Won't start.. lot's of troubleshooting done but nothing
95 Sentra with the 1.6L, Automatic, 77,000 miles. Car was driving fine with no signs of any problems. Pulled it into my garage and a week later it wouldn't start. The starter turns the engine, but there is no firing whatsoever. Here is what I have checked:
Air
- Air Filter ok.
- When cranking, air is being pushed out tailpipe (no clogs).
Gas
- Changed fuel filter.
- With fuel filter off, turned key to "on", fuel pump pressurized system and gas squirted out.
- After cranking for a bit, pulled the spark plugs and they are wet and smell like gas.
Spark/Electric
- Checked all the fuses in the fuse box. All ok.
- Checked the computer for any bad codes. All ok.
- Battery: One year old diehard. Checked the charge and it is good.
- Sparkplugs: Put in new spark plugs. With a plug out, but in the wire boot, cranked engine and saw very little and inconsistent spark. Thought it was the coil (more later).
- Distributor Cap and Rotor: Replaced with new parts. No difference.
- Distributor with integrated coil: Purchased used distributor (coil is integrated on this car) and put it on. Still, the engine turns but no fire. Pulled a plug, put it in the boot, turned engine and saw a great deal more spark!!!
I am at a loss. I can't think what it could be. Air+fuel+spark should equal fire. Perhaps there is water in the gas but it seems there would have to be a lot. Perhaps the Mass Air Flow sensor is bad, but it seems to me that because the plugs still get spark it should fire (wouldn't the MAF have shown up in the computer check anyway)? If you have ideas, I'm listening. Seems like I have to take it to the dealer at this point.
wire connectors, harnesses, check maf if it's wet, jump start the car. Check your fuel pump again. Look for the basic stuff first when looking for a problem. Remeber the fire triangle; fuel, ignition and air. If one of these is missing or weak then it wont start.
You said it turns over right? If that thing cranks over then you can make it start. Remove your cat and check if it's clogged up. You might still have air comming out of the tail pipe but it might not be enough. Sometimes all you have to do is stop for a second and look around and the problem is right there on your face. I'll ask around about your problem.
I thought I had checked the timing chain operation by removing the distributor cap and turning the engine over. The rotor spun.
But then I got to thinking, even though it looks like the distributor runs off the cam shaft (which would mean the chain is intact), I suppose it is possible that it runs off the crank somehow. If the latter is the case then it may be possible that the chain broke.
Questions:
1. If the timing chain breaks (assuming it broke the last time I used the car), wouldn't I have noticed it as I moved the car into the gargage? I mean, wouldn't the car have died or something?
2. What if the timing chain jumps a tooth or more? Again, wouldn't I have noticed?
3. IF the timing chain has jumped, does the chain need to be replaced or can the engine be timed (the former I assume). If replaced, how much does this typically cost on this car?
Did you worked on your car prior to this? i.e. remove timing gears, cams. If you broke you chain cams will not spin. So, I'm thinking it might have jumped a tooth. Check your timing. Timing marks on the chain, timing gears, and distributor at #1.
Just thought I'd chime in and give you a bit of hard earned education from my starting problems...sounds an awful lot like yours.
99% of the time my 1996 Sentra GA16 would start immediately, even in single digit temps. Every once in a while - and this has happened morning, evening, cold weather, warm weather - the beast just wouldn't turn over. It would crank no problem, but would act as if extremely flooded. A dealer told me to hold the accelerator to the floor and crank the living daylights out of it until it could build up some compression. Generally, it would build up enough momentum to catch and then would run 100% normally. There were times that it just wouldn't go - even after cleaning out the spark plugs, etc. - and had to be brought to the dealer. It really had me frustrated 'cuz I could never figure out when it would act up next.
I found some threads that talked about starting problems and found one interesting comment. Someone mentioned that they had a similar problem and that it seemed to act up after they had moved the car. I thought back to all of the times I've had a problem, and it was an exact match. If I started the car, moved it to let someone get out of the driveway, and shut it down immediately (after < 1 min) that's when I would have problems. I would say that almost every time I had a starting problem this was the case. I believe this is a little know engine/ECS design problem.
