Automotive Forums .com - the leading automotive community online! Automotive Forums .com - the leading automotive community online!
Automotive Forums .com - the leading automotive community online! 
-
Latest | 0 Rplys
Go Back   Automotive Forums .com Car Chat > Engineering/Technical
Engineering/Technical Ask technical questions about cars. Do you know how a car engine works?
Reply Show Printable Version Show Printable Version | Email this Page Email this Page | Subscription Subscribe to this Thread
 
Thread Tools
Old 07-19-2006, 07:14 PM   #1
ShaolinMassa
AF Regular
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Nassau
Posts: 64
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Question Car Won't Start After Sitting For A Long Time, Please Help...

I am wondering if anyone can help me with a problem. I have a car that has been sitting for about a year and a half without being started. It was working perfectly when I parked it and had no problems. I just got a new battery for it since the old one drained, but it will not turn over for anything in the world, sometimes it sounds like it wants to, but it wont.

It is fuel injected so I can't do the gas in the carburator thing. