btib1998

1998 Honda Civic EX Auto transmission 1.6L 176,000 miles Cranks and cranks but will not start or sputter. No check engine light. There is gas in the tank.
Has taken a bit longer to start than normal recently. (Longer crank times)

Got spark in four cylinders.
Got fuel pressure to the rail.
Fuel pump whirrs when key is turned.
Spark plugs are dry. (no oil or gas)

ezone

Spritz a little carb/throttle cleaner into the intake (open the throttle body) then crank it. Does it attempt to fire on that? If so, you verified "lack of fuel" being injected into the engine......Next steps would be to figure out why the computer can't inject the correct amount of fuel. Got a good scanner?

btib1998

Did the starting fluid test.
No fire.
Spark plugs were wet when I took them out.
Double checked spark.
Still has spark in all four cylinders.
Timing belt isn't broken.

Scanner showed no codes or no pending codes.

ezone

Can the spark jump an air gap of about 1/2 inch or more? (some coil failures can still produce a spark but it's very short)

First post said plugs were dry, now they are wet? Are they wet now from the attempt at using a fluid? (Was that fluid flammable?)

Plugs are wet now, is the engine flooded?
Is there fuel standing on the piston tops?
Do the cylinders need dried out and re-oiled to restore piston ring seal?

Timing belt not broken, but is it in correct time?

Does the scanner have data list? Does the ECT value seem plausible?

Got compression?

btib1998

Here is what the scanner printed out. at least the first page..

I'll have to check the spark jump.
The rotor lines up with cylinder 1 wire when its on the compression stroke and 180 degrees opposite on the exhaust. I don't have a timing light or a compression tester.




System Status
Ecu Ver Name Ecu Ver Value
MIL Status OFF
Codes Found 0
Monitors N/A 3
Monitors OK 7
Monitors INC 0
---------------------1 of 16 Frame---------------------
DTC_CNT 0
FUELSYS1 OL
FUELSYS2 --
LOAD_PCT 0.0 %
ECT 73 °F
SHRTFT1 0.0 %
LONGFT1 3.9 %
MAP 14.2 psi
RPM 0 rpm
VSS 0 mph
SPARKADV 0.0 °
IAT 79 °F
TP 9.8 %
O2SLOC B1S12--B2S----
O2B1S1 1.275 V
SHRTFTB1S1 0.0 %
O2B1S2 1.275 V
SHRTFTB1S2 0.0 %
OBDSUP OBDII

ezone

timing check....I thought you had the timing cover off to see the belt wasn't broken, I figured it would be easy to check if all the timing marks align correctly.


data looks fairly normal right there for a cold engine, I assume it's in the 73-79 degree range ambient temp there.....

What was the last thing the car did before this no-start event?
Was it started and moved 10 feet then shut off?


Have you dried the spark plugs and cylinders?
Are the plug tips clean or do they have crusty buildup of some sort?
What brand of plugs?

btib1998

I will see if I can borrow a timing light.
I had the valve cover off and could see no slack in the timing belt. I will check the timing marks this weekend.
Yeah it was warm that day I scanned it.
I drove the car about 160 miles on a Saturday, parked it that night then it wouldn't start the next morning.
Plugs are clean. Dried them and then tried to start again.
In my first post I said they were dry I didn't open the butterfly on the throttle when i sprayed the fluid...stupid mistake.
NGK plugs

ezone

Add compression test to your weekend list?

If ignition timing is correct then belt timing should be ok. If the belt were out of time then ignition timing would be 10* or more off spec.

listen for fuel pump running for 2 seconds at key on, and check for pressure at the rail (PGMFI main relay fault can stop fuel pump operation)

You could use a noid light to check if fuel injectors are getting a pulse from the ECM during cranking

If you got the plugs soaked from trying to start the engine on a spray can, you may have used too much.

While the plugs were out, you could crank the engine a bit to "blow out" standing liquid from the cylinders. Make sure to disable the ignition/coil/distributor first so you don't start a fire.

btib1998

Solved:

Borrowed fuel pressure test kit.
Checked fuel pressure.
Administered a facepalm.
Changed fuel pump. (and filter)
Car started and runs.