Hey guys, I have a trusty 97 EX sedan that currently has about 195k miles on her. Pretty much all stock. This morning, I went to start her up (and she usually fires up right on first try), but it sounded like it was about to start up, but then died. Tried again, and it tried to crank and made a weird noise. Definitely not normal. Any idea what it could be? If it's something simple, I'll try to work on it today. If not, I'll have to get it towed, as I need it for work tomorrow. Also, I thought maybe the TB had snapped, so I had my wife crank, while I looked at the rocker arms and they were moving, so that's probably not it? I don't know. Any input would be appreciated. Here is the vid:

http://youtu.be/hGYE4554OOg

 

Maybe I missed something, but all I heard was a "cranks but won't start" problem.

Fuel pump prime?

Spark at plugs?

CEL codes?

 

I can hear the fuel pump prime (at ON position), and there are no CEL codes. I just tested the spark plugs and they all have bright white sparks shooting out.

Maybe it's the starter motor? If you listen to the vid, the car doesn't crank like normal. It's more of a constant whine sound.

 

Are the cylinders getting fuel? If so, check the mechanical timing:

 

I can tell you it's not the starter. Check the mechanical timing like Ron said.

 

Ok, guys, I'm a noob (especially for engine work), so I don't know much about how to check to see if the fuel is getting to the cylinders. How do you do that? Also, to get the timing belt cover off, I just take off the valve cover, then a few bolts for the TB cover, right?

 

After cranking the engine, is there fuel on the spark plugs? Or try to start the engine with starting fluid.

Yes to timing belt cover question.

 

Pull the plugs and see if there is any fuel on the tips. You shouldnt have to take the valve cover off, just remove the 10mm bolts on the tb cover.

 

I can definitely smell the gas on the plugs. I also just took the VC and TB covers off and the marks line up like RonJ's diagrams. (Thanks for the diagrams, BTW).

 

The horizontal cam lines are also present on the rear side of the cam. Do they align with the top of the head? Does the pointer on the lower timing belt cover align with the white mark on the crank pulley?

 

The crank pulley does line up with the mark on the TB cover. I didn't check the rear side of the cam. I will have to check that (I reinstalled the VC, so need to get take that off again).

Is it common for the timing to be off suddenly? Last TB change was at 140k miles and she has run flawlessly since then. Timing belt looks great still (Honda OEM belt) and I don't think it would have skipped a tooth, but who knows.

 

Ok, marks on the cams are ok, too.

I was also thinking it could be the Viper alarm that was installed many years ago. But if the fuel is getting to the cylinders, that eliminates that problem. I think I am just going to call a shop and let them have a go at it.

Thanks for everyone's help.

 

Compression test the cylinders.

 

Yesterday, I had them tow the car to a shop. The guy called back a couple of hours later and said that all that is needed is a new battery, fuel filter, plugs, cap, rotor and wires. How much? $500. Ok, tow it back to my house, because he obviously either didn't know the problem or was taking me for a ride, as I'm sure if that didn't work, he'd suggest something else and keep running up the bill.

I rented a compression gauge today to test compression. Had my FIL up here to help. He sprayed some starting fluid down the intake and it fired up. He wanted to see if it would keep running after the ether had burned up. Well, it just kept on running. We ran it for a bit, then shut it off. Started it again a little later and she's running perfect. So I have no idea what caused this. It's now a few hours later and she's still running great. (we didn't bother with the compression test, BTW).

I did notice yesterday, before it was towed to the shop, that the hose running from the valve cover to the cylinder head (vacuum hose?) had fallen off. I don't know how that came undone, but maybe that was a part of the problem?

I'm going to see how it runs for the next little while. I hope it was just a fluke, but who knows.

 

That hose is just the breather, shouldn't make a difference as far as starting the car.