man on the moon Posted April 22, 2011 Share Posted April 22, 2011 I was on my way home from work today when the motor simply stopped going. I went from 60 to coasting sans motor all too quickly. At first I thought it was the timing belt/s as those are needing to be replaced soon (when I get the money), but it turned out to be a fuel issue. The following is my rough side-of-the-highway assessment. The fuel pump turns on. I get fuel to the filter (and through it). I get fuel all the way TO the throttle body, but the injector doesn't fire. Yes, it is plugged in. I had a spare injector along (don't ask, long story--it's from a parts car I had over a year ago), and tried it (yes, I transferred the fuel line and plugged in the appropriate wire), but nada. I wisely put my tool bag in my apartment before flying to my parents for a funeral last week, and did not wisely put it back in the car when I got home again. The information I have so far is based on diagnosis done with a swiss army knife, keys, and the handle to my floor jack that was conveniently located in the back of the car. And a piece of paper. I hope to retrieve the car tomorrow if I can't, in fact, fix it on the road--it is about 25 miles away...not in a hurry to tow it if I don't have to! Could it be: --a bad fuse I don't know about? I checked all the cabin fuse panel fuses. --a bad circuit? I will take a voltmeter with me to check the resistance and continuity. --ECU gone/going out?...Not in a hurry to gamble on a junkyard ECU if I can help it. How would I know if it IS the ECU? (The fuel pump works, lights work, etc). I've had an ECU fail on a Loyale before, but it was between drives--not while I was going down the road! --A bad injector? Or pair, rather, as I had that random spare with me. --I did try the poor man's...I should say "idiot's" voltmeter. I stuck a wire in the sending end of the injector plug (the harness end) and made sure they weren't touching at the plug. Then I unrolled a few feet of wire and tried for a spark while the engine cranked--nothing, nada, zilch. May need a more sophisticated and somewhat less idiotic tool, but it did get some info... I have had no other fuel related problems with this car. Ever. This is completely out of the blue, or so it seems. I did swap out the fuel pump about a month ago, but that was pre-emptive as the old one was having symptoms of an upcoming catastrophic failure. No other problems in the 500+ miles since. I'll add other info if I think of it, or someone has a question. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
man on the moon Posted April 23, 2011 Author Share Posted April 23, 2011 I has solved the mystery! First thing I did was pull a plug to check for spark, check air flow, check for gas. Air had no blockage, I got a hell of a shock from the plug I pulled (plus I could hear/see it), and no gas...so...[insert last nights swiss army knife adventure in troubleshooting the fuel line here]. Then today: I got the plug to fire! It put a fair amount of gasoline into the throttle body. The engine *almost* caught. Mind you I spent two hours using the multi-meter to check every possible plug/circuit/what have you--fuel injector, engine temp sensor, ECU everything, my butt...oh, not my butt. But just about everything else! And with no significant issues. Check the blinky light on the ECU...11? The chart says 11 is crank-angle sensor...where...another hour down the drain pouring through every freaking diagram and relevant paragraph in the Chilton's to discover it is on the distributor! Pull the cap, pull the spare (yes I had a spare in the back). Can't find the damn thing. Well, maybe something wore out, I figure, let's see if something is wrong with the rotor. Crank the motor. Nothing. Rotor is stock still. The timing belt is gone! Well, it's *there*, but in a completely useless loop-less form. The ECU wasn't getting info from the crank-angle sensor, so it wasn't firing the injector, so I wasn't going anywhere... But how the hell did I get a spark?????? After more investigation come to find out the plug I checked? Yep, the rotor stopped in exactly the position necessary to fire that plug! My gut initially said timing belt/s. (I have been planning to replace them come May), but the spark threw me for a good three hours or more. Now the car is in an impound lot as I didn't find a wrecker fast enough for the police; I get to rent a car hauler and go pick it up tomorrow...then to fix it...sigh. The things I'll do for my Subaru! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dennyt Posted April 23, 2011 Share Posted April 23, 2011 Wow, what an ordeal! Bummer about the impound. Did you notice the car cranking unevenly when you tried to start it? After a few broken timing belts you'll learn to identify it :-\ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
man on the moon Posted April 23, 2011 Author Share Posted April 23, 2011 (edited) Strangely, I didn't notice uneven cranking. I think both belts went, or one took the other out. I got enough gap at the bottom of the driver side cover to see inside, but could only feel/peer through the little tightening hole to the left side. They have been on their way for a while, and I was hoping to do it next week or mid-May. Oh well. Next time (which I don't plan on happening, but hey--life happens) I'll check the belts first, though! And listen. Edited April 23, 2011 by man on the moon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ricearu Posted April 23, 2011 Share Posted April 23, 2011 Use the kit on ebay that includes the tensioners and idler. Its worthit to not have one lock up and eat the belts in 10k miles and only like 60 bucks. I got 35k on mine before the hg blew... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.