1997 Honda Civic Del Sol

​Engine B16A2

1.6L DOHC 16 Valve VTEC

I've been trying to figure out the cause of a no-start condition (i.e. the engine will crank but will not start) and think I have tracked it down to the ignition coil. I'll make a separate post with questions about that diagnostic.

During the diagnostics, I had to crank the engine several times to check for power connections, but (due to my own ignorance) I did not disconnect the fuel injectors or the main fuel pump relay.

I am concerned I may have been flooding the combustion chambers with fuel during each crank. I have cranked the engine well over twenty times, and each time was less than 5 seconds. I have not smelled fuel, and the spark plugs are dry when I pull them out.

I haven't replaced the coil yet or attempted to start it with the ignition system completely assembled. Should I be worried the combustion chambers are full of fuel? If so, is there a start-up procedure you all can recommend once I have everything back together? TIA

 

Pull your plugs and crank it over. That will expel any residual fuel in the combustion chambers out of the spark plug holes. You may want to drain and check your oil - if you dumped a lot of fuel, you may have gotten fuel down in the oil. If so, change the oil. As you stated, next time, pull the ECU fuse or disconnect the injectors to prevent fuel from being injected.

 

if the plugs are dry that means youre not getting gas, Are you sure you have an ignition problem?

 

@DaX Thanks for the suggestion, but I'm a little uncomfortable with the idea of ejecting fuel from the combustion chamber while the ignition system is trying to fire (during a crank). I will probably just change the oil before trying to start the engine. On this model, the fuel pump main relay is very difficult to get to and disconnect, so I have opted to disconnect the fuel injectors during the crank attempts.

@youstolemybeer The plugs are dry, but I checked them several hours after my last crank attempt. Please let me know if I should edit my OP to include this info. I may have an issue with both the fuel and ignition systems, but right now I know for sure I am not getting spark at my ignition coil. I plan to replace this part, reassemble everything, change the oil, then try to start the engine. If it still doesn't work, I'll make a separate thread to discuss the diagnostic results there. Thanks for your reply!

 

It cant fire if the plugs are out. Pull the ECU fuse and the distributor, fuel injectors, and fuel pump wont work while you crank it over.