pmortlock

good idea, how do you do that siwrx? i would like to confirm i have fuel pressure too - even though i can smell petrol when im trying to start it i was very very low on fuel prior to this happening, like almost empty - any suggestions?

I spoke to Dave at Subaru today who suggested trying another ecu so i am going to try and borrow one from somewhere. He also suggested changing the temp sensor - did you do this one?

[Edited by pmortlock - 4/3/2003 6:39:14 PM]

siwrx

Right as some of you probably know my cars decided to compete with ford for most unreliable ****ter award.

Basically it wont start
so far have changed throttle position sensor, crank sensor, iddle air control solenoid valve, one of the coilpacks.

Plus ive checked and cleaned up connectors, spark plugs etc. Checked injectors for pulse, undid fuel line partially to see if i had pressure, which i do as it squirted out.

DOne ecu check, no error codes, unplugged bat to reset ecu several times. Unplugged ecu and replugged in incase of dodgy sensor. Put loads of extra fuel in, tried primin pump several times before starting, vented engine a few times incase flooded. Unplugged maf incase that was broken.

Basically it turns over but wont fire.

To make things more confusing yesterday i towed it, put it in fourth and dumped the clutch. Engine started but was only idling and much quieter than it should be with nurspec. Accelerator did nothing, it just idled the same revs, changing down made the revs go up, but still no throttle response. And was far too quiet for those revs, i could actually hear myself think at 3500 rpm which i never could when it was running fine.

Any ideas, im getting to the depressing stage where i may have to admit defeat and take it to subaru now

Ps anyone who can come up with what the problem may be theres a drink in it for you..... well that or my missus lol

[Edited by siwrx - 4/2/2003 1:56:43 PM]

[Edited by siwrx - 4/2/2003 1:57:15 PM]

pmortlock

as you know siwrx i have the same problem exactly. my battery is almost dead as well now. i was experiencing the random non start and now it wont fire at all. whats going on!

siwrx

dunno m8, try the stuff i ahve so far as loads ive read about theyve solved the problems. My mate who fixes police subarus rang subaru technical today and apparently the cam sensor tells it engine position too so they gave us a load of resistances to measure for that and knock sensor.

Gonna do a compression test too, though dont see how that cudda ****ed up by not starting it for a day

then its gonna have to be borrow and ecu to test that isnt ****ed, god dont u just love electrical faults

pmortlock

hmm i did hear the cam sensor can be the cause.
is it worth me ordering one of those? I reckon its gonna be the ecu. i hate my car at the moment! where can i get another ecu from? they sound expensive.

siwrx

well i wudnt rush to do ecu first m8, crank, cam sensor etc are like 20 quid each from breakers, so a lot cheaper.

Plus ive heard ecus are pretty hardy so unlikely to be first thing to pop.

Me and my car have a perminent love hate relationship, the brand new dent in the front wing symbolises my hatred for it the other day. DOH why do i always cost myself more money lol

pmortlock

right i've sent a msg to grade-a-subaru re our little embarassing problem, we'll see what they say. he may even swap my crank sensor for a cam sensor hopefully, thats what i'll try next. wheres this one?

siwrx

cam sensor is on the right hand side of the engine bay, bolts through cam cover. Near Battery if memory serves me right, looks the same as the crank sensor

pmortlock

thanks siwrx i'll give them a call and get one on its way
what are you going to try next - not the petrol! Give it one more chance.

siwrx

nah m8, gonna actually check fuel pressure as although i know i have pressure i wanna ensure its enough. Also gonna do a compression test incase god forbid ive lost compression.

If both of them come up negative then its off to subaru i go with my head hanging in shame

siwrx

i was told by midland impreza that if temp sensor is ****ed fans stay on all the time so doubt thats the one.

To test fuel pressure u need to stick a pressure tester on the solenoid which i believe is at the bottom of the inlet manifold where the fuel lines first join it. so hard to get to.

ecu im trying to find one to borrow locally 2, pain in the ***, but worth trying

pmortlock

re temp sensor that makes sense wasnt mentioned by lavender hill subaru tech bloke dave though. thanks for your help so far with this, i spoke with andrew from grade a subaru who is looking into this for us and will get back to me tomorrow.

siwrx

yeah apparently when temp sensor goes wrong it sets itself to default temp of 70degrees and the fans are on all the time as a failsafe to stop it overheating. Other problem is there are 2 types of temp sensor and theyre a ***** to get to (under standard fit dumpvalve) so its hard to order one to try, though theyre cheap only 20 odd quid if i remember.

Sigh when this is finally resolved im probably gonna buy a new engine anyway, quite fancy building one up to a decent spec myself

Michael Robinson

i have a similar problem, my car after being run will not start again from approx 2 hours afterwards, then it seems to be totally fine. Any ideas ? i have had people say it could be my crank sensor, not sure if it helps but i constantly seem to be blowing my cam covers off.

pmortlock

michael its worth replacing as its a 10 minute job and only 25 smackers i have a spare if you need one

pmortlock

siwrx tonight i thought i would do an ecu check. as i couldnt find the connectors i decided to rip out my turbo timer. possibly coincidence, but i tried to start the car after and it fired 1st time. i have tonight shut it down and restarted it 10 times. i still think i have a fault but its dissappeared for the time being, which is even worse maybe!

siwrx

sorted mine, what a *******. Was a culmination of dodgy crank sensor which caused it to overfuel which killed the new spark plugs and also one of the plugs had threaded slightly so worked itself loose and was loosing compression. All in ***** problem solved

siwrx

no i figure it was all clogged up so needed to be given a good kick start which better plugs n that ensured

submannz

The problem is the crank angle sensor, or sometimes the cam angle sensor. My uncle just replaced his after having almost every other thing temporarily replaced on his car by Subaru New Zealand, once they replaced the crank angle sensor the car now doesn't have the problem.

The problem is not likely the knock sensor, the car would still start and run just would retard the timing

pmortlock

well done siwrx i did change my CPS maybe this was the main cause of my problem, even though it didnt go immediately after replacing it. it seems to be okay so far fingers crossed, i think my turbo timer might be something to do with it also.

[Edited by pmortlock - 4/7/2003 6:37:03 PM]