car turned off while driving, now won't start


  #1  
Old 01-24-04, 12:33 PM
haj327
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Question car turned off while driving, now won't start

94 Geo Prizm. In the middle of turning while driving, the car started to feel as if it was loosing power. The car lost all power and was completely shut down. Tried to start it up again but nothing would happen. When I try to turn the ignition, everything sounds as normal as it could be, except right up to the point of the car actually starting. the ignition does turns but doesnt turn the engine on.hjimenez@verizon.net [FONT=times new roman][COLOR=blue]
 

Last edited by haj327; 01-24-04 at 12:49 PM.
  #2  
Old 01-24-04, 01:09 PM
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You need 4 things to run. your going to have to see which one you've lost
1) Hot spark at the plug
2) Injector pulse
3) fuel pressure
4) good compression
 
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Old 01-24-04, 08:24 PM
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Not sure about the exact nature of this problem but I will give it a shot any way.

If the generator working the battery will eventually run out of power in the middle of your ride and the engine will lose spark.
You didnt see alternator light come on?
I would check the battery reserve power; possibly try a jump.

peace
 
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Old 01-24-04, 09:38 PM
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How many miles? Service history? Timing belt? Does the starter spin the engine?
 
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Old 01-25-04, 12:40 PM
haj327
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the vehicle belongs to my mother in law, my wife happened to be driving the vehicle at the time this incident occurred. It has a whole bunch of miles, I was just told that a couple of guys came down to look at it and they said that the "module" needed to be replaced, and that part is located in the distributor. From the sounds of it, I would say the car initially has power, but when the ignition is turned on, all it does is spin, it doesn't actually kick in. The alternator was replaced about 8-12 months ago. The vehicle's battery symbol does flash sparatically, some days more than others, while you are driving. We were told by the dealership that there is a problem in the dash board wiring, causing the battery symbol light to come on, and that there is no problem with the electrical or the battery. That has been going on for close to 2 years if not longer. Hope this info helps, i want to get this resolved right away. the 2 mechanics that came down said that \'more than likely" it was the module, and couldnt give an estimate on the repair.
 
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Old 01-25-04, 02:56 PM
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the 2 mechanics that came down said that \'more than likely" it was the module, and couldnt give an estimate on the repair.
Just what you need, someone "throwing a dart"

Have diagnosed properly instead of someone guessing.
 
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Old 01-25-04, 03:24 PM
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You need to find out what you are missing to start:

Pull off a plug wire and crank it and see if you have spark

Post back
 
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Old 01-25-04, 04:03 PM
haj327
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pulled a plug wire and there was no spark. what should be done next? Also, I have found out that these 2 mechanics indicated that my ignition module is faulty and needs to be replaced. I don't actually know where that is located let alone how to replace that. Belts are fine, and there seems to be an adequate amount of power coming from the battery.
 
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Old 01-25-04, 04:13 PM
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Pull the dist cap and see if the rotor turns when you crank it.
 
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Old 01-25-04, 04:16 PM
haj327
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I pulled the distributor cap, and the it does turn.
 
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Old 01-25-04, 05:06 PM
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Does the check engine light illuminate when the key is turned on?

Have you checked for codes? Jump the "T" and "E1" terminals in the check connector under the hood with key on and read the blinks.
 
 

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