lthao61

relay

nicks-eg6

have you tested the ignition coil or check to see if you have a security system, my car was doing the same thing. it turned out the security system that i never knew i had caused a short which messed up my ignition coil... weird isnt it??

JeremyL

but if it was a security system it shouldnt even crank right?

how do i test the ignition coil? i dont see a horn under the hood or any other signs of a security system...any other things to look for for a security system?

ziich2

when was the last time you replaced your fuel filter?
did you get spark or not?

TouringAccord

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by ziich2 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">did you get spark or not?</TD></TR></TABLE>

x2

I wouldn't worry about how to check the coil until you first check if you are getting a spark or not.

But to check a coil you'll need an ohmmeter.
You'll need to measure the resistance between the Primary Winding and the Secondary Winding.

Primary Winding Resistance
(between the A and B terminals)
0.6-0.8 ohms

Secondary Winding Resistance
(between the A and secondary winding terminals)
13,200-19,800 ohms

BLK/YEL wire = terminal A
WHT/BLU wire = terminal B

hondachris1994

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by LowSlow93Sol &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

To test a spark plug you can remove the plug from the motor set the base of the plug on a ground like the frame and then crank it and see if it sparks.

</TD></TR></TABLE>try that to see if u have spark then let us know or quit wasting your time posting cause we r here to help u but if u dont try what we say, u and us cannot diagnos your problem until u do

JeremyL

this just getting better and better. i go to try for spark (i work 12 hrs a day 6 days a week so im not excatly loaded with time) and i cant find my damn socket extender to pull the plug out. so i remember a guy saying i can just use the end of the plug wire so i try that and nothing, no spark at all i even put my finger right to the end of the plug wire and nothing

I can get a complete distributor for $200. I really dont have or want to put $200 into a car I paid $150 for especially if that didn't end up fixing it. But at this point it really couldnt be anything else right?

I don't know when the fuel filter was last done but ive had cars that when i chaged it the fuel came out almost black and the car still ran

On another side note i was going to check the coil so i when i took the cap off and went to pull the rotor off the damn thing would not pop off and there is also a black housing underneath the rotor that covers the coil...how do you get that housing and the rotor off?

TouringAccord

ok, so you're not getting spark. Now don't just go and replace the entire distributor without checking parts on the inside first. It could just be a waste of money.

To get the rotor off you need to remove the bolt thats holding it on. If the bolt is in a hard position to get to (facing down), give the engine a quick crank to spin the bolt into a better position for you to get to. After you remove the bolt the rotor will just slide off. It may be a little stuck but just give it a good pull, it'll come off. The plastic cover under that should just come out. It may be snapped in place but it's not bolted or screwed into place or anything.

Looking at the diagram below you can see the rotor (#3) is held in place by a bolt (#11) and then the cover (#5) under it looks to be just snapped into place. And as I'm sure you know the coil is part #12.

JeremyL

so i should still be able to got to the screw holding the rotor in with #5 in place

would a bad rotor make the car not start? i can see the contact point of the rotor and it doesnt look that bad. ive seen rotors in much worse shape on running engines

now i dont have an Ohm meter, can i remove the coil and bring it to my shop and have one of the guys check it outside of the dist? would it test right outside of the dist i guess is what im really asking

TouringAccord

yeah, the bolt can be gotten to with #5 still there. Part #5 isn't coming off withut the rotor removed anyway so...

yes, you can just remove the coil and have it tested outisde the distributor.

Here's what my coil looked like when it went bad.

Notice the little spring is missing?

Notice the white streaks on the black plastic? Figure it must have arced and blown.
It also didn't pass the ohm tests.

Not saying your is going to look like that, just showing you what mine looked like when it went.

If your coil looks good and checks within specs, next check the igniter unit.

JeremyL

well the spring is in place and when i can get the dist apart ill get it tested

what part of that diagram is the igniter?

TouringAccord

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by JeremyL &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">what part of that diagram is the igniter?</TD></TR></TABLE>

part #9

JeremyL

is the igniter connected to the bottom of the coil?

now if the coil doesnt check out the next step would be the igniter right? now if theyre both bad then what?

TouringAccord

I don't believe the igniter is connected to the bottom of the coil but I do believe it is located at the bottom of the distributor.

There is a wire that runs from the igniter to the coil as well.

If the coil checks bad, replace it and see if the car starts now. If not, check the igniter. If the igniter also checks bad, replace it as well and then check and see if the car starts now.

YodajdmEK4

I am guessing main relay, listen for the clicks when you turn the key, 3 clicks means relay is fine, anything less then that means that its the main relay

JeremyL

I think we already ruled out main relay since the fuel pump does prime

I was just looking at prices for some of these parts and http://www.autopartswarehouse.com has the complete dist (cap, rotor, housing, coil and igniter) for $200. Now the coil alone is only $50 but the igniter is $100. So if i ended up replacing both of those I'm only $50 away from a whole new dist

anyone want this car with the LS rims on it for $150 lol

im gonna have one of the guys here check the coil tomorrow and see if its the coil, hopefully it is. now if he checks the coil and it is in spec then it would have to be the igniter right

JeremyL

checking the coil today. thanks for the map of what the readings are im sure it will help a lot

ill check back in once i get the readings from the coil

JeremyL

couple questions...what do i set the ohmmeter for? it has about 6 different ohm settings

also the secondary wiring terminals you refer to is where the little spring is right?

JeremyL

anyone?

vu337

check the main relay it usually does when it's really hot , it doesn't prime the fuel pump if you hear the fuel pump prime then it's something else

GSaura

Set the ohmmeter for the appropriate resistance range. Like put it on 10-20 kOhm to measure the secondary winding resistance and put on the lowest setting for the primary winding resistance. Just stick one probe before the resistor and one after the resistor. If you have an infinite resistance reading at every setting, that means that the circuit is open and the coil is blown. If the resistance values aren't within spec, that will also mean it's bad.

EvilPhu

unplug/unscrew the coil out before you test it

uLikeMyPreludeSi

little plastic button on the cluch pedal?

the_militant

welll, same thing happened to me except it was WHILE i was driving and (coasting it on nuetral) im not gettin a spark from my distributer either so i know that must be it.

its funny because i thought it was a fuel/no gas **** also. but i did what they told me and im not gettin a spark so im gonna go with you have a distributer problem also.

im runnin a 93 si 1.6

also, LOOK around

i was gonna get charged 132 plus tax for a new distibutor, went somewhere else and got a price of 30$

JeremyL

Got the car running today. The funny thing is at this point I don't know whether it was the pump or the coil. When i put in the MSD pump i put the wires on backwards so i thought i had fuel when i never really did. so today when we were trying to get it running a guy from work brings over a new coil and we test for spark and we have spark so we pop the bolt off the fuel filter and turn the key and no fuel, at all not even a drip. so we go back to the tank and find a little hole in the tube between the pump and the plate so we fix that and then for some reason we took the wires off and we noticed there was a labelled positive and negative so the gears start turning and we decide to flip the wires around and then we test for fuel and gas flies out of the pump. Voila!!! we have fuel and spark. so after finally getting a jump from a passing motorist we get the thing to fire up and it runs, pretty good too. but a billow of smoke pours out of the engine bay and we all see that the alternator is not turning and the belt got smokd right off the engine. so the engine is running but now i need to replace the alternator, which is in a b*tch spot on this car