When I changed out my distributor and got it put in back in wrong the first time , and then finally corrected it my engine would not start either because I flooded the heck out of it.
I am not sure if a bad IAC could cause a failure to start. Sorry I cannot contribute more than that.
One lesson I learned (about 3 times now LOL) it to NOT change more than one thing at a time. Because if you do and the car fails to run right or run at all it becomes a Mo Fo to figure where the problem is. Don't do as I did and not follow my own lesson!
I learned the hard way changing sensor pigtails and not testing the car after changing each one before going on to the next. This is not a lecture but an observation that can save you grief.
Check to be certain you have spark on all 4 cylinders, a guy not long ago here had a brand new DEFECTIVE distributor cap, you cannot trust anything these days! Also are you absolutely certain you have the wires in the right order and #1 in the proper position on the dist cap?
For the heck of it disconnect the connector from the IAC and try it. Sparx22
Yeah... I know I should only do one thing at a time... I thought about it while I was working, but didn't think much of it at the time....
It's the existing distributor, it ran fine just a few hours ago. even if I'm only gettin spark on one cyl, I should still hear that one cyl firing, and I'm not. And yes, I'm absolutely certainn they're in the right order, and they're on the same posts I pulled them off of, so the #1 is correct. Took the wires off one at a time.
And yeah, I tried fiddling with the IAC for a long time... disconnecting it, reconnecting it, runnning the reset, fiddling with the pintle deapth.... I got it to sputter once, firing at least 2 cyls before returning to the normal turning over and not firinng... haven't gotten it to go since.
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03:13 PM
katatak Member
Posts: 7136 From: Omaha, NE USA Registered: Apr 2008
Pull that one cylinder and check if the plug is wet - flooded! If so........
I think if you push the throttle to the floor before you crank, it tells the ECM to not give it any fuel. Hold the throttle to the floor while you crank - it should fire - if it is flooded!
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03:26 PM
katatak Member
Posts: 7136 From: Omaha, NE USA Registered: Apr 2008
Sounds like the IAC is at least part of the problem. If it is bouncing around while trying to start the car, it is telling the ECM to constanly change the amount of fuel it is dumping in the motor. Could be flooding the engine. Check to be sure you have spark on each cylinder. This will give you a look at each of the plugs too - see if they are wet.
Pull that one cylinder and check if the plug is wet - flooded! If so........
I think if you push the throttle to the floor before you crank, it tells the ECM to not give it any fuel. Hold the throttle to the floor while you crank - it should fire - if it is flooded!
Fired right up! She's out there purring nicely again... I'll go take it for a drive, supposedly it takes the car getting up over 35mph to reset some of the parameters... so, I'll give that a try while goinng to NAPA Hope I don't break down... but, that's what roadside assistance insurance is for :P
Sounds like the IAC is at least part of the problem. If it is bouncing around while trying to start the car, it is telling the ECM to constanly change the amount of fuel it is dumping in the motor. Could be flooding the engine. Check to be sure you have spark on each cylinder. This will give you a look at each of the plugs too - see if they are wet.
I'm hesitant to start pulling plugs again... there is alot of rust arround the sockets, I really don't want to knock those scales down into the cylandar. It's running nicely now, doesn't sound like it's missing... so, I'm fairly certain all the plugs are sparking. I'm goinng to NAPA now, I'll pick up a new IAC to get that out of the way. The idle RPM's are still a bit off, and It's fairly inexpensive part. Something that should probably be replaced anyways.
[This message has been edited by Twilight Fenrir (edited 01-22-2009).]
Well, just got back from my trip... it's like driving a completely different car. Chaning those plugs/wires just made the engine ALOT smoother going. Idle was still screwed up, but I picked up an IAC, and will be installing it in a little bit here. And, that /should/ be the end of that.
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04:42 PM
thefredman Member
Posts: 200 From: Farmland Indiana Registered: Oct 2008
Hey mam......sounds like a rough day.......anywho. Last Friday it was -19 here and my 86 4-cylinder would fire but not start. It smelled as if it were flooding out. I stuck a trouble light under the hood and waited for the temperature to climb. After about two hours of the trouble light i fired it up. It started, but was running extremly rough. I went and got some Heet for the fuel. Still no luck. Turned out that when I pulled the air cleaner off, I broke the vacuum line that runs to the map sensor. The map sensor is on the passenger side of the air cleaner. There is a green plug, and of course the vacuum line. If all the other suggestions still don't help, you might check this. My ses light hasn't been back on yet. Good luck and happy Fieroing......
Well, just got back from my trip... it's like driving a completely different car. Chaning those plugs/wires just made the engine ALOT smoother going. Idle was still screwed up, but I picked up an IAC, and will be installing it in a little bit here. And, that /should/ be the end of that.
So the problem was that it was flooded? Glad you have it running. Blow out the crap out from around the plugs with air before you remove them.
sparx22
[This message has been edited by sparx22 (edited 01-22-2009).]
Hey mam......sounds like a rough day.......anywho. Last Friday it was -19 here and my 86 4-cylinder would fire but not start. It smelled as if it were flooding out. I stuck a trouble light under the hood and waited for the temperature to climb. After about two hours of the trouble light i fired it up. It started, but was running extremly rough. I went and got some Heet for the fuel. Still no luck. Turned out that when I pulled the air cleaner off, I broke the vacuum line that runs to the map sensor. The map sensor is on the passenger side of the air cleaner. There is a green plug, and of course the vacuum line. If all the other suggestions still don't help, you might check this. My ses light hasn't been back on yet. Good luck and happy Fieroing......
Heh, yeah, I keep forgetting to re-attatch that, but I always remember as soon as I screw down the wingnuts.... making me do it all over again... But, I've never completely forgotten about that surprisingly significant little sensor.
So, here's the break-down: Car is running again (most important) When it first starts, the RPM's shoot way up to 3K, but drift back down to 1.5k and stay there.... I remember it used to go up to 3K when I first bought it, but it gradually went away... and I'm expecting it to do so again. Not too sure about the 1.5K regular idle... That worries me a little bit, so if you know something, please do chime in.
The SES light is still coming on, but I broke my temp sensor while I was working, and that's all that is. I've got one on-order from NAPA and will get that replaced ASAP.
Originally posted by Twilight Fenrir: . In diagnostic mode (As-per Kata's link) the pintle pushes forward, then pulls back in over and over and over.... it doesn't go all the way forward, nor all the way back, just wiggles back and forth about 1/4 to 1/2 an inch. From what I'm reading, it should push all the way forward in diag mode.
this is exactly what my IAC(84 2.5) is doing............did you figure out if that motion in diagnostic mode means that sensor is bad?....i myself read as well its supposed to push all the way forward or shoot off in that test mode.
Originally posted by ForceFedFlesh: this is exactly what my IAC(84 2.5) is doing............did you figure out if that motion in diagnostic mode means that sensor is bad?....i myself read as well its supposed to push all the way forward or shoot off in that test mode.
Not sure really... but, I just went ahead and replaced it to be sure... I got one at NAPA for about $30, and really for peace of mind, it's not very expensive. It's a part that will go bad eventually, and if you still have the orriginal one from 25 years ago, it's probably closer to its end than it's beginning. The new one I got doesn't move back and forth like that... but I'm still not sure if the one I got is good or not. It doesn't seem to move at all....
, and then finally corrected it my engine would not start either because I flooded the heck out of it.
Hope I don't break down... but, that's what roadside assistance insurance is for :P
