Hi, got a wierd problem.

 

Normally my soob starts without hassle, since putting her on the road and having to fix one mechanic's screwup, she has never broken down, till now. :-\

 

I tried to start it, the engine cranked, nothing. Checked the carb for fuel, looked inside the dizzy, checked the leads, nothing.. I manually turned over the starter motor, got back in the car and it started straight away! Ok, so I figured it was the starter motor.. I turned it off, then restarted it, started straight away.

 

Drove off, did some shopping, got back the car, started straight away.. then promptly died. The engine was still hot.. I tried to start it again, it did start, but not very easily.

 

The days before, there was nothing wrong. Has never backfired, has never played up like that.

 

Oh, its an ea81 in an 84 gl.

 

Any help would be appreciated, I rely on her for day to day driving, I cant afford to be without a car.

 

~Fox

carb, spark, fuel?

 

if you rely on this car i'd recommend a complete tune up. plugs, wires, distributor cap, rotor, PCV, clean/rebuild the carb.

 

 

or SPFI swap the thing since carbs suck.

The spark is good, new leads/plugs too, fuels good, pcv, dizzy, rotor button all good.

Hey.. could it be a belt?

 

Theres noone else here atm and its pretty black outside, Ill have to wait till tomorrow before I can do anything else. Neighbors will complain that I am making too much noise or something... Car wont start again.

nah, don't think it's a belt. EA81 doesn't have timing belts and the accessory belts shouldn't keep it from starting.

 

next time it doesn't start smack the starter a couple solid times with a hammer, wrench or something heavy. starter might be near the end.

 

try a jump?

Well, I belted it with a hammer, no luck. I now cant get the engine started at all..

 

The starter motor has a sticker on it, was recently replaced/reco'd.. Ill have to give it what for tomorrow.

 

It actually sounds pretty good, the starter is strong, battery too. I wonder if its the coil, intermittently going out.. damn. >.<

Have you tried running a 12v wire to the starter solenoid (small tab) directly powering it? It could be a weak contact of the ignition. Is that the problem that the starter won't crank over the motor?

 

If the motor is turnong over but not firing, then I would begine to look at fuses. Test for power to the anti-diesel solenoid on the carb with engine being cranked. If there is no power to the anti diesel solenoid, then I would suspect the *rev sensor* or *FPCU*. It is a small black box, mounted over the hood latch (that is here in USA, not sure on right hand drive) Won't send power out to Fuel pump or to the anti-diesel solenoid unless it get's a signal fromt he tach.

Hate to say it, but it sounds like it might be the ignition module inside the distributor, if it cranks over fine, but randomly dies but runs great when it is running. The coil is cheaper, but on one of mine, it was the distributor.

 

Z

The carb has fuel, the engine is turning over, just not firing.

 

Is it likely to be a problem that develops without symptoms and seemingly instantly?

Edited April 8, 200916 yr by Fox

Check for spark with a timing light. Also check the quality of the spark. Should jump 6mm or more.

My wife's '84 does what yours is doing when the fuel filter is getting clogged.

Dont laugh but you could also have a bad ground. My brat used to flicker when I would shift hard and the volt meter would jump around. The motor was trying to ground via the mounts I ran a new motor to chasis ground and it worked fine.

*sigh*

 

It has to be something in the ignition components.. I'm now getting no spark.

 

I tried to fire it, first time start, then promptly died. All my wiring is in good nick, everythings tight. I suspect the coil, or something on the way there.

 

Thanks for all your help.

The coil is getting voltage, I checked the + of the battery to the - of the coil, and the reverse. Where is the igniter? (I have no idea what it looks like)

 

There is no spark whatsoever still..

Where is the igniter? (I have no idea what it looks like)

 

If you are referring to the pick-up coil that zyewdall was talking about then it is in the distributor. Do you have a Hitachi distributor? If you have a multi-meter you can check your coil and the distributor function.

If you are referring to the pick-up coil that zyewdall was talking about then it is in the distributor. Do you have a Hitachi distributor? If you have a multi-meter you can check your coil and the distributor function.

 

Ack. No, I dont.

 

Im going to have to go for a long walk to get one, looks like I have no other choice, and being so close to the long weekend I am stuffed anyway, noones open.

So there is no external igniter on my car, that makes things a lot easier

 

Now, I found a test online, could I use this with the ignition module?

 

"...you could put a small low current 12V bulb (so we're not talking about a headlight or tail light - just a Radio Shack 12V bulb) between the +12V and the output of the igniter.  (envision hooking it up across the coil but taking the coil out of the circuit).If the bulb flashes when cranking, your igniter is ok. If not, it will take a little detective work to make sure that you indeed are getting a periodic input on the igniter."

 

UPDATE.

 

Ok, I did a different test with the coil and it failed.

 

The test light lights up on the + of the coil and a good ground (suspension component), however it does not light on the - of the coil and the + on the battery, when in the ignition is in the on position. According to the manual, that could indicate primary line failure inside the coil. Could that also be indicative of the ignition module failing?

Edited April 9, 200916 yr by Fox
UPDATE

By the way, I have pulsing light on the - when cranking.

Easy way to test the coil is to pull the coil wire from the distributor and crank the engine. Hold the end of the coil wire from a metal ground and a spark should jump 12mm. A good coil will not fire if the points are not opening and closing and if the condenser inside the distributor is bad.

I did that, no spark.

 

Couldnt no spark also mean the coil is dead?

 

If I wasnt living on a student income atm I would just replace both.

Never looked inside an old Subaru distributor but guessing it has points and therefore a condenser. If the points don't open, no spark. If the condenser is bad, no spark. If the coil is bad, also no spark. If you manually open the points with the key in on, the coil will fire. This is just a test for the points.

Sorries >.< I have the hitachi, no points, just the control unit, which is either faulty, or the coil is.. and I need to find out which

I would check the grounding strap, or straps ( earths ) in england. if its an intermittent problem, engine grounds ,body grounds, coil module grounds etc, clean all of them, and use a dielectric grease....

BAD BAD BAD!!!

 

I cannot find the right dizzy or electonic module anywhere, every single soob in the wreckers has a points system, even the newer ones they had!!

 

Does anyone know of a compatible electronic module? I am desperate, I NEED my car on the road, today if possible! I need a car this weekend, desperately.

By the way, I have pulsing light on the - when cranking.

 

This to me indicates a very weak coil. Just pull a coil from about anything at the wreckers and swap out yours.