Ah, the dreaded "WOnt Start!" topic

morriswil

Here it is,
My wagon has been acting up by not starting sometimes...Never the first start of the day, but usually a quick drive to the store for some beer and dinner or errands...come back to my new found little love, and...she says. "NO START, SUCKER!! Grab a book, relax..your not going back home right away..Lets just hang out here for a while and enjoy this parking lot, while we watch all the other cars come and go." While waiting, I hear a car next to me start right up and it makes me cringe :x I see my beers next to me... sweating in the sun...oh sooo tempting....

Then, after a few exciting pages of fishing regulations, she decides to fire up and take me home.

Until recently, although a bit frustrating, I thought this might be a good exercise of Zen-Like humility and patience. But...last straw for both of us... She never started :x And I had to walk home tonight without her.
TOmorrow morning, I'm going back with more tools and stuff to explore all of the usuals... spark, fuel...etc.. but I'm still new to fuel injection and don't know my new baby all that well..I did a quick search and found something about the main relay going bad..and how if a solder gets tired it will no longer send circut to the fuel pump...And then some stuff about checking the codes with the ignition,and looking at the little LED on the box on the passenger side beneath the carpet....... all new to me.. (I'm an old school carb guy...never had a fuel injected/computer before :?

Anyway, long story sort of short..so far, no go whatsoever with the cranking...just the starter rolling along with no "hello" from the motor...If I can't get her going tomorrow morning, the store wants me to get her out no matter what...That means the Tow Truck... So what could it be? And if it is the Main Relay could I just push start it to get the motor rotating in order to start it at least just to get it home?

Any, and I mean ANY experiences or suggestions would be welcome!


Thanks,WIl

So I need help fast!

Tatty90EE4

I was also having some issues with my wagon not starting right away after shutting her down after a drive.

One day, I'm sitting at idle waiting for some buddies, she just dies on me. I checked relays, fuses, etc. I noticed that my dizzy cap was really hot, so I let it cool down. Took the cap off and turned out that my coil fried. Literally, it was crispy and falling apart. Replaced it, started right up and haven't had an issue since.

This fixed my problem, don't know if it's the same one your are having, but you could check out your coil.

Hope this helps a little bit.

bam-bam

Sounds like a main relay. You should hear a click and a humming noise(the fuel pump priming) when you turn the key. If you don't hear that, relay is not working. If you DO hear that and it doesn't start, then next most likely culprit is distributor/igniter.

SiWagon

I'm with bam-bam about the igniter.Check the 4th link on this thread:
viewtopic.php?f=16&t=739

What you described is what happen to me.Either it'll just cut out or becomes more frequent .I'm going to try adding a heat sink on the outside off the dizzy.

morriswil

Thanks folks so much for your replies. Already learned a lot. So here's the latest..It started the next morning and I got it home.. 8)
Now...here's the closer look. I pulled back the passenger carpet to reveal the Main Relay..yup..16 LED beeps..meaning from what I understand that the fuel injectors are not sending fuel. OK, BUT, when I get the light "beeps" at position #2, in other words when the main relay is talking, I DO hear the fuel pump priming, it WILL start when I go to position #3. I start it...turn it off..then put the ignition to position #2 again..this time no fuel pump priming, no LED lighting from the main relay. I try again to position #2--sometimes waiting as long as 2 seconds--I hear fuel pump priming (good feeling 8) ) and see the LED light blinking...Confidence builds....she starts

So...What gives? Is this normal? Is it the Main Relay that's being finicky or something else.. I never heard of a gasoline car that you had to turn the key part way, wait, then fire it up just like diesels. For the record..I'm old school and new to fuel injection

Thanks in advance.
Wil

morriswil

Ok,

I take it back..I can get a LED light sometimes without hearing the fuel pump priming..but sometimes there's neither LED light nor pump sound..but basically..car will not start without LED AND Pump sound. In fact, car will never start without pump priming sound. It seems I can usually achieve this by turning the starter switch key off and on until I hear it..then guaranteed start at position #3.

I'm trying so hard to be as descriptive as possible that I'm afraid I might be confusing the masses :oops:

I'm just excited that I know I'm getting closer to the solution

bam-bam

First: The thing in the passenger footwell with the LED isn't the main relay, it's the ECU/ECM/engine computer. The main relay is bolted to the A-pillar, behind the dash, above the hood release. If your fuel pump is not running and ECU not powering up, change the relay.
The main relay is a set of breaker points activated by a solenoid coil- the winding or contact points isn't usually the problem, rather the solder joints cracking. Classic symptom is starts when cold but not when warm.

wagodizzle

how-to locate and replace Main Relay:

http://fourthgenhatch.net/mainrelay.html