Hi guys,
So I recently purchased a Z that had been sitting for 2 years after an engine rebuild. Previous owner said that 2 months after he got the car back from an engine rebuild, the car started to lose power and smoke out from under the hood. He said he immediately pulled over and suspected it was a head gasket problem. After going through legal advice he decided to put the car in storage without touching it. 2 years later I then bought the car and started to inspect it for the cause of the smoke.
P.s I have all the documentation for the engine rebuild
Anyway back to the story, after pulling out the plenum i checked the spark plug wells. All of them seemed normal until I got to well #6. As i pulled out the spark plug, my remover was dripping with oil and i quickly realized that there was a valve cover gasket leak. So i pulled off driver side intake valve cover and there was a huge crack running alongside a corner of the valve cover. My initial thought was that the shop that did the rebuild accidentally broke it and tried putting it back together with steel putty( i know -.-) because there was steel putty like substance covering the crack and gave it to the previous owner as is.
After going through everything and making sure that nothing else was damaged, I replaced the valve cover and put everything back together. At this point I had already done a coolant line bypass to save me the trouble in future pulls. after putting everything back together with new hardware, gaskets and seals, and new fluids i was ready to start the car and get her running. Initial turn of the key was uneventful in that the car cranked but never actually started. I tried slowly adding more fuel into the combustion chamber by pumping the throttle slowly and kept on turning the ignition. Same thing throughout the whole time, a crank but no start. It didnt make sense because I had just bought a new battery, new spark plugs, new coil packs, made sure the starter was still okay, and I had actual documentation of the rebuild so everything should be brand new.
So my question is, what could be the problem? Most common answers I've found were the starter/starter relay being too old or worn, FPR not working right, old electrical connections, re-setting the ECU and stuff like that. But I want to see if anybody had dealt with a similar situation so I could maybe pinpoint exactly what is going on with the car. Advice and help fully appreciated, thank you for your time.
1993 NA 5 Spd Cranks but won't start
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PapaSmurf2k3
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Re: 1993 NA 5 Spd Cranks but won't start
Well its cranking, so it isn't your starter relay.
You need to determine if its getting spark or not. Pull a plug and keep it connected while you crank the vehicle and have someone else look to see if its sparking (or vise versa). Also check to see if its wet with fuel while you have it out.
You need to determine if its getting spark or not. Pull a plug and keep it connected while you crank the vehicle and have someone else look to see if its sparking (or vise versa). Also check to see if its wet with fuel while you have it out.
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nissanfreak12
- Posts: 1709
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- Car: 92 300zx 2+2 TT
- Location: Denver, CO
Re: 1993 NA 5 Spd Cranks but won't start
Crank and no start could be the following electronics
CAS-Try turning it all the way to one side and crank, if that doesn't start it, slowly move it to the other side.
PTU- Are all the grounds connected, verify you have spark
Injectors-ARe the ohming between 10-14, have you done a click test?
Coil Pack-ARe you getting spark?
HAve you checked the ECU for code?
All fuses and relays in working order?
Engine
Compression-EVen though it is freshly built, do you have enough compression to start it? Have the rings seated properly yet? Try adding oil to the combustion chamber to up the compression. one tablespoon will do, don't add too much.
Head gasket-Again its about proper compression
Fuel
Injectors-see above
Fuel pump and Fuel pressure regulator-Do you have proper fuel pressure.
Pumping the throttle will not add anymore fuel than what it is with not pushing the throttle, Only thing it will do is holding it to the floor will not inject fuel incase you have flooded the engine.
When you pulled the plugs, were they wet at all? If they were dry(no fuel on them) you are not getting fuel to the engine. Check injector, are they old style or new style(old style has square plug in and new style has oval plug in). Old style failed due to ethanol in fuel. If it sat for 2 yrs, chances are the injectors are no good. Check these and get back to us.
CAS-Try turning it all the way to one side and crank, if that doesn't start it, slowly move it to the other side.
PTU- Are all the grounds connected, verify you have spark
Injectors-ARe the ohming between 10-14, have you done a click test?
Coil Pack-ARe you getting spark?
HAve you checked the ECU for code?
All fuses and relays in working order?
Engine
Compression-EVen though it is freshly built, do you have enough compression to start it? Have the rings seated properly yet? Try adding oil to the combustion chamber to up the compression. one tablespoon will do, don't add too much.
Head gasket-Again its about proper compression
Fuel
Injectors-see above
Fuel pump and Fuel pressure regulator-Do you have proper fuel pressure.
Pumping the throttle will not add anymore fuel than what it is with not pushing the throttle, Only thing it will do is holding it to the floor will not inject fuel incase you have flooded the engine.
When you pulled the plugs, were they wet at all? If they were dry(no fuel on them) you are not getting fuel to the engine. Check injector, are they old style or new style(old style has square plug in and new style has oval plug in). Old style failed due to ethanol in fuel. If it sat for 2 yrs, chances are the injectors are no good. Check these and get back to us.