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Car sat for too long
Thanatos
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
I let my car sit for too long without driving it, and now it won't start. It turns over a few times weakly, but won't actually start. It's a 1990 Honda Civic (manual). The lights are fine, so it's not the battery.
What are my chances of being able to push start it?
What are my chances of being able to push start it?
Thanatos on
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How long are we talking here?
It's a manual, right?
was there gas in the tank?
did it turn to gel?
gas does that after an extended period of time.
Depends on where you live how long it takes.
I'm kind of a hobbyist when it comes to moving former lawn ornament status cars and believe me, it takes years and years and a shitty gas cap seal for it to become inoperable in most climates. Sure, you might need to spray some fuel or ether here and there depending but usually we're talking 5+ years of non motion before gas won't start a car.
good to know.
I just knew that it was a concern, not the details
:P
I think it has been several months since I last bought gas.
Yeah, I'd say try jump starting it.
Fuck, I forgot to put gas stabilizer in my motorcycle over the winter, so that was about 6 months without starting the engine, and though starting it was insanely hard and there may be something with the battery, after trying enough we still got it to start eventually.
For than... 1 month isn't really that long of a time... I don't know if I would start thinking "this is because I left it for a while" first.
I'd check the battery still. Try charging it overnight and then seeing if the car starts.
Is it a clicking noise or does it actually sound like the engine is trying to start?
Not the battery.
If it was the battery you would hear a single click and all the interior lights would dim for a bit until you stopped trying to start it.
However, it might be a bad connection from the battery.
Other than that, a lot of things can cause this. Does the engine sound strained more then usual or does it sound like it usually does start up... only it doesn't?
I don't know if it sounds more strained, or just much weaker.
Well that's my point, if it was a dead battery you wouldn't hear your engine do anything, just a click and all the regular circuit jazz on the inside. Even if your battery is fine, it'll still do that circuit jazz.
But like I said, it could be that your battery has a loose terminal, or just decayed.
The only other things I can think of is if you mighta heard some squeeking noises from your car beforehand, it could be something with the belt, check that the belt is still intact and not cracked. Press DOWN (never lift) the belt to ensure it still have a decent amount of strength in it. Use one thumb and give it a firm press, if it feels in good condition, chances are it is.
If it was squeeky beforehand it could be the waterpump, but dddddoooouuuuuubbbbbbttttt it.
Oil pressure could be another thing.
The water pump wouldn't cause it to not start. Nor is oil (or lack thereof) an issue after only a month.
I would definitely a) pull the battery leads off and clean the terminals and b) get a jump or attempt to push start it.
It's also overdue (time-wise) for an oil change (but not mileage-wise) by a few months.
edit: i would try rolling it forward a bit and then cranking it first. we had a car in the shop the other day that had a bad spot in the starter. we rolled it a bit and it fired right up
Why not? If youre not useless you can push start a car in under 15 feet.
I would guess a dead battery honestly, despite what other people are saying. A dying battery will still let the engine turn over without having enough power to actually get it to catch. Itll sound really bad, like "rrrRRRrrrrRRRrrrRRRrrrRR". If you keep trying eventually itll just top (after the battery is completely drained) and just make the clicking noise.
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However, the fact that the engine turns over worries me. Hopefully it's still just the battery, but if the engine is turning over and hasn't stopped being able to turn over...
You could start troubleshooting it (check for air, fuel, spark), but if you're asking this question, then you're probably not up to the task. I shocked the shit out of myself checking for spark one time. Good times. Besides, if it's not the battery, i'd put money on 'fuel', and maybe try putting some new gas in it like you were talking about.
jeebus... please stop giving car advice. There may be things you're good at, but this isn't one of them.
OP, just get a jumpstart, or pushstart your car. If those don't work, then it's likely the starter.
pushstarting directions http://www.ehow.com/how_7414_push-start-car.html
EDIT: Also, listen to make sure your fuel pump is actually working. Open your gas cap and have someone put their ear to the nozzle. Turn your key to 'on'. Don't actually try to start the car, just turn it to the on position. There should be a brief (1-2 sec) whirring noise from the gas tank. If there's nothing, your fuel pump is not pumping.
If the engine is turning over but not starting, I don't think a push start wont work any better. Push starting it is doing the same thing as the electrical starter, just manually and with more legwork.
I would try some starter fluid (I'm assuming it's fuel injection and not carbureted). Failing that it might not be getting any spark. Pull off one of the spark plug wires and stick a screwdriver in it. Hold it near a ground point and have someone crank the engine. You should see a small spark jump off the screwdriver. That will tell you if your electronic ignition is at least working.
All I did was put in a new battery, jumped in and turned the ignition. Tried about 4 times with the engine turning over, than I started pumping the gas lightly in a quick motion, and vroooom! Then again, this is a carburated engine!
Check the fuel pump/filter, does it have fuel in it? (They're usually transparent, you'll see the red fuel on it, then again I don't know if all cars use fuel pumps?) If it still doesn't go, I would think about injectors or spark plugs, but those shouldn't have any problems with only 3-4 weeks of no use.
I'm pretty inclined to it just being battery troubles.
I agree with this fine gentleman.
This is the way you check for spark. I will now insert a reminder that if you are doing this, and wear leather gloves for added protection against shocking the shit out of yourself, first ensure that said leather gloves are not damp. On the plus side, you gain a special kind of insight into your vehicle's timing.
You can ask the people at the auto store if they can give you some advice on using it in your specific car, or in a fuel injected car in general.
To expound on what others are saying, as the name implies it's extremely flammable. Be careful with it.
I would do the battery stuff first, and toss some new gas into the tank before I started spraying starter fluid into the intake.
Here ya go: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Starter_fluid
The only other thing I might check is your fuel filter getting clogged, which can happen sometimes when engines sit.
Portable Jump Starter
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Good luck.
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