1998 Honda Civic EX Won't Start Up
 

I tried searching the forums first and found nothing that could help me with this issue so I apologize if it does exist and I simply looked over it.


I'll start from the beginning here and list everything that I know.

First the car started up fine and I drove it down to the car wash to wash the engine (approx 1 mile). Left it running while I purple powered it and washed everything down. Still never turned it off, I drove the car back up to the house (approx 1 mile) and left it running for a few minutes before turning the key off. I must have had the car off for about 3 hours before trying to start it back up. It started up fine then started to feel like it was about to stall. waited about 30 seconds and the car shut off on me. Tried to restart and nothing.

What I checked:

>Voltage from battery is OK at about 12.4 volts DC.
>Found a ground cable on the battery to be rotted at the frame and replaced it.
>Pulled the spark plugs to see if they were dirty (1 spark plug was white, 2 were dark gray, 1 was black and oil soaked.) I cleaned the oil out of the one spark plug tube and replaced all four spark plugs. I next checked for spark and confirmed spark exists at all four spark plugs using an inline spark testing tool.
>Turned the key forward to auxiliary: I could hear the fuel pump priming in the rear seat.
>Put fuel cleaner in the half-full gas tank and let it sit for a few minutes before putting 2 gallons of new gas in the car that I had in my garage.
>Pulled short ram air intake off to see if there was any obstruction and found nothing.
>Tried to start the car and I could smell gasoline in the engine bay. I currently do not know how to check for fuel pressure so I may learn how to pretty soon.
>Checked the floor for leaks and did not see any gasoline leaking.
>Confirmed the car cranks by using Iphone to record while I tried to start the car.
>A fiend of mine mentioned that maybe the muffler could be clogged so I took it off. No change when trying to start the vehicle. I Do not run any cats so they could not be clogged.
>Checked radiator and oil for cross contamination and found nothing. (Head gasket has been changed within 1 year).
>Water pump, thermostat, and radiator also changed within 1 year.
>Tried tapping on the starter while a friend cranked it over and I just felt like I shouldn't be doing it since it didn't help.

>I did not check the main relay and do not know where it is located on the 6 series civic.

The timing belt had been changed within the last year so I doubt it's possible it slipped and the timing is off but it's always a possibility. The fuel pump and starter are both original since I purchased the car. I am seriously out of ideas here! :hithead: Any help would be appreciated thanks guys!

-Tyler

Re: 1998 Honda Civic EX Won't Start Up
 

Update:

Decided to take the distributor apart because I had the feeling that I wasn't getting proper timing for spark. Apparently the set screw that holds the rotor fell out and the rotor ended up getting eaten up slightly around the plastic edges. Put the set screw back in and turned the rotor now it looks like the shaft for the distributor is bent because it wobbles from the engine side when I turn it freely. Hopefully there's no engine damage. Will decide shortly if I'll open up the engine or just slap in a new distributor. Stay tuned.

Re: 1998 Honda Civic EX Won't Start Up
 

So I figured it out finally - the set screw holding the rotor in the distributor had fallen out (WTF??!) and the rotor would move back and forth while wobbling on an axis. This cause the spark timing to be completely off while testing all spark plugs as OK with the spark that it was getting. The end. Too bad no one responded but hopefully this thread will help someone. peace~

Re: 1998 Honda Civic EX Won't Start Up
 

hey just read your posting.. glad it was something simple. You know I did the same thing before, forgetting to put the set screw on the rotor! Wondering why the car had no power! :_doh: And hey your post can definitely help someone else out. It's always the simple things we tend to forget about. Glad you got it fixed!! :sweet:

Re: 1998 Honda Civic EX Won't Start Up
 

With me the set screw had vibrated out. Not sure how this happened but I made sure I over-tightened it this time to prevent it from happening again.

Re: 1998 Honda Civic EX Won't Start Up
 

oh vibrated out.. hmm.. if it happens again.. some blue loctite to hold it in to make sure that it doesn't come loose? Just thinking of how to stop it if it happens again.