legacycentral bbs

Ok guys, Im at a loss here. I had been driving the car for a couple of hours, made my last stop and went out to start it up. The car started but began to chug horribly, the idle rpm's were way down and taping the gas pedal did not solicit any change in the idle speed. I cut it off, sat, then tried again. Same thing, this time the car cut off on its own. Third attempt to start and nada. It turns over but it sounds as if there is no spark/ignition. I checked fuel level and that was good, I towed it back to the house and changed out the spark plugs, still no ignition. My plug wires are new Magnecores and appear to be properly seated on the terminals. Im not sure where else to go here. The codes make me think its electrical and it was raining that day but Im clueless when it comes to the mess of wires under the hood. The only other peculiarities in terms of performance would be a recent sluggishness after warming up and first driving almost as though it was delaying boost for a second, and my new belt started squeaking after a few thousand miles but I fixed that by adjusting the tensioner, and sometimes the idle would fluctuate after starting up in the rain, but this would go away once the engine bay was warm. The only codes I have are 23, 24, and 49. Any ideas?

Based on your description and the codes I'd probably say it's the MAF sensor. However, what I would suggest doing is clearing the codes, trying to start the car again, and then check for codes.

Thanks Josh,
I was hoping that would not be the case. Ive got the battery disconnected and will give it another shot tomorrow.

UPDATE

Well I left the battery disconnected overnight, still the same. The codes have not changed and she wont start.

Have you tried unplugging the MAF to see if it starts?

Thanks Josh, yeah I did after it sat for about a day. It started up for a second and then died. Tried again, it coughed but did not catch, third time produced no results at all.

I'd try getting a new maf

Thanks Josh, Blackbart to the rescue once again! I did try to clean it, on the off chance it would clear, but it only ran for a few seconds that time. I appreciate the help.

UPDATE

No luck withe the maf. It had sat for a few days before I put it in, then I started it up. It coughed to life for almost a min before dying. It seems to respond better after sitting for a day or more. I called a subie mechanic I knew and he said either maf or maybe bypass air control?

Try unplugging the IAC valve (bypass air control valve) electrical connector. That will allow more air in than is needed. If nothing changes, than it's a pretty good chance that it is not the IAC valve.

UPDATE:

IAC was a no go. Thank again Josh

Well I had a buddy come over to help me out. Hes certified by BMW and FORD.
He immediately asked about fuel. I thought I was getting it but when I told him about the way the engine would cough to life briefly, after sitting all day, he said it sounded as though the system was not getting fuel and that the car was trying to start on the buildup of fumes.

We went through the process of locating the fuel pump relay and using a volt meter. It showed continuity. We then put the ignition into the ON position with D-Check enabled. The relay clicked. Just to be sure we pulled it and made a direct connection to the battery with leads and all sounded good. So next we checked the wire harness at the fuel pump, again with the volt meter. The readings were good. So for the final test we used the meter on the fuel pump female connector and nothing. We tried a few times then with leads from the battery and still nothing. So just to be sure we pulled the pump, used some spade connectors with leads to the battery and still nothing. So I guess Im on the market for a new fuel pump. I noticed something odd on the "filter bag" on the fuel pump, it had small metal shavings on it. They were quite shiny. I dont know if that was in any way related to whats going on but it was odd. Anyway. when I can afford to get a pump, Ill update here and let you all know how it goes.

EDIT:
I should add that the spark plugs I replaced were turning white, that means Im running lean right? I also had been noticing that the car would bog down under boost on occasion, also fuel?

Thanks again for all the help.
Ben

Yeah....sounds like you found the problem.

I'd highly recommend the Walbro 255 lph pump. Get the GSS341 pump with the fuel pump kit 400-791 for a complete plug & play application. With the two, it cost me about $105.

go walbro. glad you found the problem. ~100 dollars

The 255 is on its way, Yay!!

if it doesnt start try eliminating the coolant sensor i had a problem like this before but it was on a 2.2 na

It lives!! Still have to clear the codes but she fired rigght up! Thank u everyone for the help and advice. Big ups to Josh, I appreciate ur time man.

You're welcome. Glad you got it working.

Arrrrgh! It idled and warmed up twice. Now it wont start again unless it is sitting. Just like before. I put the old MAF back on and re-gaped the plugs to min. clearance just to make sure that there were no issues there. I poped one of the fuel line free from the pump and it had fuel in it. It was not pressurized but it had a liberal amount. I feel I must beat my head against a wall now. I guess Ill give the water temp sensor a try and see what that does. Its cheap.

Have you checked for any stored codes being present?

Also check the fuel pump connector under the rear seat to see if it charred or looks like it may have arched.