89 that wont start

[Stevo]

I have purchased a 89 Classic that needs some fixing. Previous owner said it ran great untill one day it didnt like to start anymore. Discovered pushing the shifter all the way forward would get it to start for a while but then just wouldn't start at all. Turned over but thats it. Also he tried to jump another car with it while it wasnt running and thought that might have screwed some things up. Said he believes it needs a new ECU, but have been told by others thats unlikely. When I first started working on it I discovered the fuel pump wires were melted to the exhaust. I wired a battery up to the fuel pump and it fired right up. Since then it has never been able to start again. The problem is that is isnt getting fuel or spark. I have repaired the wires where they were melted going to the fuel pump but it still doesnt work. The relays, fuses and other wiring I believe are in working condition. The coil is fine, yes its full of gas, the inertia switch is down. It will still turn over it just wont start. Any suggestions for this one hit wonder?

[phoenix]

severely flooded perhaps, check for spark at plug, do a complete comprehensive check of the primary ignition system, check the fuel pump fuse, connect a fuel presure tester on the fuel rail, you should have 30 to 45 psi, connect a noid light to one of the injector's electrical connector to see if the ecu is opening the injectors.
if all checks out fine but seems flooded replace the spark plugs.

[Stevo]

I have checked the fuel pump fuse. Im not getting power to the fuel pump or the coil.

[phoenix]

check the ecu relay, I believe it's the one on the blue plug, the one next to it is for the fuel pump both are located under the passenger's front seat.

[Stevo]

Already replaced it, got nothing.

[phoenix]

bad igniter module, blown ignition fuse, melted or shorted ignition switch, broken power wire, bad ground grounded coil.
all of those come to mind

[Stevo]

Ill check those thanks for the advice.

[Peerless]

Didn't you say that when the shifter was pushed forward it would start (or used to?....) that's a great place to start. Does it start in N, adjust the neutral safety lockout, or replace, bypass etc... If you want to own an older ROVER, you'd better get a manual and learn how to read electrical diagrams.. guaranteed it will drive you crazy and everybody else if you don't have the basics covered (a workshop manual, first and foremost...) There are a ton of reasons why a car won't start, and none of them can be answered right off the bat on a forum.. without knowing more than it used to start and we jumped the battery and i tried the fuel pump. Even if someone tells you its xyz, you still most likely can't fix/find/or visualize what is going on without a book. Plus guaranteed once you get it going there will be a day when you have an electrical problem and the web can't be accessed. You'll thanks me some day.

The first rule of thumb is:

grounds grounds grounds... either something isn't grounding properly or something is going to ground that shouldn't be

check your fuses.....

did you fix the wires to the fuel pump? you should hear it run for a second when you first turn the key.

pull a plug wire (or hook up a timing light) to see if your getting spark.

an easy rule of thumb if you've got spark then its fuel, if you've got fuel then its spark, if you've got both at the right time then its a mechanical issue with the motor...

a motor needs 3 things to run

fuel
spark
and compression.

I would start with spark or lack there of..

I can keep going on and on but there needs to be a general knowledge of how all this works,,,

you can email me and Ill be glad to give you my phone number and walk you through a few steps. Or shoot you an electrical diagram. I've been there on my rover...

info@peerlessmotors

Chris

[Peerless]

Oh... one more thing, I replaced "everything" on mine and it came down to this:

I posted this on RR.net

http://rangerovers.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=20529&start=30

let us know what happens

there is no reference to this in the manual or diag..

[Stevo]

I have the Bentley Range rover manual and have looked at all the wiring schematics many times. The carpet in my rover is all pulled up and there is no headliner so all the wiring going across the ceiling is visible. I have checked/bandaged and traced backed all the wiring possible. Also I have checked the relays and replaced the fuel pump and EFI relay. Right now im not getting power to the fuel pump or the coil. Also I have noticed that on the actual ECU there is a resistor that is broken. Is there a way I can identify what the resistors on the ECU do/control so I can see what that boken one would effect?


Thanks for the links though, a lot of usefull info. I'll have to inspect that resistor you were talking about.

[tonyeclarin]

starting woes

I have the Bentley Range rover manual and have looked at all the wiring schematics many times. The carpet in my rover is all pulled up and there is no headliner so all the wiring going across the ceiling is visible. I have checked/bandaged and traced backed all the wiring possible. Also I have checked the relays and replaced the fuel pump and EFI relay. Right now im not getting power to the fuel pump or the coil. Also I have noticed that on the actual ECU there is a resistor that is broken. Is there a way I can identify what the resistors on the ECU do/control so I can see what that boken one would effect?


Thanks for the links though, a lot of usefull info. I'll have to inspect that resistor you were talking about.

I followed the check process on this thread and still having problems with my 92 RR. Sometimes it would crank but won't catch and you'd feel like it was almost there. Sometimes, with just one try, the engine turns like nothing wrong happened to it. My pressure reading is 35 psi which should be just fine. Everything else checks OK so I must've missed one thing or two but in my reviews, I believe I covered averything. Please help as I'm ready to give up on it and get killed going to a dealer's mechanic.

[MJL]

Try this

Something I posted on rovers.net years ago

The Ignition Pickup Module inside the distributor (replacing the "points" on older systems) can cause intermittent starting problems as well as hesitation. When Mike's RR wasn't starting, there was no output from the ignition amplifier. (Normally, he could read 1.5 volts across the coil + and - terminals on the AC scale of a digital voltmeter while cranking the engine). A new ignition amplifier did not cure the problem, but dismantling the distributor and replacing the pickup module did. The old module looked fine and intermittently gave the correct 3K ohm reading across the output terminals, but could be made to go open circuit by wiggling the wires where they went into the rubber seating in the distributor into which the ignition amplifier plugs. Removing the insulation, he found the wires inside had snapped and were making intermittent contact. Movement of the base plate by the vacuum advance mechanism causes the wires to bend to and fro against the rubber seating, and eventually they can break. This could be the cause of a number of mystery hesitations and stumbles that people experience -- Mike was getting such behaviour as well as intermittent idling problems for a few weeks before the starting problem.