Dead. Has compression, spark, fuel. No Start

[Tedybear]

This one has me totally confused.

Did the replacement on the speedo gear...Greased the speedo cable as well. Installed everything and even made sure not to forget to plug in the VSS sensor leads.

Went to start it this morning for a test drive?

Cranks great.....

Has Spark....

Pulled a couple of plugs and did note a fuel smell on them--they where dry. (Retested about 30 minutes ago after trying doing a compression test on one of the cylinders...the end of the tester was slightly damp with raw fuel....)

As a side bar note: I did a compression test on just one to see if the valve timing jumped. Even with the somewhat slower rev's? It still managed a respectful 130lbs. (It would be higher if I had the battery fully charged and all the plugs out.)

Another side bar note: Fuel pressure tested at 38lbs. I know it's got leaky injectors..as it will bleed down after about 20 minutes.

Yet another note: I hosed it down with starter fluid several times. With the exception of a couple of 'pops' out the intake when I released the key? It made no attempt to even fire.

Now I had it running yesterday for about 10 minutes to keep the oil in the engine circulated and battery charged. It did great...started on the 3rd crank as always. Now the plugs? Yeah they could stand to be changed out and she's overdue to get a tune up. But it's been running like a champ up to yesterday--and today it takes a dump?

Any ideas are welcome...I normally do not get stumped on engine issues. This one has me fully stumped.

S-

 

[JC 97]

.With the exception of a couple of 'pops' out the intake when I released the key? It made no attempt to even fire.

S-

Back in 90's I worked at a shop that that repaired the japanese line of cars.The ignition switch would go bad and the car would only fire upon release of the key.Not sure if it is relevant.

 

[Redneck_Ranger]

Starting fluid is the WORST thing you can try to do to a gas engine... If you didn't recheck the spark plugs there's a good chance that they got all ****ed up...

 

[Tedybear]

Back in 90's I worked at a shop that that repaired the japanese line of cars.The ignition switch would go bad and the car would only fire upon release of the key.Not sure if it is relevant.

The oddest thing? It's got decent spark. It's not even attempting to fire even after spraying it out with starter fluid.

I'm trying to replay in my mind what I could have disturbed while doing the kick down cable and the speedo gear. Yeah I had my hand at the top of the gas pedal and had to unhook the kickdown from the inside....The old kickdown cable had rubbed against the exhaust---and was burned through.

I re-routed the cable back where it was supposed to be run...Didn't move anything really... The kickdown probably rubbed against the starter motor while being put into position...

Now the VSS? There is a split in the insulation at the connector. But that's the VSS sensor--it should not have anything to do with 'starting' the engine.

Other then spraying down the speedo cable with silcone lube....



That's one for each hour I spent on that today.....

S-

 

[Tedybear]

Starting fluid is the WORST thing you can try to do to a gas engine... If you didn't recheck the spark plugs there's a good chance that they got all ****ed up...

I was hoping for even a spit or a stutter.... Nadda thing. The starter fluid should have at least gotten a backfire....(the pop out the intake? Wasn't a backfire....just a compression pop) I did pull two more of the plugs, and while they are worn? They still produced a good spark.

S-

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

Compression, yes
spark, yes
fuel, yes
timing, ?

 

[Tedybear]

Compression, yes
spark, yes
fuel, yes
timing, ?

Timing is the wildcard. Not sure how it could have gotten out of time? (I ran the truck last night for 10 minutes.....and no one tampered with it).

I'll probably have to have it towed up to the folks place before we get pounded with more snow and work on it as I can. It's got everything it's supposed to have---but won't even give me a pop.

S-

 

[adsm08]

When you test spark, is someone on the key or are you jumping the relay?

 

[Tedybear]

When you test spark, is someone on the key or are you jumping the relay?

I tried it both ways. First time with using the longest spark plug wire and had it grounded against the hood bracket. Spark was "Fair". Not super, but it should have been enough to get at least a pop.

I also tried it by putting the key to 'run/on' and jumped the relay. Same result. Had spark.

As a bonus? I removed the plug wire from the coil. That threw a spark about 1 1/2 long to ground. That coil is 100% good. Super strong.

I'll sleep on it tonight and see if I can organize a tow truck to get it out of our apartment building up to the 'barn'. Unless someone knows something I'm missing? I'm out of ideas. I even tried to swap in the other PCM I had in storage. My step father's disaster in the barn makes it impossible to locate. He just got in two bails of hay for the cows---and they are parked right where I want to drop the truck off.

S-

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

Is this DIS or with distributor? I can't remember how dis works as it's been a while since I looked at one but I had a problem with a connector one time. It prevented spark so it's not the same as yours. Worth a check tho.

