93 J30 will not start / smell of fuel around engine

[swerzman]

Need some advice! I went to start my 93 J30 today and it will not start. The battery & alternator are only 3 months old. Have not had any problems lately with the vehicle. I noticed a strong fuel smell when I opened the hood. The engine seems to be turning over good but to no avail? I'm not really sure if fuel injected cars can flood, if so, what can be done to overcome this condition. Thanks,swerz

[coolyun_98]

It sounds like you have some fuel line issues.

Check if any of the rubber fuel line is leaking. The smell is definitely sign of leaking. The question that still needs to be answered is "what causes the leak and why the car will not start".

It can be injector/o-ring that is leaking gas into the cylinders. You can check it by open the air intake and check for gasoline smell. If there is a strong gasoline smell from inside the manifold, it is very likely that you have a injector/o-ring leak.

Hope it helps.

[swerzman]

Thanks for input. Turns out the car was just flooded some how. I took it to a nearby garage & they finally got it started by holding the accelerator down & staying on the starter for around 60 seconds before it finally fired. He said all fuel injected engines have this reset mode to clear a flood condition by just holding the accelerator to the floor while turning the ignition key.

[nikoz]

Bad news. If my experience is any indicator, the problem may become more frequent, especially if you only use the car for short hops as did my wife. I assume you live in a cold weather area. There are 2 things that happened; the air intake became restricted & the mass air flow sensor needed replacing with a rebuilt unit.

[coolyun_98]

Flooded. Does the mechanic say why?

[swerzman]

My son drives it to school everyday. Only a mile or 2. Sounds like you're on to something. What is the cost of the mass air flow sensor replacement, and how is the air restriction flow remedied? I live in Missouri where temps approach the 20's frequently.

[karlwayne1]

hello every body my j30 motor locked up on me because low on oil please if any body know any kind of way to unlock the motor before i buy another one please help

[coolyun_98]

did you lose ur key to the motor?

[nikoz]

My son drives it to school everyday. Only a mile or 2. Sounds like you're on to something. What is the cost of the mass air flow sensor replacement, and how is the air restriction flow remedied? I live in Missouri where temps approach the 20's frequently.

The garage (not dealer) I took it to charged me $550 for a rebuilt unit + a ton for troubleshooting, cleaning parts etc for a total of $1300, parts included, before taxes. I've seen other posts that say a rebuilt MAF costs $500 at NAPA.

For the air restriction flow, they replaced the air intake valve ($135) plus cleaned the accumulated oil & gunk in the intake for a total of $600 before tax.

[karlwayne1]

no it just stop turning over i was told it had locked it self up

[nikoz]

They are prob'ly referring to "vapor lock", but I don't think that's it in your case. It sounds like you have the same prob as Swerzman & I. To start it, slowly depress the gas pedal to the floor. Start prolonged cranking. If you're worried about overheating the starter, stop cranking periodically, but do not release the gas pedal. When it finally catches, do not totally release the gas pedal, but back off until you rev @ 2500 or so. Let it run until warm & try backing off the gas until it'll run at idle. If you stall it, you'll prob'ly have to repeat the whole process.

[karlwayne1]

i dont thank its the air flow because remember it didnt have any oil in it i did this once before in a cavalier and the motor locked up with a craked head gasget so i dont know i really need help tryna get around from getting a new motor....but if that does happen do any one know where to find the motor brackets or any other part to taking out the motor a pic will help very much thanks

[puck]

I've had my J for 3 years and I have this exact problem 1-2 times per year in the winter. Most people seem to have this problem with short trips. Not the case for me. It almost always happens on the next cold start after a long drive (300-400 miles). The funny thing is I drive 2 miles every day to and from work and have no problem with the short trip thing. Otherwise it always starts fine. As you found, starting it with the accelerator done will take care of it. I've had my mechanic look it over (he does nissans) after doing much of the stuff here mentioned myself and he agreed is sounds like its flooded and it is a j30 thing.

[GerryO]

Too much fuel or not enough air. Possibly a dirty/sticky IAC valve, leaky injector seal, dirty throttle bodies that aren't closing fully, a mis-adjusted accelerator or cruise control cable or faulty TPS?

Holding the accelerator pedal to the floor while trying to start the engine, fully opens the throttle bodies, allowing the maximum amount of air in and may signal the ECM that the engine is flooded (if the TPS is working properly).

It's also important to remember that when starting a J30 nornally to simply turn the ignition key, with no pressing of the gas pedal at all. The engine should crank for probably less than 5 sec, before it starts and then idles between about 1,500 and 1,800 rpms.

After things are fully warmed up, the engine should idle at about 650 rpms in Drive, sitting at a full stop with your foot on the brake.

[lifexpr08]

Hi all,

Its seems like there are topics here. One for locked up motor and the other is motor wont start/gas smell. I will talk about the latter. I have the same problem when first tried starting the motor when cold. The motor wont't start until I stop cranking the key and letting go the gas pedal and then the motor hesitates but quickly starts. When the engine is warm, no problem starting. I also smell gas for a few minutes then goes away after driving it. If anyone know the problem and was successful with a fix with these sysmptoms please point out the thread. If I find the problem(s), I too will post it here. Thanks!

[driverdriver]

I didn't have a gas smell problem, but I did have a hard start problem a number of years back either first thing in the morning or after a long period parked. Apparently the culprit was that my base idle had somehow set itself to a lower idle. Dealer reset my base idle and the hard start problem disappeared.

[lifexpr08]

Thanks Driver, I will check that. I was told by a mechanic that my cold start problem could be the fuel pressure. He might be right because right after I change my fuel filter the car started right up on the first try. Maybe the pressure change when I disconnected the lines and put back (who knows) but the cold problem is still there the next start and still a problem today. I try to rent a fuel pressure reg reader to check pressure and probably suspect the pressure regulator and this cost around $100 so I want to make sure its the problem. What is strange is that I cannot find the PRVR control solenoid valve. The manual points to me the location but its not there!? A bracket with a hole to mount thats it. I have a 1994 J30, do they have it? strange...Driver or Yoda is it possible to link me to that various repair docs for the J30 thanks. Maybe my manual is not for the 94.

My original problem was that the cyl. 1 injector was bad. I paid $600 to remove the plenum and change the one injector. When I got the car from them it ran ok when the engine is cold but the engine ran rough when hot. The mechanic said it could be more bad injector and recomend adding injector cleaner into my gas tank. Since then my cold start has appeard and still running rough when hot.

Please let me know where is the PRVR solenoid valve is located or if this 94 j30 has one...thanks.

[GerryO]

My original problem was that the cyl. 1 injector was bad. I paid $600 to remove the plenum and change the one injector. When I got the car from them it ran ok when the engine is cold but the engine ran rough when hot. The mechanic said it could be more bad injector and recomend adding injector cleaner into my gas tank. Since then my cold start has appeard and still running rough when hot.

Please let me know where is the PRVR solenoid valve is located or if this 94 j30 has one...thanks.

A lot of electrical connections, fuel line, coolant line and vacuum hose connections are disconnected and reconnected as part of a plenum pull, and hopefully your mechanic used new o-rings on the injector that he replaced.

You could also have a vacuum leak and information in these two links may help too.

http://home.swipnet.se/e-solutions/IdleTech.html http://home.swipnet.se/e-solutions/IdleTech2.html