OK i took someones advise on here and took up my carpet on the driver side so see the ECU...now i had a question of..if my car is throwing a code will it flash in that little plastic/glass box? And if so how do i know what the code mean?

 

Nevermind..all there is is that red flashing light..other than that nothing...damn thanks anyways

 

There will be a little circular window in the ecu with a LED flashing. It should flash once every once in a while just to let you know that it's working.

If something is wrong, it will flash a certain number of times. Count the number of times until it stops blinking. Take that number and check it with a chiltons or Haynes(or even better, Helms) manual under "ecu codes". The number will have a part or problem listed next to it. Go from there.

 

Thank you very much i'll brb i'm gonna check it and then post what its like..i have a book but it isn't the best

 

Ok its 6 flashes and then a break (no light) which according to my book....is coolant temperature....but the car has been sitting since it broke down on me almost a month ago..so WTF?

 

you half to reset the ECU everytime you fix a CEL or it stays with it. Unplug the ECU for 15 seconds or so and plug it back up.. Thats it, or.. Disconnect your battery for the same time.

 

I did that few minutes ago after thinking about it..i disconnected the battery for a few seconds and then put it back on. Now i have no error codes..BUT still my car doesn't start..i have 1)spark..2) fuel (smell at least) and the engine turns over...not its not STARTING...i just replaced the spark plugs and still wont start...oh well i'm gonna take off the head tomorrow i hop ei find something there...

 

check the starter, that tends to go out sometimes. or take it off and take it to an advanced auto parts or a similar store to get it checked.

 

The thing though is that it died as i was driving..kinda jerky motions and then the RPMs went up and down and then died. And when i took out the plugs #3 was melted...yesterday i did a ghetto compression test and #1,#4 are fine..#2 is alittle weak and #3 is 100% dead...

Can anyone guess what is wrong? I have fuel and spark..and the started turns the engine, i have the timing belt cover off and i can see it moving the gear. So any guesses?

 

check grounds...


if everything is intact, is sounds like your engine is dead

 

head gasket?...check your timing if not that then its your ignition or distributor...check your grounds like the last guy said and check all your other wire connections and fuses...good luck

 

there anyway i can confirm "deadness"? i know on a person you can check the pulse but what about on a car? i mean it has gas...i'll check grounds in the morning ( its too dark now) and other than that i don't know what to do other than a cheap engine swap

 

checking the pulse on your car should be done by an expert bro,tow it to a shop you trust and have them check it out for you...

 

when you did the compression test, did you disconnect the fuel pump? and crank the car over about 11 times? You should have got compression on all cyl. reguardless of the situation

 

Ok i would take it to the shop but as of this minute ( 4 hours after i got my check from work) i have about $500 to invest in my car...and i can't waste it on having a mechanic check it out, i was hoping i could either fix it myself or do a ZC swap. So #2 how do i disconnect the fuel pump can i do it pretty easily? If not i'm planning to take the head off and check out what the piston for #3 looks like tomorrow

 

it sounds to me like your timikng is off. Try to re-align your timing belt. Still giving you problems, check the dizzy....you said it just died on you......maybe the coil in the dizzy is gone. Try those and get back to us

 

Ok, how would i know if my "dizzy" ( i'm guessing distributer) coil is off..now on the timing..my girl friend bought me the manual for my car (she is great) so i think that if everything is in there i might be able to check the timing, but if not then how can i do it? I remember reading something about lines on the engine and the gears. Bu other than that i don't have a timing gun or anything else all technical. thank you guys ALOT

 

theres alot of good ideas here... BUT

as long as your car is throwing the coolant temp sensor, it will NOT run PERIOD!

so start with the 2 wire plug going into the head on the same side as the distributor. play with it, clean it, whatever but definately start with that plug

 

Alright i already took care of that..my coolant was a little low so i topped it off and reset the ECU by dis-connecting the battery...but it doesn't flash at all anymore so i think thats a good thing