Richard

 

[kunar]

this really has me curious. the only thing i would add is to get a multimeter and ohm out your coil. i had one that failed, it would spark but apparently wasnt strong enough when the plug was in the engine. it didnt pass the resistance test (values are listed in your haynes/chiltons manual) so i replaced it and was good to go.

 

[BRUTUS_T_HOG]

Starting fluid is the WORST thing you can try to do to a gas engine... If you didn't recheck the spark plugs there's a good chance that they got all ****ed up...

Why? Fouling plugs?

OP. Try to remove the SPOUT connector and see if it will start.

Does your check engine light come on key on engine off?

Do you have key on power to the fuel injectors and the ignition coil?

Is the distributor rotor turning?

You replaced the VSS right before this happened. Try to unplug it and see if the engine starts.

 

[Tedybear]

Why? Fouling plugs?

OP. Try to remove the SPOUT connector and see if it will start.

Does your check engine light come on key on engine off?

Do you have key on power to the fuel injectors and the ignition coil?

Is the distributor rotor turning?

You replaced the VSS right before this happened. Try to unplug it and see if the engine starts.

Tried the SPOUT first thing. No change
Everything "Light Wise" starts normally.

I'm assuming the rotor is turning. The coil has spark (a lot of spark) with the main plug wire removed. If the disty wasn't spinning? I do not think the coil would fire?

The rotor I'm sure is turning due to the fact I removed two plug wires and plugs...grounded the plugs and got spark in the expected "Timely" fashion...

I've yet to check the injectors (ran out of time and I've not a garage to work in anymore)... However I did the starter spray a few times...There should have been at the least a backfire or *cough*....Got nothing. (The several plugs I did pull? dry enough to spark...and smelled lightly of starter fluid/gas).

My wife did note something of interest...she said the engine cranking over seems faster then usual? And felt the timing chain may have jumped. Would that be the case considering I'm getting decent compression?

I've got a tow truck coming to lug the old girl back to my family "Barn"...Which as bails of hay where my truck would normally be sitting while I'm working on it... And another couple of feet of lake effect on the way--with the wife's sports car to drive. I'm not a happy camper right now. But I'll get it figured out eventually. Just wish it would show some sign of life...even a backfire would be welcome.

As a last resort, I'll crawl back under it and pull the VSS plug. It's the same VSS, just the end gear was replaced. If that starts it being unplugged? Maybe it dead shorted internally? Heck, if that does the trick I'll do a happy dance and video tape it.



S-

 

[BRUTUS_T_HOG]

Tried the SPOUT first thing. No change
Everything "Light Wise" starts normally. OK if the check engine light comes on that means the PCM is likely getting power and does not have a shorted sensor

I'm assuming the rotor is turning. The coil has spark (a lot of spark) with the main plug wire removed. If the disty wasn't spinning? I do not think the coil would fire?

The rotor I'm sure is turning due to the fact I removed two plug wires and plugs...grounded the plugs and got spark in the expected "Timely" fashion...
Correct, thanks for clarifying that it is sparking normally

I've yet to check the injectors (ran out of time and I've not a garage to work in anymore)... However I did the starter spray a few times...There should have been at the least a backfire or *cough*....Got nothing. (The several plugs I did pull? dry enough to spark...and smelled lightly of starter fluid/gas).
Just check that they have key on power at the injectors to see if you have power from the EEC relay and related fuses. I have had multiple vehicles that would not start on starting fluid until I drowned the intake in it, sometimes a short spray is not enough especially in cold weather

My wife did note something of interest...she said the engine cranking over seems faster then usual? And felt the timing chain may have jumped. Would that be the case considering I'm getting decent compression?
The timing having jumped is a possibility, I would feel better if you did a proper compression test with the plugs removed and a good battery then we'll know what the maximum compression is. You can check for a worn timing chain set by removing the distributor cap, setting the crankshaft to TDC turning clockwise, then turn the crankshaft counter-clockwise and watching how many degrees of crank rotation it takes for the distributor to start moving

I've got a tow truck coming to lug the old girl back to my family "Barn"...Which as bails of hay where my truck would normally be sitting while I'm working on it... And another couple of feet of lake effect on the way--with the wife's sports car to drive. I'm not a happy camper right now. But I'll get it figured out eventually. Just wish it would show some sign of life...even a backfire would be welcome.

As a last resort, I'll crawl back under it and pull the VSS plug. It's the same VSS, just the end gear was replaced. If that starts it being unplugged? Maybe it dead shorted internally? Heck, if that does the trick I'll do a happy dance and video tape it.



S-

 

[zekew64]

OP...you mentioned everything but AIR.

An engine also needs air to formulate the proper air/fuel ratio.

Because of that, check your air intake, and see if anything's clogged. I'm thinking you actually might have a clog at the throttlebody, due to carbon deposits from the EGR. Failing that, check your vacuum and see if there's a clog in the vacuum system.