Engine back in car, wont start. Suggestions?

[Vkoslak]

Brief history:92 240sx super hicas.

yanked old engine, pistons had nice marks in them where valves had hit.Bought working if somewhat negleted KA.Tore apart a sohc KA and took the pistons. Put new rings on them.Tore apart new dohc ka and put sohc pistons in. I marked the positions on the timing chain with some of my wife's old nail polish Put everything back in the car using 248 exhaust cam rotated 4 teeth from old engine for intake cam.New clutch, new clutch slave cylender, new fluids, new battery, new belts, new fuel filter, new air filter, new distributor rotor, new ngk plug wires, new ngk plugs, new o2 sensor.

What happens when attempting to start.

Car cranks, I dont have the exhaust hooked up to the manifold yet, so when the valves open I can hear lots of air. Its a weird sound. Kind of like a bicycle air pump. After a couple of attempts, I walked around the car checking for leaking fluids and didnt see any. I also checked for smells. I didnt smell anything. Which struck me as odd as if the gas isn't igniting, I should smell the vapors coming out of the exhaust manifold.

This is my first time tearing down and rebuilding an engine. I have probably missed something simple, maybe the fuse for fuel pump or something.

If anybody has any hints or suggestions, please post them here!

Thanks a bunch!

[SlowBack]

Do you know that you're getting fuel? That'd be the first place that I'd check. Also, I hope you hand cranked the engine first before using the key to start it. Otherwise, incorrect timing could cause your new valves and pistons to hit as the old ones did.

Good luck,Matt

[Vkoslak]

I'm 99% sure the timing is correct. I never took the lower chain off. and I marked the upper chain with different colors of paint. With the valve cover off, and #1 at TDC, the cams look like what is in the sticky and is correctly aligned with the paint marks from before I took the newer engine apart.

I also am not hearing lots of tapping when the engine is cranking.

It was very hard to turn the crank by hand when getting #1 to top dead center, but it was constantly hard to turn. I think it was just the new piston rings.

I'm not sure if its getting fuel, I didnt smell any, and I think I should have. Is there something I can check?

Thanks

[rneil]

you can try starting the car and you should be able to hear the fuel pump in the trunk or pull off a fuel line and start the car. if fuel shoots out you are getting fuel.

[FliMSiCaL]

check your fuel pump, like the guy above me said. Check your fuses, the ecu fuse is known to blow when major repairs are being done. which would cause ur injectors to stop firing. Get a noid light and see if u are getting a pulse to them. Also make sure the crank angle sensor is working.

[Vkoslak]

I hear the fuel pump. Calling it a night though. Will be Wednesday before I can try again.

[rneil]

check your fuel pump, like the guy above me said. Check your fuses, the ecu fuse is known to blow when major repairs are being done. which would cause ur injectors to stop firing. Get a noid light and see if u are getting a pulse to them. Also make sure the crank angle sensor is working.

where exactly is the ecu fuse? is it in the box next to the battery or elsewhere?

[FliMSiCaL]

its usually inside the fuse box in the car, but hidden off to the side somewhere. Sometimes its an inline fuse also. On 240 i'm not sure, i havn't had to search for mine yet If this is still an issue tomorrow, i'll go find mine and let u know where it is.

[rneil]

its usually inside the fuse box in the car, but hidden off to the side somewhere. Sometimes its an inline fuse also. On 240 i'm not sure, i havn't had to search for mine yet If this is still an issue tomorrow, i'll go find mine and let u know where it is.

that would be very helpful

[slipknotfan192]

check your grounds and can you hear the starter trying to turn over the engine?

[Vkoslak]

More info:

Starter is turning. Fuel lines deffinatly have pressure, pulled off the line above the fuel filter and sprayed myself good. Fuel injectors are getting electricity, tried holding a multimeter on the wiring harness while my wife cranked the car. I got shocked real good. I did have a loose ground, I tightened it, no effect.If I spray starter fluid into the intake manifold, I get some pops when I turn the car over.

Right now Im thinking something is wrong with fuel rail. Fortunatly, I have the one off my old engine. I will try replacing the fuel rail tomorrow night.

BTW wtf is the connector I'm holding in the following picture. I can't find anything to plug it into.

[Vkoslak]

It started! and then promptly died. I got it to start a handful of times. Mostly by messing with the distributor. I ended up not changing the fuel rail. tube from exhaust to egr valve wasnt on. didnt seem to matter when i put it on.

It still has trouble starting, and once started, doesnt run long.

I tried the extra spark plug in one of the wires to make sure i was getting spark. when I cranked it. Spark plug was sparking, but it didnt seem very powerful.

I dont know what to try next. I was getting a code 11 from ecu, but after reseting it and trying to crank a few more times, its 55.

So frustrating. Will be worth it once its running though.