the ECU.

If you are wanting to get at the CPU, that is on the driver's side behind a plastic kick panel near the door. It is about the the size of a check book and black. Good luck!

LOL DANG thanks man!!! i had no idea, i dunno why i thought the manual said it was there lol. i guess ill check the ECU out just because im halfway there. woah thanks :P

The ECU has nothing to do with cranking. If the car does not crank at all, I'd look into the starter, battery, battery cables, Ignition switch, and fuses.

Try shifting from Park into Neutral... There's a switch in the transmission linkage that will not allow the car to start if it is in gear.


However, if the interior accessories do not come on when you turn the key, I believe that there are other electrical problems.

Do you know how to use a multimeter?