MommasQuest Posted February 11, 2009 Report Share Posted February 11, 2009 Hey! I am new to this forum and have just purchased my 89 Conquest. Glad to be part of the family, unfortunately, I see being part of the family also has it's price...LOL. MY CAR WON'T START! I was driving and went to pass someone. I dropped to 4th gear and went to pass, when I did, the car made a loud noise like popping a paper bag then lost all power. I tried to pop the clutch and it would not start back up. After getting towed to the house, it finally tried to run, but would only stay running if I patted the gas. Replaced the rotor, cap, plugs and fuel pump. There is no water in the oil and the compression is 140 in all cylinders. Car is in TIME and have spark at the coil but not at the plugs...???? What am I missing?!?!?!?! Checked the ignition module and it is in the correct OHMS range. However cannot get the stator to spark when checked with a screwdriver. If there is anyone that can help me with this matter, please, please, please send all advice it will be greatly appreciated!!!! Help the newbie get back on the road. :deadhorse: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrazilBoy Posted February 11, 2009 Report Share Posted February 11, 2009 Spark at the coil but not the plugs???? pull your cap off and crank it see if the rotor turns in the distributor. If not then you have a sheared distributor drive gear.... Dumb question when you replaced the plug wires on the cap did you get them on in the right order??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edde Posted February 11, 2009 Report Share Posted February 11, 2009 check your coil for specs high and low ranges. Does your TACH bounce when you try and start? It's gets signal from the coil neg side. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cyberquest Posted February 11, 2009 Report Share Posted February 11, 2009 (edited) yeah i would recheck to verify its hitting on the #1 when its at TDC. a timing light might not be a bad idea, possible for a worn out timing chain to jump a tooth. but if your not getting power to certain areas i would think you might start by cleaning terminals, grounds and the fuseable links by the battery. follow this post to guide you thru that. http://starquest.i-x.net/viewtopic.php?t=1180 also you may find all the topic listed in the SOS MANUALS in my signature line very useful to you. they are topics related to troubled areas of the car. they have pics and instructions so you should have no problems. most of the time a little TLC can make the car come back to life. sounds like you have a good general knowledge of cars so you should have no problems working on this car. once you understand it you will find its one of the easiest cars you ever worked on. Edited February 11, 2009 by cyberquest Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vbrad511 Posted February 11, 2009 Report Share Posted February 11, 2009 Verify you've got spark at the coil. Tape the trigger on on a timing light, put the inductor lead on the coil wire, hit the key. If the light fires on the coil wire but not on the plug wires replace the cap and rotor again with better parts. If you truly have spark, look at your intercooler piping, make sure nothing popped off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MommasQuest Posted February 11, 2009 Author Report Share Posted February 11, 2009 Spark at the coil but not the plugs???? pull your cap off and crank it see if the rotor turns in the distributor. If not then you have a sheared distributor drive gear.... Dumb question when you replaced the plug wires on the cap did you get them on in the right order??? [/quote I haven't checked that yet, so I will do that today. I didn't even think about shearing the gear. Thanks! I will let you know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MommasQuest Posted February 11, 2009 Author Report Share Posted February 11, 2009 check your coil for specs high and low ranges. Does your TACH bounce when you try and start? It's gets signal from the coil neg side. No bounce in the tach....checked the ohms on the coil...all good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MommasQuest Posted February 11, 2009 Author Report Share Posted February 11, 2009 yeah i would recheck to verify its hitting on the #1 when its at TDC. a timing light might not be a bad idea, possible for a worn out timing chain to jump a tooth. but if your not getting power to certain areas i would think you might start by cleaning terminals, grounds and the fuseable links by the battery. follow this post to guide you thru that. http://starquest.i-x.net/viewtopic.php?t=1180 also you may find all the topic listed in the SOS MANUALS in my signature line very useful to you. they are topics related to troubled areas of the car. they have pics and instructions so you should have no problems. most of the time a little TLC can make the car come back to life. sounds like you have a good general knowledge of cars so you should have no problems working on this car. once you understand it you will find its one of the easiest cars you ever worked on. I already checked the timing and she is "dead on" The link you provided is very useful. I will try that as well. