1G Where To Start?

[91TurboTalonFWD]

Ok ive got a 1991 Tsi and i replaced the head gasket and i reused the studs... Torqued them down to 70. I got the car started and it would idle weird and shut off and at once it idled at 1K and it sounded perfect so i got in it and was driving up the street and it was driving good. I came to a stop and went like 15 in 1st gear then i shifted to second and punched it it was pulling hard and i heard a pop and i lost all power. The car felt real weak and it turned off on me so i turned it back on and drove it like that home. Now the car wont start it cranks over and it wont start. Where should i start? I did my timing so im not 100% sure that its on point but im going to check that first. If thats on point what should i check for next?

 

[mach4g63t]

When I popped once I broke my 4th cylinder plug. Check all your plugs to see if they're now broken or black. Were you running rich/lean? Was the pop from the exhaust or something hard/clunky like some metal? There could be A LOT of stuff that could've happened. You should probably take a personal look in detail before asking us what's up. That's a really vague description. Good luck! Hope it's nothing major.

 

[91TurboTalonFWD]

Yea your right i should take a look first and then update... Im going to look at my plugs and see whats up with them then look at couple other things Thanks mach4g63t for the reply.

 

[tkelly27]

Start with the easy things. Check engine light codes, boost leak test, timing alignment, spark plugs, verifying spark, fuel pressure, verifying fuel injector action, compression test. If all o those are A-OK then move on to more difficult stuff to diagnose. If the car won't start at all, one, or more, of those is bad.

If I were to take a big guess, one of your charge pipes blew off and made your car run ultra rich for however long you had the throttle stabbed, then the plugs fouled. I might be wrong though, and a boost leak test and removing your plugs will check for both of those.

 

[mach4g63t]

Start with the easy things. Check engine light codes, boost leak test, timing alignment, spark plugs, verifying spark, fuel pressure, verifying fuel injector action, compression test. If all o those are A-OK then move on to more difficult stuff to diagnose. If the car won't start at all, one, or more, of those is bad.

If I were to take a big guess, one of your charge pipes blew off and made your car run ultra rich for however long you had the throttle stabbed, then the plugs fouled. I might be wrong though, and a boost leak test and removing your plugs will check for both of those.

Yea, I didn't even think about that either. That's a really basic thing that matches what you described pretty well. Check all your couplers to make sure one didn't blow. When I was installing my 2g hard piping a long time ago this kept happening from my UICP to my intercooler and when it popped the car ran rich and was powerless. I had to gimp it back home and up a pretty big hill. Definitely check your IC pipes and/or for some big boost leak.

 

[91TurboTalonFWD]

Im going to start off with those things how do you verify spark? and injector action? Im going to build that boost leak tester and start with that after i check spark and fuel.

Well i looked at my timing and my plugs and this is what i got...

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<img src="http://i165.photobucket.com/albums/u58/Deni5_GSC/91%20Talon%20TSi/SANY0002.jpg" alt="Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting"><br><br>
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[91TurboTalonFWD]

My battery is DEAD and i swapped another battery out of my dads mustang and all it wants to do is crank over does it have to be the EXACT battery made for the tsi or is it fine using the one out of the mustang? Would a boost leak cause it not to start?

 

[BUCK]

Batery makes no difference of course - My guess was gonna be a Boost side Hose also, maybe at the Intercooler or even the obvious Clamp at the Throttle Body, happened to me when I first lit mine off years ago - They REALLY run bad when that Hose flies off & may not start - Pix are great but ANGLE is understandably poor so I can't really eval the Timing Gear Marks properly & I'm a little concerned about them - It MAY just be the Angle or I MAY be crazy but T/Belt doesn't look very "Tensioned" where it runs across from gear top to gear top , it has a little upward "slack" in it & MIGHT be a Tooth OFF - Check all that REAL CLOSE & report back - Good Luck

 

[91TurboTalonFWD]

Sorry about the pictures its the angle the belt doesnt have alot of slack and when your looking at the marks with a straight edge they line up dead even and so do the bottom marks. How do the plugs look? They are real black and next weekend im going to build a boost leak tester and buy a battery and buy some NGK plugs

 

[BUCK]

Don't apologize for the Pix they are bright & sharp & WAY above average - I just think there's just a kinda 'fisheye" affect there on the Cam Gear pic that's throwing me off - Without a boost Leak tester go over every Hose Clamp on the Boost side - My plugs always look a little sootier than any other car I had.

 

[91TurboTalonFWD]

Im just going to wait and build a boost leak tester and im going to get some NGK Plugs and make sure they are gapped the right way. Does anybody have a diagram or a link to show how the plug wires should be hooked up? On another forum the guy had the same problem car would crank but not start and it turned out to be an ECU... Could this be my problem? How much does an ECU cost? I forgot to mention this but when i heard the pop my guages went crazy my rpm guage was just spining around and around... Any ideas on that part too?