BTW, I should also mention that since I discovered the possible cause of the problem I have made sure I always let the car warm up for a few minutes before shutting it off. I haven't had a problem since, and that was well over a year ago.
natewood, I feel your pain. Our 1995 B13 1.6L has the same problem. I was driving it one day and it just cut out on me as I was about to turn up into a gas station. Luckily a few friends where around to push the car into a parking space. After it stalled I tried to start it again but I would get nothing. All I would hear is a tick, tick, tick if at all when trying to turn over. Everything was working fine and the starter motor was replaced a few weeks before. We brought the car to a mechanic and after a week of looking it over he couldn't figure it out either. I'm thinking the timing chain may have slipped a notch on the sprocket. A year before this break down the timing chain and guides were replaced so I assumed anything relating to the chain would be fine. To replace the chain, it may cost $500+ depending what else is wrong. Once the winter is over I'd like to run the codes and check the car over myself to see if the mech. missed something.
If anyone has an idea to the cause of natewood's or my problem it would be great if you posted.
Hey, Nate. Your symptoms still strike me as really familiar. One of the worst times my car wouldn't start, I had done all of the same things as you...took everything apart, changed plugs, changed electrical parts, confirmed good air/spark/fuel but still nothing. It would crank just fine but wouldn't fire. I broke down and went to a dealer. They said it was flooded so badly there was fuel in the oil pan. They got it running for the cost of an oil change, some spark plugs, and an hour's labor.
The car was out of warranty. Unless there was some sort of recall, I don't think they would've done anything with my timing chain and only bill me for the oil change, plugs, and labor. They had been pretty good to me previously, so I think they were being straight up about what they found.
So what was the cause unclejoey? Maybe I'm missing something but I don't think you ever said. Anyways, I'd try a couple things. I know you said gas is squirting, but if it's not enough pressure to pass through the regulator then it's not going to fire. So I'd check fuel pressure before and after the regulator. This will tell you if the pump is working properly and building enough pressure and tell you if the fuel pressure regulator is working okay as well. I'd also buy a set of plug wires, either OEM Nissan wires from the $tealership or some NGK's. Those seem to be the only ignition parts you haven't checked. Like someone said, check to see if your exhaust has blockage, especially the cat.
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Rob '93 SE-R
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Yeah, sorry if I wasn't clear about the problem, but I was never told exactly, although dealers seem to know the problem well enough. I suspect it's something that gets set in the ECS for startup and screws up the next starting cycle if it didn't get a chance to go through a full warm-up...Something like a timing advance, mixture setting, idle adjustment, etc.
The result is that it can get extremely flooded. That's why holding the accelerator to the floor and cranking the living daylights out of it sometimes gets it to go.
you got gas because the plugs are saturated with gas, you said. You have spark? are you sure that its really sparking with good blue flame? I had the identical problem, would not start, replaced the cap/rotor/wires and plugs, would not start. We put the Consult on it and no codes came up. We checked the coil and it had spark, but very weak. I had a nology profire that I had laying around and the car fired right up with raw carbon shit out the pipes. Change the coil or get a known good coil. I bought a new OEM nissan coil for 150.00 works great ever since.
Chris 92 classic
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I actually used to get this in my 98 Civic - every so often after a big temperature / weather change during which it had been sitting for a few days, it would crank and crank and crank without starting. I don't know if it was an ECU bug like unclejoe's suggesting, or if the temperature change caused condensation to accumulate somewhere critical or what - but it was super annoying and always seemed to happen at the worst times.
My solution was the crank and wait fix - usually took about 20 minutes of waiting and cranking before it would catch.
here is the stuff from my 1992 manual that should apply general
1. battery and starter
2. fuel pressure- check pump and circuit
3. check air regulator and AAC valve
4. check injectors, by pulling distributor and listening to clicks by spinning the rotor around.
5. check for spark
6. check the plugs
7. check the ECU harness connector
8. check the ECU power supply
9. Try a good ECU
This is the direct 1992 nissan factory manual suggestions for hard to start or impossible to start when cold.
My guess is to try a good ECU from a friend or dealer/ yard.
Chris 92 classic
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