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MommasQuest Posted February 11, 2009 Author Report Share Posted February 11, 2009 Verify you've got spark at the coil. Tape the trigger on on a timing light, put the inductor lead on the coil wire, hit the key. If the light fires on the coil wire but not on the plug wires replace the cap and rotor again with better parts. If you truly have spark, look at your intercooler piping, make sure nothing popped off. Good point....haven't checked the intercooler for that. I heard a loud pop like popping a brown paper bag. Something blew off somewhere. It is alot louder on the exhaust than it was before the incident. I appreciate all the post. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edde Posted February 11, 2009 Report Share Posted February 11, 2009 Yeah I'm confused only because I read again that the car started briefly? It either has spark or it doesn't, right? If the tach is dead you have an ignition and or wiring problem for sure. It will bounce when it gets signals from the coil neg post. This wire also runs to the ECU. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Technology Posted February 11, 2009 Report Share Posted February 11, 2009 Sounds to me like an intercooler pipe popped off. That would make it not run correctly either. Other loud popping sounds might be a broken metal part in the engine. Do you have any new leaks? did you take off the valve cover and check that everything is alright, no metal bits laying around in there? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cyberquest Posted February 11, 2009 Report Share Posted February 11, 2009 god i never thought about it being as simple as a intercooler pipe letting loose. that would make a lot of sense, minus the no spark thing. and like edde said if it had no spark why would it start briefly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ernielist Posted February 11, 2009 Report Share Posted February 11, 2009 Hey! I am new to this forum and have just purchased my 89 Conquest. Glad to be part of the family, unfortunately, I see being part of the family also has it's price...LOL. MY CAR WON'T START! I was driving and went to pass someone. I dropped to 4th gear and went to pass, when I did, the car made a loud noise like popping a paper bag then lost all power. I tried to pop the clutch and it would not start back up. After getting towed to the house, it finally tried to run, but would only stay running if I patted the gas. Replaced the rotor, cap, plugs and fuel pump. There is no water in the oil and the compression is 140 in all cylinders. Car is in TIME and have spark at the coil but not at the plugs...???? What am I missing?!?!?!?! Checked the ignition module and it is in the correct OHMS range. However cannot get the stator to spark when checked with a screwdriver. If there is anyone that can help me with this matter, please, please, please send all advice it will be greatly appreciated!!!! Help the newbie get back on the road. :deadhorse: Yea I spoke to this lady and her husband yesterday about her car and unfortunately I wasnt much help so I referred her to you "experts" lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edde Posted February 11, 2009 Report Share Posted February 11, 2009 god i never thought about it being as simple as a intercooler pipe letting loose. that would make a lot of sense, minus the no spark thing. and like edde said if it had no spark why would it start briefly. Yup. I'm liking the IC plumbing as well. Plenty have reported the exact pop sound when this happens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dstar88 Posted February 11, 2009 Report Share Posted February 11, 2009 You said that there was spark at the coil but not at the spark plugs?? how did you check to see the spark at the coil?, did you un plug the wire on the coil and watch it arch across to the body of the car when the engine cranked over? if you did that, try putting the wire back on the coil and unplug the other end going to the dizzy, you can put it on maybe the side fender or let it rest by one of the nutts that holds the strut in place, and crank the engine over again. if you see any spark arching going on there then try it at the dizzy. maybe have your husband hold the wire with a rag maybe a couple millimeters away from the center part of the dizzy cap and see if the spark will arch into it. if it does, go ahead and plug it back in. you just ruled out not having spark to the dizzy. now pull the wire going to the #1 spark plug from the dizzy and do the same thing you just did with the wire going to the dizzy from the coil. if you do not see a spark jumping from dizzy to the wire., then i would say that the stator thing inside has died out., and its not letting the voltage go to each spark plug, the dizzy will either need to be replaced or rebuilt with a new stator and other peaces. if you do end up seeing a spark jumping across to the