Started the car today and pulled out onto the road and I accelerate going down to between 1/2 and 3/4 throttle when my su88 gl wagon with spfi ea82 and 3at pops/backfired from the engine compartment area and died and would not restart, at the same time it developed a click click click when the car cranks from the steering column, I pulled the intake off the it does not appear to be getting g fuel but when the key is turned in the fuel pump does make noise like it is priming. Does anybody have any ideas?

So It died again today, it was just idling this time, I have no fuel and no spark after it died, it was just fine and then it died, it has the click as well, the screw on the rotor is tight, it is cranking over just not starting, I have fuel going into the throttle body when the car is cranking but it's not making it to the injector. The coil is brand new but I'm not getting spark from it either

I'd start by looking for the no spark part first.  Fusible links, fuses.  Voltmeter to verify power is getting where it is supposed to be, as I have seen fuses fail open with no visible sign.

 

Once you know you have spark, you can spray a second or 2 of carb cleaner down the throttle body, and crank.  If it runs for a burst, then dies, now to find the fuel problem.

 

A couple things, maybe or maybe not related? 

From idle, I have occasionally popped the throttle open so quickly that the engine just stopped.  I don't recall it being a problem to restart though.

 

I have, over years, had a couple times, engine die, or not quite catch on start.  Normal cranking will not do anything but run a brand new battery dead.  I found holding the gas pedal down to the floor, and cranking - for what does seem quite long - does clear the problem, which I figure was flooding.  It takes quite a bit, and coughs and sputters back to life when this happens.  Once it begins, I let it run around 3000 RPM till it smooths out.

read the check engine codes?

 

broken drivers side timing belt?  pull 3 10mm bolts on each side timing cover.   if the drivers side isn't turning then the distributor isn't turning and the crank angle sensor isn't firing and you may also not get fuel if that's not happening?

 

what do you mean fuel is going into the throttle body but not making it to the injector?  how/what exactly are you testing?

did it do the steering column clicking noise the second time too - i wonder where the fuel pump relay is...but you say you here it priming right?

The hose going into the throttle body had fuel moving but from there I have nothing and yes the clicking happened both times, I will double check to see if the timing belt is moving.

I haven't had a chance to listen to the fuel pump this time but I will check it tommorow

Get a used coil from the junkyard, and see if it works better than the new one.  The clicking could be the starter not engaging.  It is most likely an electrical issue.  If the black fusible link had broken, you would not be able to crank it.  The black one runs the engine.  Is the battery dead?  A bad alternator will not recharge the battery and the car won't run either.  Clean the corrosion off of the 4 electrodes that the rotor passes the spark to.  Check the spark plug wires for corrosion and breakage.

The battery is charged, the alternator is working, I tried cleaning the cap and the rotor, the starter is engaging, the spark plug are clean and test fine with a multi meter

The battery is charged, the alternator is working, I tried cleaning the cap and the rotor, the starter is engaging, the spark plug wires are clean and test fine with a multi meter

Oh if you looked at the cap and rotor - you can turn the engine over either by hand (using a 22mm socket/wrench on crank pulley) or with the key (be careful) and watch the rotor spin as the engine turns.

 

if the rotor doesn't move then the timing belt is broken. 

 

still better to check the timing belt itself in case something else is compromised but the rotor spinning is an easy test anyway as it's driven by the drivers side timing belt - the one most prone to break.

So I found what was clicking under the dash, I looked up the number and it says it's an ignition relay, tried to get a new one but every new one is layed out wrong internally, I can plug it in but the diagrams on the relay don't match up

The timing belt is intact

Aahhh the suspense on the timing belt was killing me haha! Check all of your fuses. I've found that if even one blows (even if it seems unrelated) the car won't start. The reason why you're not getting fuel past the injector is because the computer is not telling it to open. There's an electrical issue somewhere; be it a relay, fuse, or an open circuit.

 

Good luck!

I found a relay under the dash that was making the clicking,I looked the number up that is on it and i5 came up with a direct ignition relay, the number printed on it is 056700-5260, I tried to get a replacement at napa and oriellys and rockauto but they all have the wrong plug layout and diagram, Tuesday I am going to the junkyard where I know there are a couple loyale/gl's and I will pull and try those

What about the big engine harness connectors by the coil, maybe they are not pushed in all the way. I had a hell of a time trying to start car after working on it. i started tugging on wires and would hear clicking and if I remember correctly fuel pump would turn on. It would start then die... And not start again. I thought that they were connected but I did not push them in all the way to hear them click. It took some force to get them to do so. Then vroom,, started right and stayed running.. Just a thought

Thank You superpoo for the idea but no luck

Tried replacing the relay today, tried five different used ones and the problem remains the exact same, I checked the fusible links and they seemed to be in one piece

visual inspection is ok to a point.  A voltmeter may tell more.

Do you have a schematic from a FSM?

Not that I know

Not that I know of

There may be pdfs posted somewhere on the forum.  My FSMs are 88 and 90.  There may be slight differences.  Troubleshooting intermittent electric problems is a pain in the butt.  I have seen wires in the engine harness fail by breaking internally - barely any visible external sign of failure.  And the loom would have to be removed for that anyway. 

 

Factory Service Manual schematic and at least a volt meter.  Then you can begin verifying 12V is getting to all the places it is needed.  [coil, ECU, etc]

Out of curiosity does the ea82 NA spfi have an ignition control module and could that be the issue?

I can help next week, I'm booked up this week

Thank you scott