I have a 98 Chevy Cavalier 2.4L z24 that wont start but does crank?

Tiny
MATTHEW93
  • MEMBER
  • 1998 CHEVROLET CAVALIER
  • 173,000 MILES
I just replaced the water pump and the feuel filter but didnt help
Monday, January 30th, 2012 AT 7:04 AM

5 Replies

Tiny
FIXITMR
  • MECHANIC
  • 9,990 POSTS
Have you checked fuel pressure and spark at plugs?
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Monday, January 30th, 2012 AT 7:15 AM
Tiny
WRENCHTECH
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All "crank, no start" conditions are approached in the same way. Every engine requires certain functions to be able to run. Some of these functions rely on specific components to work and some components are part of more than one function so it is important to see the whole picture to be able to conclude anything about what may have failed. Also, these functions can ONLY be tested during the failure. Any other time and they will simply test good because the problem isn't present at the moment.
If you approach this in any other way, you are merely guessing and that only serves to replace unnecessary parts and wastes money.

Every engine requires spark, fuel and compression to run. That's what we have to look for.

These are the basics that need to be tested and will give us the info required to isolate a cause.

1) Test for spark at the plug end of the wire using a spark tester. If none found, check for power supply on the + terminal of the coil with the key on.

2) Test for injector pulse using a small bulb called a noid light. If none found, check for power supply at one side of the injector with the key on.

3) Use a fuel pressure gauge to test for correct fuel pressure, also noticing if the pressure holds when key is shut off.

4) If all of these things check good, then you would need to do a complete compression test.

Once you have determined which of these functions has dropped out,
you will know which system is having the problem.
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Monday, January 30th, 2012 AT 10:54 AM
Tiny
MATTHEW93
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I checked the the compression from the spark plugs and they were good some people were telling me that it might be my timing belt is that true I just need like a diagram of how the timing housing looks and how to fix it
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Monday, January 30th, 2012 AT 5:58 PM
Tiny
FIXITMR
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You have a timing chain. Much less likely to mess up. But if you did water pump you were already at timing chain as pump is driven by chain.
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Tuesday, January 31st, 2012 AT 6:43 AM
Tiny
WRENCHTECH
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That video is not the same engine at all. That is a 2.2 Ecotec engine and this is a 2.4 Quad 4. Very different animals.
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Tuesday, January 31st, 2012 AT 10:55 AM

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