wire, then check the other wires as well to make sure each wire is getting the sparking and arching, then move on to the spark pugs.., if still no spark to the plugs check over the wires and make sure they arent grounding out to anything anywhere, and pull the plugs to make sure they are ok. also you can plug the wire back in to the spark plug when you pull it out to see if the spark plug is sparking the way it should. but, if you do not get any spark going to the dizzy from the coil. then check the ground wire to the coil from the ecu (as suggested above). maybe that wire just ended up going bad as well and is not allowing the ecu to send a ground to the coil anymore. find a wire diagram to find out which wire it is, it should be a wire that actually looks sort of like the one for the 02 sensor(doulbe insolated white i think, thicker then most there should only be two wire thick then most and one goes to the coil and the other goes to the 02 sensor). heres a link for to find a wiring diagram - starquestgarage.com use the 88 manual, should be the same thing as the 89 since it uses the same computer. in section 26(electrical) / page 65 it will show you what color wire it is (white), what color wires are next to it at the ecu(pin #2 white & black, and under it should be an open pin), and what pin# it is ( pin 1). i believe that wire (blue and white shown on page 64) should split off to the silver box by the coil and go to the ecu (white wire that splits off back to the ecu to pin 1). if the coil does not receive a signal from the ecu, then the coil will not fire (i leaned that not to long ago). you can check to see if the wire is good by making sure the wire is grounded at the coil. and using a volt meeter to ground it at the ecu side. if you put it to DC., and put the black wire from the volt meeter on the wire going to the coil and the red wire from the volt meeter going to another grounded source, and you read 00.0 then the wire should be ok. you can also check with the ohm setting to. im not sure if there should bet resistance or not but it should go to 0 as well. if it does not seam like it is grounded (the volt meter giving weired reading and fluctuating all over the place) then you may have to rewire it from the ecu to the coil. hope this helps...this is how i was able to trouble shoot my problem similar but not really to yours. Daniel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sully Posted February 11, 2009 Report Share Posted February 11, 2009 sounds like I/C pipe to me too. Maybe some other Big Vacuum leak too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dstar88 Posted February 11, 2009 Report Share Posted February 11, 2009 (edited) oh yea, and as everyone els is stating, you may want to check all inter-cooler hoses to see if one popped off of cracked and blew up on you. i would just pull each one off from the turbo the the i/c and the i/c to the throttle body, and thoroughly inspect them if you do not have a way to pressurize the whole system with it all intact to check for cracks(thats if it doesn't look like any of them came off).. Daniel Edited February 11, 2009 by dstar88 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
strang3majik Posted February 11, 2009 Report Share Posted February 11, 2009 yeah...I had an intercooler pipe pop off once...scared the crap out of me... Acted kind of like a speed governor...other than the car stalled...and a loud pressure release sound. Keep in mind...sometimes they don't actually blow off the pipe...Mine simply moved right over the little nub. But...in the moments you get it to run...do you hear any engine noise? How about a wooshing sound? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MommasQuest Posted February 12, 2009 Author Report Share Posted February 12, 2009 yeah...I had an intercooler pipe pop off once...scared the crap out of me... Acted kind of like a speed governor...other than the car stalled...and a loud pressure release sound. Keep in mind...sometimes they don't actually blow off the pipe...Mine simply moved right over the little nub. But...in the moments you get it to run...do you hear any engine noise? How about a wooshing sound?not realy now it wont run and has weak spark at the plug but strong at the coil .coil fires hard to a ground but not to distheld coil wire close to center of cap no fire Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlowinUp54B's Posted February 12, 2009 Report Share Posted February 12, 2009 I had my BoV hooked up with the wrong vaccum so after boosting a bit I heard "BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM" and something flew up out of my engine bay.. lmao (no hood) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MommasQuest Posted February 12, 2009 Author Report Share Posted February 12, 2009 You said that there was spark at the coil but not at the spark plugs?? how did you check to see the spark at the coil?, did you un plug the wire on the coil and watch it arch across to the body of the car when the engine cranked over? if you did that, try putting the wire back on the coil and unplug