sbaker0421

My crx had been sitting for about a week while I painted the valve cover and purchased battery cables and fuel filter. After putting those two parts in I went to start my car and all it would do was crank and crank, but wouldn't start. I never had a starting problem before so I am confused. Recently I have replaced spark plugs and wires(I am getting fire), distributor cap, and rotor. Last night My friend and I adjusted all the valves b/c they were off. The fuel pump comes on and pressurizes the system. Has anyone else had a similar problem like this? If so, PLEASE HELP?? I want my rex back.

civicious

you forgot to ground the valve cover.





that's my guess, at least. or maybe you didnt put your plug wires in the right order.

sbaker0421

Thanks for the reply. I have checked and the valve cover is grounded and all wires are in their correct spots. Thanks again for the reply.

I forgot to put that I'm getting power to all my accessories. Everything is working in the car, but won't start.

Magik

Ummm...main relay? Reset the ECU? Backtrack and see if you left anything disconnected?

Jason

GSRCRXsi

i would check your firing order, and all the stuff with the distributor, no loose connections and stuff, check the condition of all your plugs, make sure they are gapped correctly, check everything, maybe your injectors are clogged or broken? (unlikely but still check it out) then at last check for compression. all you need is fuel, spark and compression to fire. check all cylinders to make sure they are ok on everything. after that i dunno what to tell you....

preludude

If your CRX is anything like a Prelude then I'm betting its the ignition module. It's in the distributor and costs like 150 bucks but when that fails, your car will look like it's working fine, the power will be fine, and it will crank all day long, but won't turnover. It's either the ignition module or ignition coil. They work in tandem.

solblu

Just check for spark and fuel. It takes 10 minutes. Then you'll know what you need to fix.

pissedoffsol

read the faq- there's a post entitle this exact thing by wild bill

preludude

Could he wild bill be a little more vague? That FAQ thing doesn't help for $hit. I had the same problem and it came out of nowhere. The car would crank and wouldnot turnover b/c of the ignition module in the distributor. It's a common problem with almost all japanese engines with high mileage. Mine had 150k on it when it died on me.

brc80

^
^
^
Had same problem.

H22AdelSol

i had the same exact problem, i solved it by adding 2 more grounds. one big one from the tranny to the chassis and a small one from the battery to where the wireharness grounds. car starts up quicker now and check engine codes flash up quicker also.

sbaker0421

Thanks for all of the replies. Going to check out the ignition module tomorrow. I'll let everyone know what I come up with.

Loco Honkey

OK OK OK... everyone shut up... christ, you all are missing the OBVIOUS! It ran before he did the work, but after he did the work, it doesn't run. Soooo... wouldn't logic tell you that whatever he did to it is the problem?

Sbaker- First off, your valve cover ground doesn't mean shit. The valve cover has rubber gaskets between it and everything metal that it touches, so a ground to the vc preventing starting is ludicrus. Check your fuel filter for leaks. Sounds dumb, but an engine needs three things to work- fuel, air, and spark. You're not getting one of the three. If the filter isn't leaking, use a service manual to MAKE SURE your plug wires are on correctly. If you're 100% positive of this (check again), pull a plug and check to see if you have spark on every cylinder. If you do have spark, check for fuel. Turn the ignition on and loosen the return fuel line on the back side of the FPR. Don't take it off. Just loosen it. If you see fuel start to weep out of there, you have fuel. If you have fuel and spark, it should start.

brc80

Not to thread jack, but im having the same problem. Yes i have spark fuel, and power. Anyother guess's on what it could be?

preludude

let us know what happens. I'm still betting on ignition module

cws13

Noooooooo shit. Thank you. while it is possible to upset parts on their way out while doing repairs, it doesn't happen alot. This may be dumb, but did you check fuses? If you arced that new batt you probably blew out a main fuse. Check the fuel leaks. if you adjusted those valves incorrectly or the engine wasn't below 100 degrees when you did it ( not by the temp gauge, by a thermometer), you didn't use the right marks or adjust in the right firing order...you may not be getting compression at all. I've see it happen and you should confirm this first, if you're running no valve lash you're playing with fire.

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preludude

Was the problem fixed?

sbaker0421

Still haven't got a chance to check it out yet. School and work have kept me busy. Will get to work on it Wed. I'll post if I figure anything out

Slammed90Lude

i had the same prob in my prelude and it was the main relay- it was on the kick panel on the drivers side- i dunno if that helps but replacing ine made the difference and after that the car fired up great every time-

hondamidnighter

My friends Honda civic had the same problem. The car kept on cranking and cranking and would not start. Like it was standard we gave it a hard push with another car and it worked. There was spark, fuel, and air but it didn't start anyways. So we pushed it and it worked!! Check spark plug wires if they have spark, if they do then now check the spark plugs if they have crude gas on them. If the spark plugs have gas, clean them out and if your car is standard, clutch started.

preludude

Those cases are all true, but the difference being that the main relay problem would allow your car to start fine when its cold, but after it warms up it will be hard to start. I had that problem too.

and the second one sounds more like a battery problem b/c when your battery dies you can still start a manual 5speed car by pusshing it even with the batter dead.

crxtasy1

my car has recently done the same thing...but mine is a little different.
I have a '91 JDM/EDM crx with a B16A swap...it has been running fine since the day i put it in 2 years ago...but just the other day i went to leave work and started up and my car as normal...then as i was pulling out of the parking lot it just quit. everything still worked and all. Thats when it started the whole "will crank, but wont start" dilemma that seems to be pissin quite a few ppl off lol.

I have checked the dizzy, all four SP wires have spark, i loosened the fuel return and fuel came out when i cranked it over, i even bought a new main relay, and the fuel pump is hear when i have the key in the on pos...but it wont go off, it just continuously runs untill i turn the key to the off pos

I also heard that if i spray come starter fluid in the intake and it starts then i will kno if its an electrical prob or not. is this recommeded or no?

what ever help i can get would be much appreciated, being that i just moved back from europe and really need this car to run so i can keep my job...

91prelude

Hi guys, new to this forum was doing some google searching cos I'm stumped on what to do to get my prelude running again. Quick rundown; the motor blew up (threw a rod out the block) and I bought a good secondhand complete engine from hondwreck in Clayton. Put new engine in wired up all looms plugs, hoses etc. go to start it crank turns over and over again but no start..read through this forum a bit for advice, will try some of suggested ideas like checking for spark etc.

Also the ECU is flashing some LEDs but doubt this would affect the engine from starting..or can it?? Sorry I'm not very skilled with these jap cars I'm used to working on old school cars..haha any help (ASAP cos I need to get it running to get to work) would be much appreciated.

P.s it's a imported 1991 prelude, which I found the wiring to be a bit different to the loom on the 1989 b20a motor I bought for it.

Regards,
Ren

madvtec_2008

I would just pull your plugs...see if there wet or dry that would be my first step if there wet no spark if there dry no fuel simple even if the pump pressures up your injectors may not be pulsating.

91prelude

Hey there, checked plugs they're dry..guess I'll be pulling off the fuel rail and injectors then..I have some spare injectors from other engine I can use..will post here if anything changes..just desperately need to get this car started today..

Cheers,