KA-T Won't Start Anymore???

[greazymule]

after solving my ideling issues i was really happy with the way the car was running. took it out last night for about 15 miles. i am using a smaller battery that fits in between the IC piping and i start the car by connecting jumper cables from a full size battery to the smaller battery in the car. i works everytime and the car cranks up strong. only issues while driving were it was getting a little hot, and i was getting alot of leakage from the valvecover hole, which at this point, is just open.

anyways, pulled home, let the car idle for a couple minutes and shut it off for the night. started it up today at 4 and it cranked right up but died immedietly. 2 hours later i came back and the car would not start! it keeps cranking and cranking but never turns over. i thought it was flooded so i took the fuel pump fuse out and cranked it but it never started. checked all connections. tried without mafs. nothing worked. could a not strong enough battery cause this? it cranks the car no problem but maybe since i am stock spark it is having trouble?

i am frusterated because i have changed nothing with the setup! not a thing. and it won't start! i go to college away from home so i can't constantly work on it. i have a drift event on the 10th that i want to go to and i am coming home the 9th. i am trying to get ideas and options so i am prepared to fix this thing when i get home. thanks alot to all that help.

7 heat range gapped to .30 gt32 at 11.6psi recirc hks bov enthalpy ecu z32 mafs etc.

[S14tat]

you said you were leaking from the valve cover? what are you leaking?

also check if your gettin spark. pull out one of hte plug wires, and stick a spare spark plug to it and ground the thread of the spark plug to the chassis. then have someone else crank the car to see if its gettin spark. if you get spark then check for fuel.

to check for fuel, i guess when you pull out the plugs, if they're wet and kinda black that means your gettin fuel.

those are part of the 3 things you must have to start any engine. you need fuel, spark and air. if you got those 3 down, the car should atleast start and run like crap.

[Structure240sx]

a way to check for the fuel pump working that i did to help a friend at his house the other week is to remove the fuel feed line off the fuel rail. stick it into a couple and tune the key to the last click before starting the car. if the pump is working fuel should come out for a second or two

my friends pump died and i ended up having a brand new walbro just sitting in my room

[Import_Ant]

just a thought, if you aren't getting spark check your CAS. I had two different distributors go bad on me and it was either the CAS in the distributor going bad or the wiring from the CAS to the ECU.

the ecu uses the crank angle sensor to trigger spark AND injectors so follow everyone else's advice to check for fuel pressure and spark, then go from there.

[DammitBobby]

1st thing get a mechanical fuel gauge for 15 bucks and adapter T for another 15 bucks. This will tell you if have proper fuel pressure.

2nd take out your spark plugs and examine each one to see if any are covered in black soot. Fouled plugs will keep it from starting. If they are black spray carb cleaner and clean them up.

From your description that it cranked and died and would not crank again. I am willing to bet your spark plugs are fouled out.

[greazymule]

i did take them out and check them. they wre covered in a noticeable layer of gas. not htat much though. i cleaned them with some paper towels to get the residual gas out. i didn't use any liquid cleaner. there was also some black soot on them. they are only 1 day old. what is causing them to foul? too rich? i have an enthalpy tuned ecu.

[240SicknessX]

greazy, the black soot around the outside of the plugs is cause from the 7 heat range. Im running the same and the outside of my plugs are black, showing its cold for the power level. If the entire plug is covered black, and because you are on a tuned ecu try looking for boost leaks. when the car did idle did it hold steady? wtf was coming from the valve cover? oil? blow by? what were your compression numbers on the new engine? ill give chelsea a call when i get a chance and ill discuss a few things with him.

[greazymule]

valvecover was releasing blowby, i haven't done anything to realieve the pcv pressure from seeing boost. i am not so worried about that. it wasn't that big of a deal.

at first i didn't have the iacv hooked up and VTA bov so it wouldn't idle. i have since fixed the problems but could that short time, maybe 30min, have caused the plugs to eventually foul?

[DammitBobby]

It doesn`t take much time at all to foul the plugs. Use carb cleaner to clean them out. I would also invest in a boost leak tester, everybody who owns a turbo KAT should have one. If you have access to a compressor very easy to make. Look under read here first to find the write up. It makes it very easy to find leaks even if you don`t think you have one. Leaks can cause fouling of the plugs.

[240SicknessX]

i wouldnt say that fouled plugs would be the reason for it not starting, although its possible. get a second set to put in, less varibles to think about. Check all the intercooler piping for a tight fit. If you have everything tbolted chances are that you dont have a boost leak, check for torn couplers.

it should start if you have fuel, spark, and air.

who set your timing originally? what did you have it set at?

you can try getting the car started on carb cleaner through the iacv, if it only runs on the carb cleaner then you have a fuel problem. be careful, try to get starting fluid. Ive used a few carb cleaners that wouldnt start an engine becuase they wernt flamable.

preparing for the worst: dose the engine sound like it has compression or turn over effortlessly?

[greazymule]

timing is set around 20deg. the car ran perfectly NA on this timing and also while on boost. the ecu is tuned for it also.

not all t-bolts because it isn't my intercooler piping but i will have to build a leak tester. the idle and running seemed decent though, not a noticeable boost leak if any.

def turns over fine though, i know the low compression sound from my old motor and this isn't it.

Thanks for all the help guys! i really appreciate the effort and input from everyone.