DSMunknown
15+ Year Contributor
- 4,109
- 39
- Sep 16, 2004
-
Worcester,
Massachusetts
Well, a little over three weeks ago I was driving along. The car had started up, been running for about 5 minutes before the incident, and had driven about two miles down the road. I was at a stop light. The light changed, and proceeded ahead. From first into second, and second into third. As soon as I was going into third gear, the car shut off. All my electrical stuff was working, but the engine was off.
So I coasted into a nearby parking lot. I was there for about 2-and-a-half hours before my car was actually towed.
I called AAA. I thought I may have ran out of gas (although, neither my fuel gauge nor my light indicated I was low). The first guy came, and gave me about 5 bucks worth of regular.
We tried jumping it (both with a jumper and with his company truck). It just wouldn't start. I tried pumping the acceleration pedal and not pumping the acceleration pedal - it didn't seem to help. He looked at my battery and saw it was an EverStart. He told me that in his experience when those types of batteries start to fail, they are more like "NeverStart" batteries. So I was determined I needed to replace the battery (the old one was about 3.5 years old anyways).
He also said my fuel line could have frozen. I was skeptical of this, because I had already driven a couple of miles before the car shut off. I was also able to start the car in the morning and drive to my destination without any issues. The car had only been sitting for a few hours before I started it up again.
So I asked for a tow.
The second guy had a flatbed, but he wouldn't tow me because he accused me of having an aftermarket front bumper on the vehicle. He tried to pull the car on, but the bumper clearly was going to rip off if he went any further with the tow. I understood his predicament and thanked him for his time. He radioed in and called for another tow, a wheel-lift tow truck. That's fine, because this is a FWD.
Long story short, I can't figure out why the car isn't starting. Some important info before I forget - the car had been having trouble starting. It would sometimes take two or three tries for it to start up. During really cold mornings, it would crank slower and slower and slower. I understand that the oil gets really thick during the cold weather, and it takes more energy to turn the engine. But in case it has any bearing on my situation, I bring it to light.
I have had my dad helping me with this issue. He is no stranger to the automotive world. He is also a big DIYer and knows about the general inner workings of an engine. He is also frustrated.
Here is what I have done so far (in the general order we did it in):
So this is where I'm at. It's coming close to a month now on my DD, and I'm getting frustrated.
So I coasted into a nearby parking lot. I was there for about 2-and-a-half hours before my car was actually towed.
I called AAA. I thought I may have ran out of gas (although, neither my fuel gauge nor my light indicated I was low). The first guy came, and gave me about 5 bucks worth of regular.
We tried jumping it (both with a jumper and with his company truck). It just wouldn't start. I tried pumping the acceleration pedal and not pumping the acceleration pedal - it didn't seem to help. He looked at my battery and saw it was an EverStart. He told me that in his experience when those types of batteries start to fail, they are more like "NeverStart" batteries. So I was determined I needed to replace the battery (the old one was about 3.5 years old anyways).He also said my fuel line could have frozen. I was skeptical of this, because I had already driven a couple of miles before the car shut off. I was also able to start the car in the morning and drive to my destination without any issues. The car had only been sitting for a few hours before I started it up again.
So I asked for a tow.
The second guy had a flatbed, but he wouldn't tow me because he accused me of having an aftermarket front bumper on the vehicle. He tried to pull the car on, but the bumper clearly was going to rip off if he went any further with the tow. I understood his predicament and thanked him for his time. He radioed in and called for another tow, a wheel-lift tow truck. That's fine, because this is a FWD.
Long story short, I can't figure out why the car isn't starting. Some important info before I forget - the car had been having trouble starting. It would sometimes take two or three tries for it to start up. During really cold mornings, it would crank slower and slower and slower. I understand that the oil gets really thick during the cold weather, and it takes more energy to turn the engine. But in case it has any bearing on my situation, I bring it to light.
I have had my dad helping me with this issue. He is no stranger to the automotive world. He is also a big DIYer and knows about the general inner workings of an engine. He is also frustrated.
Here is what I have done so far (in the general order we did it in):
- I read through this thread.
- I recharged the old battery for about 72 hours.
- Sprayed starter fuild in the TB elbow (not my idea).
- Checked my grounds. They seem fine.
- Bought a new battery.
- Recharged the new battery for about 48 hours.
- Loosened the fuel rail feed line (to see if there was any pressure). There was none (it would have sprayed if there was).
- Wasn't sure if the fuel pump (FP) was receiving any power. So we mocked up a separate power souce to see if the FP would pump fuel.
- Started to think it was a faulty MPI relay.
- Uninstalled the OEM 2G FP.
- The pump may have seized up. I decided it was time for an upgrade anyways.
- Reinstalled the FP because it seemed like it was not seizing up anymore (and because there was nothing else to do but try that for the time being).
- I searched on the forums and read that the ECU capasitors could have began to leak.
- I also read about the MFI (aka MPI) relay. Still not sure where that is located (I remember someone commenting about finding it in front of the ECU). But I'm not sure what to look for.
- I dismissed this as a possibility, because the pump seems to be receiving power.
- Uninstalled the ECU and sent it to FFWD.
- Darren King said there was nothing wrong with it.
- Recieved it in the mail and reinstalled it.
- Bought a used Lancer Evolution VIII FP. No more f-ing around with the possibility of a failing FP.
- Uninstalled the old FP and installed the new FP.
- Checked for spark - took all four plug wires out of the head, pushed in some sh*ty spark plugs that were laying around, made sure all four were in contact with the valve cover - no spark was seen on any of them (this was done during the day. Yes, doing this at night would have been better so any spark could have been seen easier, but it's cold right now and the person helping me didn't want to be out there).
- Bought a used coil pack (seller said it was in spec). The seller is trustworthy, so I will assume it actually is in spec. We do have a tester, just haven't tested this coil pack.
- Uninstalled the old coil pack, using this guide.
- There was plenty of fuel in the fuel rail when I removed it, so I'm pretty sure there is enough fuel being supplied.
- Installed the other used coil pack (yes, I recieved the correct one).
- Still has trouble starting. However, I haven't checked to see if there is now sparking (I was the only one around to turn the engine. I can't be in two places at once).
- Just ordered the DSM CD Manual just yesterday (Monday) from Forced Performance. This should help me out, but it probably won't be here until Thursday or Friday.
- I have also looked through this guide, but am not sure it applies to me. Why? Because of this link. If anyone has other CAS related links that can help me out, please post them up.
- Each time we try to start the car, we pump the acceleration pedal to see if it will help start the engine.
- My profile is up-to-date.
So this is where I'm at. It's coming close to a month now on my DD, and I'm getting frustrated.
