Car wont start after sitting a while...need ideas. Options

[biosurfer1]

So after 8 months of sitting, moving to my new house next week got my a$$ in gear to get my 914 back on the road...and now it wont start.

Background Info: Back in April, the 914 went on jackstands to replace the brake calipers and convert the tranny to sideshift. Brakes are now done, and the tranny was rebuilt and installed. I didnt start it for so long because I couldnt get the shift linkage adjusted. I know, bad excuse but with a new job and whatnot, it just got put on the back burner.

Anyways, now I want to drive it to the new house so I started going through it and trying to solve the problems. I tried starting it the other night and all it would do is crank very slowly but wouldnt not turn over. After talking with a friend, I found that the tranny ground strap was not installed. I got a new one, cleaned all connections and hooked it up. Now the car will crank like normal, but it will still not start.

I went through everything I could think of but nothing helped, so now i'm looking for suggestions on where to go from here.

List of what has been checked:
accelerator and throttle linkage ok
all hoses replaced and connected correctly
battery fully charged
all grounds cleaned connected correctly
AAR recently cleaned out and works
plenty of gas in the tank

So where do I go from here??

BTW, its a 1971 1.7 with FI.

[KaptKaos]

Air, fuel and spark.

Check the air filter, make sure it's not obstructed. Varmints have a way of getting into stuff.

Pull and injector and get a small jar, try and kick it over with the injector in the jar. If there is gas, you're probably ok. If not, check the fuel lines and then the fuel pump. Listen to hear if you hear the fuel pump tick on when you click the key to on. Could be a relay to the fuel pump too.

Check for spark. Pull a plug wire and see if you get an arc to the tin when you crank. If not, you can also try a timing light to see if it is firing. If not, check the coil. If you are running points, you might need to check points and condenser too. Replace as needed as they are cheap.

Lastly, your gas might be gunk. I don't know how long it normally takes to go bad, but it could be. That would also gum up your filters and fuel pump. Others can chime in on that as well.

[stateofidleness]

check the connections on the starter and the ignition switch/coil

[biosurfer1]

Thanks guys

State: I checked all the connections on the starter and cleaned them all up...I'll double check to make sure they are in the right places again tomorrow but i'm sure they are.

Kapt: I have the oil air cleaner and I cleaned it out too and put fresh oil in it. I'll check the injectors and spark tomorrow also...I dont think gas turns that quickly, but I'll also check that out too.

[The Kelzer]

[quote name='KaptKaos' date='Dec 15 2007, 03:38 PM' post='977329']
Air, fuel and spark.


Don't forget, compression and accurate and properly timed delivery of said "fuel" and "spark"

TK

[jasons]

Since its FI, do you hear the fuel pump run momentarily when you turn the key on? If not, you may have some corroded pins on either your Power Supply or fuel relays. You can jump pins 87 to 30 to find out.

[Hammy]

Since its FI, do you hear the fuel pump run momentarily when you turn the key on? If not, you may have some corroded pins on either your Power Supply or fuel relays. You can jump pins 87 to 30 to find out.

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Turn key ignition on and see if you hear the pump go. It'll go for a few seconds if working correctly.
If not, check your relay board. Clean the fuses and pull the relays and sand the pins....

[biosurfer1]

i was trying to listen for the fuel pump but the fan kept turning on so i couldnt be sure and i had to leave for a christmas party before i could disconnect it.

all great ideas...will check all tomorrow morning. It ran fine when I last drove it which makes this a little frustrating.

[roadster fan]

Since it ran good when you parked it I would guess fuel pump. My 71 sat for about a year I think prior to me purchasing it and the fuel pump was stuck from varnish. I pulled the pump, took off the top and noticed a little varnish around the impeller (?). Cleaned all that off put back together and voila!

If it turns out to be a stuck fuel pump, it is worth draining the tank, replacing the fuel filter, before you run it for very long.

