tombothetominator

So, i go out the parking lot after work to go home, and lo and behold: the truck wont start! Hoping you guys might be able to figure this out kinda quick like, or i have to call in a favor to get a ride (~20mi) to my house.

- Engine turns over strong, so i'm thinking not a starter problem
- checked all battery connections, and dont see/feel anything loose
- tried jump starting it: no change
- tried push starting it: no change
- so I pulled off the high-tension cord (?) from the distributor and did the spark test (shove a screw driver in the dist end and put it near a ground, then crank the engine) and i do get a spark, but just one. One spark and then it stops... I'm pretty sure it isn't supposed to do that.
- tried a different cord (spare spark plug wire i had in the truck) from the ignitor to the distributor, and there was still just the one spark.

I'm running out to test the resistance of the ignition coil (with my $10 meter), as i think that is the next thing down the line that might cause this.... hoping you guys can help me out.

As always - thanks in advance!
~Tombo

Twinkie

Pull the dist cap, dist turning? Can't see how the T belt would break as you turned the motor off, but I guess stranger things have happened.
One thing I don't know about these motors, do they have a crank sensor? Do they need one? Could that be the issue here?

Bigblock

Ignitor or the pick-up coil in the dist.

tombothetominator

Okay, well i used my cheesy little tester to check the resistance on the ignition coils. fsm says primary should be .36-.55ohm, my little reader is coming it at 1.5.... me thinking ignitor?

Tried testing the secondary coil, but the little tester wouldn't shove all the way in there, so i used a screwdriver down the hole with the tester touching the screwdriver - and it came it at ~15kohm, which is within the tolerances of the fsm (9.0-15.4).

So, i'm thinking the primary ignition coil might be the culprit, does that sound right? Is this what you are talking about when you say ignitor, 3yotys??

I doubt it is the T-Belt as it was just replaced ~8mo ago, but i'll check it really quick.

tombothetominator

Checked the dist. rotor, and it is turning, so not the t-belt (thankfully)

Napa is on a mile or 2 away, so i'm going to walk over there with an ignition coil and see if they can get me a new one. Will post results.

Also - if anybody else has any ideas what it may be, then let 'em rip.

Thanks for your help so far!

Skrillah

And......

tombothetominator

well i replaced the primary coil (the guy that provides spark to the distributor), but that did not resolve the problem (which means my cheap meter was probably doing something goofy, because the new coil and the old both have the same resistance). I ended up calling in the favor to get a ride home (the delay between posts), and now i'm seriously wondering where to go with it next.

FSM says to check air gap in distributor, which i do not have the proper tools to check. from there it says to check the signal generator (which i didn't think to do before i left the truck at work, and didn't realize that this is what 3yotys was talking about), and then to check the ECM IGN signal (not sure how to get to the ECM, though i think it is behind the glove box?). And if that tests okay - replace igniter.

So, tomarrow i will check the signal generator resistances. If that is good, what is the easiest way to check the ecm signal? Can i test it at the igniter?

If all else fails and i can't get it running by lunch time, i will call in the tow truck and take it to the local mechanic that i use, but i hate to do this if it is something i can fix.

Any and all suggestions are welcome. I have to catch a ride into work with my neighbor at ~7:00am tomarrow, so i will have a small amount of time before work starts to do some tests.

Thanks!

Twinkie

Can't help with the rest, but in my '92 the ECM is behind the pass. side kick panel...

Jay351

Low fuel pressure?

tombothetominator

quick question: if it is the signal generator in the distributor, then that will require replacing the entire distributor, correct? And if so, that will also require adjusting the timing, yes?
I did recently replace the rotor, so I suppose there is the possiblity of something getting messed up when that occured. I also noticed that there is no gasket between the distributor housing, and the cap, should there be??

Thanks guys for all your help!!
YT ROCKS!

dirtroads_33

My truck is a 92 and died at work the other day. It cranked strong but would not start. It ended up being a dead fuel pump and cost a lot to fix but what can you do. Its now running great. Hope it works out for you!

Elvota

Do you know how to check the codes? It's really easy on the older trucks and might give you a clue to the problem. There is a code list in a standard Haynes manual.

Do you know if you have fuel pressure?

Although very doubtful it is the same problem, my distributor plug where it connects to the main harness was working it's way loose. My truck would start and run fine 99.9% of the time, then nothing except what you are describing. Unplugged the connection, blew on it, maybe some WD40... and bingo, no more problems.

Funny how just when you are getting ready to mod your truck (winch) it will do something like that. Well, maybe not so funny.

stock87

Fuses....?

tombothetominator

Checked fuses, and all were good.
Unsure about fuel pressure (how to easily check?)
Tried pulling codes while i was there, and all i got was a constantly flashing CEL (which means no codes, i believe?)

I'll check the distributor connector (signal generator) tomarrow, as that sounds like a good possibility. If that turns out to be the case, and it needs replaced, I'm not sure exactly what my options are.

I read a few posts about people who said you can buy just the signal generator, but that most dealerships tell you it is unavailable (selling you the entire distributor for buku bucks). Anybody have any experience with replacing one of these?

Yeah, depending on how much this ends up costing, the winch may have to wait a little longer than expected. I can't really complain though, this truck has treated me pretty darn good for the ~4 years i have owned it, and with 210K+ miles on the beast, i kind of expect random things to go wrong.

At least the weather is nice enough to work on it!

Thanks again all, and have a good night.

Elvota

I have always checked fuel pressure by cracking open the cold start injector where it enters the intake. Won't tell you how much pressure, but will tell you if the fuel pump is working.

You'll want to have someone crank it while you crack the bolt. Make sure you remove the dizzy/ coil cable so it won't start at the same time you have fuel spraying out. Keep a rag handy... it only takes a second to see fuel pressure.

I think there is a easy way to jump the diagnostic block and fire up the fuel pump separate from turning the key if you are trying to do all this on your own. The 4Crawler site has info on which leads need to be connected to achieve fuel pump opertation.

myyota

Try spraying a little carb cleaner or starting fluid into the intake and see if it trys to start, if it does then its probably the fuel pump.

Stomis

Another easy way to try to see if its the fuel pump is to feed ignition source. You should here your fuel pump click.

CJM

Fuel pump by far, tap the gas tank a bit (hard) with something and it may allow it to start up.

tombothetominator

Cool guys,
Appreciate the info. If I have time i will check the fuel pressure this morning(though i'm still thinking something in the ignition side - due to the weird spark test).

If all else fails - the tow truck will be picking her up this afternoon...

tombothetominator

Success!! I went to test the pickup coil resistances, and found that the plug type is different from the one listed in the '93 fsm (conector was a 2x2 instead of a 1x4 in the manual). So i did what Elvota said (clean out the connector) and it fired right up afterwards. Turned it off and back on a couple of times and listened to the oh-so-sweet sound of the engine running.

Thanks to everyone for posting up suggestions, and to Elvota for the winning suggestion.

Now to return that primary coil to autozone...