1977 280Z wont start

[Guest livewire23]

there is this 1977Z that wont start. attempts have been made to jump it, and charge the battery, both to no avail. the engine cranks partially, but doesnt continue to crank. engine is stock Fuel injected L28. I pulled the plugs and they seemed a bit black to me, but not oily. the state of the fuel system is unknown, but I would like to know what other parts of the system could be responsible first. Would it be worth it to try and pull the battery from my car to test it? Is it likely to drain my battery? The throttle is all hooked up right, but the spring that provides throttle feedback seems a bit loose. Nothing major though, just loose in comparision to my prelude.

[Guest livewire23]

oops, think I put this in the wrong thread. Could an Admin move this to troubleshooting/general repair? Thx

[Guest Z-rific]

As I'm sure you know, the 3 things needed for an engine to start are air, fuel and spark. So take one at a time and make sure you've got 'em.

 

The first thing I would do, is make sure you hae a strong enough current to get the engine to turn over enough to crank. It sounds like your batt may be too weak. If you have good jumper cables, attach them to your Prelude and let your Z battery build a charge. Rev up the Prelude some.

 

You can check to see if the spark is reaching the plugs by this test... Pull a spark plug and re-attach wire. With an insulated wrench, hold the plug & wire near a metal engine part (nowhere near fuel!) Turn the engine over a few times. You should get a spark. (Need a friend to help)

 

You can also pull a wire at the plug, insert a bolt into the end (loosely, as you dont want to enlargen the clasp in there) so some of the bolt sticks out past the rubber boot. Hold the wire with wrench near a metal part. Then turn engne over.

 

Can you hear the electric fuel pump turn on when you turn the ignition on? If so, then the fuel may be getting stopped up somehwere in the lines. Check lines, fuel filter.

 

With fuel injection, a variety of sensors may be fouled or relays not working properly. How long has it been since the car was last started?

 

The FI experts here may have to walk you through the system.

[Guest livewire23]

thank you. yea, im fairly certain that its the electrical part of the system, because the battery wont hold a charge, and jumping the car doesnt work either.

 

I'll test for a spark when i next have access to the car. Of course I know that you need air fuel and a spark, but somehow I keep forgetting about the air when i diagnose engines. I had the same problem when working on a lawnmower engine once. tunrs out the filter was plugged. So Ill check the whole thing out on depth, and get back to you if i still have problems.

 

The car hasnt been started in a while, not sure of the exact last attempt. the previous owner has passed away and it was his project car. Ill leave worrying about the injetors last, first ill check for spark, then the fuel lines and filter (Ill probably put new fuel lines on while im at it).

 

other than visually inspecting the air filter, is there anyway of making sure the air is reaching the cylinder? short of a valve problem in all 6 cylinders (doesnt seem likely) are there any other reasons the air wouldnt make it to the cylinder?