1998 Chevy Camaro engine won't start

ANTHONY BOWLING

MEMBER
1998 CHEVROLET CAMARO
6 CYL
2WD
MANUAL
22,000 MILES

I have replaced the timing chain and gears, crank sensor, cam shaft sensor and magnetic pickup also. I just bought the car two weeks ago, I have also rotated timing 180 degrees to make sure that wasn't it. Fuel pump is working. This model does have the key with the chip and auto theft radio. This also has the sensor in the oil pan. Will this star without the fan belt being on or with out oil in the oil pan, just for one second to make sure it will run before buying anything else. The ignition module is also brand new and so are the coil packs, I'm running out of things to check and also money for parts.

2 Replies

WRENCHTECH

MECHANIC
20,761 POSTS

You can't possibly be serious about starting a car without oil. That's like draining all your blood to see if you can live without it.

I don't know how all this started but your going to have to start from scratch with testing.

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.