Hope this helps,

Jim

[swl]

A year is a little short for varnish build up but it could be a 'last straw' kind of thing. If there is power arriving at the pump but the pump is not not working try a little whack with a hammer. The pumps have a very low starting torque and sometimes a little vibration is enough to get them going. If that works then a tear down is probably in order.

BTW If you have to troubleshoot the pump you can hard wire reasonably simply. Remove the power to the coil to protect your points. On the relay board remove the 4 pin plug on the back left. Jumper pin 3 (front drivers side) to ground. Pin 3 is what the ECU switches to ground to turn on the pump. Now the pump will run when you turn the ignition on.

oh - one more. If you can't get the fan to shut off just pull the relay - rear passenger side.

[biosurfer1]

took out the heater fan relay and turned the ignition and nothing...checked the relay for the fuel pump and its fine so it looks like the pump isnt working...I tried tapping it with a hammer and still nothing. Got reinforcements coming, I'll update later.

I am determined to drive my car to the new house!

[swl]

while you are waiting for reinforcements...

Take off the wires from the fuel pump and measure for 12v across the 2 wires. If you have 12 volts there then you know you have a stuck pump.

[biosurfer1]

2 steps forward, one step back:(

I found that the wire connected to the battery had worked its way lose from the spade connector, I just didnt see it earlier so the fuel pump is back to normal.

We also got the shift linkage adjusted and I can find all gears, so thats great.

However, apparently the car sat for too long and after firing it up for the first time in months, I have two more problems. First, I had gas squirting out of the fuel hoses so we had to shut things down quick. I was able to get the hoses off the fuel rail (PITA!!) so I'll go buy some replacement. It looks like all the other hoses have been replaced except the two that cracked...dont really know why the PO just didnt do those too but oh well.
I also am having a problem with the clutch cable and accelerator binding up somewhere. I looked under the car and nothing there so it must be some place in the tunnel. When I push the clutch pedel down, the accelerator also goes down...scared the shit out of me since before we saw the fuel spitting out, the car was running, I pushed in the clutch and the engine rev'ed out.

Any ideas??

[KaptKaos]

Take the carpet up in the middle of the car. Find where the throttle and clutch cable are run. Press on the clutch and watch the throttle cable. Its likely twisted up in there somewhere.

[swl]

quite a common oops is to get the throttle cable wrapped around the clutch cable. Get a little flashlight and an inspection mirror and look down the tunnel. There is an inspection port right beside the throttle. (if you have a console it will probably be in your way. The cables both run down the drivers side of the tunnel. If they are fouled pop the end of the cable off at the ball joint (can be a bit of a PITA) make it right and reattach.

Be very vigilant in inspecting ALL the fuel hoses in the engine bay! That includes the little pieces down to the injectors. Engine bay fires are legendary with these cars. Matter of fact - for the few bucks involved - replace everything on the high pressure side just to be sure. No gear type clamps either - make sure they are proper fuel hose clamps.

[biosurfer1]

Thanks everyone...

I replaced the fuel lines that were leaking. All of the other lines had been replaced by the PO, but I checked them anyways and replaced any that looked old. It did the trick because I have a running 914 again. Checked everything again while it was running for 20 minutes or so and not a drop (of oil either:))

I will check the accelerator/clutch cable tomorrow night, its just weird because I drove it fine for months before this and have done nothing to either cable since then.

The problems are getting fewer and easier to fix, which makes me happy. I'm able to find all gears in the tranny and should be back to driving this week! Thanks everyone!

[KaptKaos]

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Nice.

[biosurfer1]

BTW...this car is a perfect example of "while I'm in there" syndrome.

It started out with "hm, those tires don't look in good condition" which turned into "ew, those brakes need a rebuild".

All tolled today, its been 8 months, 4 tires, 4 brake calipers, 4 rotors, stainless steel brake lines, rebuilt tranny, engine drop, tons of rubber replaced...and still a long ways to go!

I love these cars