HELP. another "car wont start" thread!

Discussion in 'Technical' started by j0no, Jul 12, 2010.

  1. j0no

    j0no Accepting Donations.

    ok, i was hoping to not have to do this, but im out of ideas.

    On friday, car was running nice and smooth, except for the fuel and water leaks.
    Saturday, removed plenum, as per the guide in tech forum, labelling connectors etc.
    Sunday, bypassed water lines, replaced fuel lines, reinstalled plenum. hooked everything back up, car wont start.

    The car was fitted at some stage with an alarm and possibly immobilizer, but as far as i know its done nothing except when i put the battery lead back on, makes alarm go off. until i put the key in the ignition. which has happened many times, and i dont feel its the cause.

    The fuel pump is priming, sounds exactly the same as always. car turns over like normal, but doesnt start.

    Please can somebody direct me where to focus my attention, and what i could have stuffed up on the PP or what might have gotten broken in the process.

    thanks thanks thanks!!!!!
     
  2. K-zed

    K-zed Secret Squirrel

    Checked for spark?
     
  3. j0no

    j0no Accepting Donations.

    how can i do this?
     
  4. j0no

    j0no Accepting Donations.

    also, i just did a error code check, and it came up with 55 - all ok.
     
  5. michandy

    michandy Active Member

    fuel lines

    have you got your fuel lines on the right way around?.
    I did this, vey embaressing :eek:.
    worth a look.
    Feed from filter goes to dampener on the driver side of plenum.
    Hope this helps, Andy :cool:
     
  6. j0no

    j0no Accepting Donations.

    cheers andy, yeah i have them all the right way around ^^ and it was leaking to the fuel pressure regulator in the beginning because i forgot to tighten one of the clamps D: i think im going to have to remove one of my spark plugs. only problem now is my battery is dying... sigh fml
     
  7. OZX_320

    OZX_320 Detachable Member

    check spark by pulling your plugs and fitting them into the coilpacks, with the plug thread resting against the plenum. Crank and check for spark. Ensure your battery is charged, or have a set of jumper leads set up to another vehicle while cranking.
     
  8. j0no

    j0no Accepting Donations.

    ok i've done this, and, bearing in mind my battery is only just turning it over, there is no spark. should i get a new battery before continuing? i've been doing a lot of searching in the mean time, could it be the s1 ptu failure?
     
  9. OZX_320

    OZX_320 Detachable Member

    without a charged battery, you will be grasping at straws. You have access to a second car with jumper leads?

    By all means, the S2 PTU upgrade is a good thing, but an added expense if not necessary at this time might further empty the wallet.

    Did you degrease the motor? Moisture in the spark plug barrel can cause the coilpack to spark out. Pull the coilpacks, inspect them and the barrel down to the plug for moisture.

    As always mentioned, make sure earths are all re-instated, including the earth that bolts to a bracket on the rear passenger side of the motor. (had to unbolt mine with turbo water re-routing and EGR delete).

    Coilpack connectors arent usually a culprit unless they've fallen apart. Old injector connectors and plugs are the most tempremental. Cleaned plugs can open up the connection surface on the plug itself, causing a failed connection. The injectors themselves are a bitch to clean properly. (Jaycar supply an ideal set of terminal files for easy cleaning) Failed seating tabs in the plugs can cause them to slide backwards when you plug the connector in. Check these with the battery disconnected.

    Apart from that, vacuum leaks. You used new lower plenum gasket? balance pipe o-rings are new and not pinched? IAVC hoses are on firmly and didnt split when using old units?

    and make sure radiator overflow hose hasn't accidentally been connected to plenum.
     
  10. j0no

    j0no Accepting Donations.

    firstly, thanks ozx_32 for taking the time to reply. I've gone and bought a battery charger, and will put her on charge for 6 hours or so , i guess overnight before trying again. another day off work >.< wish i had another car. i did spray rp7 / wd40 type stuff in all the connections, so i will take ur advice and scrape them all to make sure i haven't worsened any connections by doing so.

    One thing, the earths at the back of the engine, to be exact, the 2 on the right middle, were not tight in the beginning, possibly causing a bad earth, its tight now, but could there be any permanent damage caused by this?

    i used the same plenum gasket, and i did no cleaning at all on the engine or plenum in the procedure. i will charge my battery and check for spark tomorrow, if that fails, i am going to pay somebody to steal + burn it.

    j/k =D please keep the ideas coming.
     
  11. j0no

    j0no Accepting Donations.

    so, just to recap. heres where im at

    car still turns over, nothing happens (sounds like no spark)
    fuel pump works - fuel lines connected correctly.
    Error code - 55 (no errors)
    Everything was working before PP. just replaced old fuel lines and bypassed water.

    battery is now on charge, will double check tomorrow about spark, but im guessing its going to be the same as now, spark check this afternoon was fail.

    could it be possible that the old car alarm is causing this??
     
  12. K-zed

    K-zed Secret Squirrel

    You need a fully charged battery to test for spark, and to start. Plenum earths not being tight could well have fried the PTU. Do a diode-test on it using a standard multimeter - you only get continuity one way.
     
  13. j0no

    j0no Accepting Donations.

    quick question. where is the ignition coil located? and, if its stuffed, is there another relay i can swap it with to test?
     
  14. OZX_320

    OZX_320 Detachable Member

    If it turns out your S1 PTU is shot, Ive got 1 off my NA. Welcome to borrow to determine until you decide to change out for a S2
     
  15. WLDTTZ

    WLDTTZ URBAN LEGEND

    You can chek if your injectors and igntion coils are working by pulling off the CAS and turning the part of it that sticks into cam gear around, do this with the ingition on much easier then tryna crank the car and look, there are 6 igntion coils not one main one, try swapping in a new PTU but prior to that chek you have all your earths atached coz if you dont you will fry your PTU.
     
  16. j0no

    j0no Accepting Donations.

    sorry, im an idiot, i mean ignition coil relay!! is it the green one beside the fuse box?
     
  17. stumagoo

    stumagoo Active Member

    also check you have not knocked the plug off the CAS infact pull the plug right off and refit make sure all contacts are nice and clean and the plug is right home. While you are at it do the same around the PTU.
     
  18. j0no

    j0no Accepting Donations.

    In the end, turns out i think it was my fuel injection connecters, they were corroded and i'd sprayed wd40 in there, making them into a nice green gooze. after cleaning them out, and every other electrical connection possible, hooking it up to a ford.... of all things, with jumper leads, taking of the AFM plug ( im sure this helped somehow...) it eventually started and ran well. couldnt have done it without help.. see here for details link
     

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