the other end going to the dizzy, you can put it on maybe the side fender or let it rest by one of the nutts that holds the strut in place, and crank the engine over again. if you see any spark arching going on there then try it at the dizzy. maybe have your husband hold the wire with a rag maybe a couple millimeters away from the center part of the dizzy cap and see if the spark will arch into it. if it does, go ahead and plug it back in. you just ruled out not having spark to the dizzy. now pull the wire going to the #1 spark plug from the dizzy and do the same thing you just did with the wire going to the dizzy from the coil. if you do not see a spark jumping from dizzy to the wire., then i would say that the stator thing inside has died out., and its not letting the voltage go to each spark plug, the dizzy will either need to be replaced or rebuilt with a new stator and other peaces. if you do end up seeing a spark jumping across to the wire, then check the other wires as well to make sure each wire is getting the sparking and arching, then move on to the spark pugs.., if still no spark to the plugs check over the wires and make sure they arent grounding out to anything anywhere, and pull the plugs to make sure they are ok. also you can plug the wire back in to the spark plug when you pull it out to see if the spark plug is sparking the way it should. but, if you do not get any spark going to the dizzy from the coil. then check the ground wire to the coil from the ecu (as suggested above). maybe that wire just ended up going bad as well and is not allowing the ecu to send a ground to the coil anymore. find a wire diagram to find out which wire it is, it should be a wire that actually looks sort of like the one for the 02 sensor(doulbe insolated white i think, thicker then most there should only be two wire thick then most and one goes to the coil and the other goes to the 02 sensor). heres a link for to find a wiring diagram - starquestgarage.com use the 88 manual, should be the same thing as the 89 since it uses the same computer. in section 26(electrical) / page 65 it will show you what color wire it is (white), what color wires are next to it at the ecu(pin #2 white & black, and under it should be an open pin), and what pin# it is ( pin 1). i believe that wire (blue and white shown on page 64) should split off to the silver box by the coil and go to the ecu (white wire that splits off back to the ecu to pin 1). if the coil does not receive a signal from the ecu, then the coil will not fire (i leaned that not to long ago). you can check to see if the wire is good by making sure the wire is grounded at the coil. and using a volt meeter to ground it at the ecu side. if you put it to DC., and put the black wire from the volt meeter on the wire going to the coil and the red wire from the volt meeter going to another grounded source, and you read 00.0 then the wire should be ok. you can also check with the ohm setting to. im not sure if there should bet resistance or not but it should go to 0 as well. if it does not seam like it is grounded (the volt meter giving weired reading and fluctuating all over the place) then you may have to rewire it from the ecu to the coil. hope this helps...this is how i was able to trouble shoot my problem similar but not really to yours. Danieli have strong fire at the coil but weak at the plugs .coil fired at ground but not at center of dist Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JAinsworth Posted February 12, 2009 Report Share Posted February 12, 2009 The loud pop sounds like you blew the ovcp off at the throttle body. The weak spark is probably coming from low battery voltage from continuous attempts to start. If you don't have the service manual, you can view it at: http://www.starquestgarage.com/manuals/ser...ervice_nav.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MommasQuest Posted February 12, 2009 Author Report Share Posted February 12, 2009 i have strong fire at the coil but weak at the plugs .coil fired at ground but not at center of dist OK everyone....now we have fire on all four cylinders and the coil. The engine turns over, but WILL NOT start. The injectors are spraying great. IDK. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MommasQuest Posted February 12, 2009 Author Report Share Posted February 12, 2009 No bounce in the tach....checked the ohms on the coil...all good. Yes, the tach bounces when trying to start. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MommasQuest Posted February 12, 2009 Author Report Share Posted February 12, 2009 The loud pop sounds like you blew the ovcp off at the throttle body. The weak spark is probably coming from low battery voltage from continuous attempts to start. If you don't have the service manual, you can view it at: http://www.starquestgarage.com/manuals/ser...ervice_nav.html Yeah, weak battery. I looked all around the throttle body and didn't see anything disconnected. What does the "ovcp" look like? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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