Little automobile enigma

[Steve]

Your symptoms are also those of a broken timing chain/belt.... are you a religious man?

[doobs]

if it was car would never restart, and with broken chain and would of made hell of a racket

[Steve]

Not always Doobs this I know from experience.


edit: and I wasn't talking about the previous time when it restarted, I was refering to this episode only.

[doobs]

if the chain breaks then the cams dont turn so the valves don't open and car wont start.  and if it broke with a wide open valves the the heads would have to be rebuilt cause pistons would ram into the open valves. but wouldn't start many times after that.
And if it's the dual over head cam engine then game over pay up.

IMHO
Coming from almost 20 years of GM Dealer experience.

[MrCoffee]

If your starter in turning over and it sounds healthy then there are only two possabilities (usually). Fuel or electric. Since it is an American car, I would say its probaly not the fuel pump but you can check this. Turn on the ignition but dont start the car and listen for the fuel pump to charge the fuel system. Sounds like a click then buzz sound as it must charge the initial pressure in the fuel lines up to +40 psi around there for fuel injected cars. If your car is FI and you cant make out the sound of the fuel pump, this could be suspect. I hope your car is FI.

Else electrical issues...

Remove the distributor cap, and check for moisture, cracks, elect burnouts etc... damage. Same for coil area. Check cables from coil to distributor, to plugs.

Go get or borrow a multimeter. Pref an automotive one but it does not really matter.

multimeter

Use that to check for electrical charge on the ignition systems cables (cable from coil to distributor, plugs etc...).

Beyond that you'll need the manual for that years model of your car. There are alot of potential things you may want to check listed in the repair manual. You would check for voltage and ohms. Dont be afraid to pull off the ignition system cables and plug the red multimeter cable to it. you should get volts when you start your car.

Sometimes it could just be a loose wire...

I once reconnected a loose sensor on the intake manifold fo a 944S and it started right up. Check your FI-puter sensor cables.

You can also try to get the puters error code. Good luck.

[pugg666]

And here's the most important question no has asked yet.....

When it stopped did it just shut off like normal (EI when you turn the key), did it seem like the engine was still trying to move the car, or did it just sorta sputter (SP ) and die?

oh and Doobs its a 2.4 litre, not 2.3 ....2.3 litre is Honda not GM

[Steve]

Doobs, that's why I asked if he was a religious man.  

[doobs]

3 variations of the 2.3 the a,d and 3 version of the motor. It was used from 1988 to 1995.  but after talking to some of the guys in shop they are leaning towards trans pres. control sol. valve. which has been redesigned 2 times since 1998. part #10478146
for the 4t40-e trans.  or possibly vac leak by the pcv seperator, if it's the 2.4..  If it's the 3.4 no seperator.

[zmeg]

Doobs, whoever told you that a pressure control soluinoid in the transaxle whould cause a car not to start isn't very bright. (and BTW its the 4T65 not the 4T40 that has a problem with the pressure solinoid) The coil housing is also unlikely because it would cause a severe skipping problem long before it ever caused a no start condition. I also work in a GM dealership, I dont do driveability though, I'm a transmission speacialist. We have 2 guys who do nothing but driveability and they spend more time replacing fuel pumps than everything else combined.

[doobs]

it was for stalling, coming to stop.      interesting that they put nothing but pumps in we have used fuel module 25317984 which lists for 478.48. we have only sold 4 in the last year and have not sold one since october.  And that pump fits all n bodies in 99.

[AdmRose]

Well this is all been helpful, I'll see if I can get her started and take her the two blocks to the local service station. At least now I have some ideas as to what to tell them.

Doobs - if you give me your email I'll get ya the last 8 digits of VIN.

[AdmRose]

After trying to start it again (with no luck) I am starting to lean towards the fuel system. The car cranks and cranks but will not start. It sounded like the time I tried to start my old Celebrity after it ran out of gas. When the car died, it sounded just like it would after turning it off. Also, the service engine soon light was on when the key was in the on position.
So, with these new facts, any ideas now?

[zmeg]

There is a pressure tap on your fuel rail where you can easily check your fuel pressure. Just screw the cap off and attach an old ac guage to it if you have access to one (they're usless for ac work now) If you dont have a guage available just use any small object such as a pen or a key to open the valve as if you were letting air out of a tire (dont let it spray you in the face) Even without the switch being on it will be holding 30 to 40 psi. If you get a strong spray out of it, your fuel system is ok. If you just get a trickle turn on the switch and check again, if you still get just a trickle replace the fuel pump.

[Steve]

....and still the possibility  of a broken timing belt/chain loomed.

[Steve]

Adam, check for spark too... I'd do that before you had fuel/fumes from checking fuel pressure.

Edit:  how many miles on it?