1997 200SX SE: Car wont start - I have tried everything!

[JoeIsom]

I have a 1997 Nissan 200SX SE - 1.6L - Automatic - 125000 Miles

I have been driving this car on a daily basis for a long time, and have had absolutely ZERO problems with it so far. Power seems good, never sputters, never pings, never has stalled, always has started the first try.

I have been doing regular maintenence on it as well, chaning the oil every 3,000 - 4,000 Miles, new air filter about 2 months ago, and new fuel filter about 6 months ago. The car has never leaked (or burned) any oil.

Yesterday I drove my car to school (about 90 miles roud trip) and it ran great. I put gas in it before I left (only about 1/2 a tank), then drove it to school. It sat in the parking lot for about 6 hours. Then I drove it home, and parked it for the night. I had ABSOLUTELY NO problems at all with it.

This morning I woke up and tried to start it and it just keeps cranking over, never starting. It sounds like it wants to kick on, but never does. It cranks strong too, but just wont go.

I pulled the spark plugs, and all are getting good spark, but they were kind of worn, so I put new ones in it. I ensured that the gap of the plugs were to spec. I also checked that it was getting fuel by pulling the injectors and everything looked great. I checked all of my belts, and timing does look ok. I also checked ALL of my fuses and relays, and nothing is wrong there either. It makes no unusual noises when cranking.

I am just absolutely baffled as to why it wont start. I am a poor college student, and cant afford to take it to the dealership (or any other mechanic) I called my dad (who was a mechanic for many years) and he is kinda clueless now too.

PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE post any ideas that you have on why this is happening. ANYTHING AT ALL!!!

Thanks!

[JoeIsom]

I was searching the net for ideas, and the only thing I haven't tested yet is compression.

Now, from my limited knowledge of mechanics, for a car to run it needs a fuel source, ignition source, and compression. As long as these three things are ok (and are timed properly) the engine should run.

Could compression be an issue? Like I said in my original post, it has been running great until this morning, so wouldn't compression (or the lack of) cause my car to run poorly over a period of time before quitting on me?

[JoeIsom]

I also checked that it was getting fuel by pulling the injectors and everything looked great.

Correction: I didn't "PULL" the injectors, I tested them at the wiring harness with an LED. They seem to be working just fine.

Sorry to make so many posts, and for being long winded... Just wanting to be very clear on my problems and what I have done so far.

Thanks again!

[champride]

hey have you fix the problem yet.. let me know cuz im having the same problem as you after my transmission swap it just wont start but it crank..i did all the same tested taht u did and it turn out everything is good.. doenst know the reason y? if u solve this problem already please let me know. thankyou

[JoeIsom]

Hey, I guess I kind of fixed it. The car starts and runs fine now.

I honestly didn't do anything different, just got angry and started to rank it over like crazy. I held the key down and let it crank for almost 3 minutes straight (yeah, the starter was really whining, and overheating, and I had to have jumper cables from my truck connected the whole time) but it finally sputtered up.

It died 2 times after that, but using the same method I finally got it to start. After letting the engine warm up a bit, I turned it off, and it restarted just fine. It seems to be running good too.

So yes, my car runs. No, I didn't fix the problem. Wish I knew what caused it because its bound to happen again.

[dkdeleon68]

check your temp sensor and temp sensor connector. to check temp sensor connector do as followed,disconnect temp sensor connector turn ignition switch to "on" (not start)check voltage between terminal "A" (light blue wire with orange stripe on the connector) and motor ground, voltage should be 5V approximately.

Then turn ignition to "off" and check continuity between terminal "B" (black wire on connector) and motor ground, continuity should exist.

[ca18datsun510]

check engine light on?

[JoeIsom]

Hey, thanks for the help.

I checked my temp sensor just like you said, and it checks out ok.

Yes, my engine light is on, but I havn't reset it since I have gotten it started. I want to take it down to the auto parts store and have them pull the codes first, in hopes that it will help me figure out what happened.

I still don't know what the problem was, which worries me. I just hope that it doesn't happen again.

It seems to be running great now. Two days have passed where it has started the first time. It doesn't knock, ping, hesitate, miss, or sputter. It runs like a champ!

i will get the codes pulled in the morning and post them here. I still am going to investigate this until i figure out why it happened. Its just too weird of a problem to just let go.

[wrenched_1]

did you but your gas at an amazingly cheap place? water in your gas could go this. i have seen it many times.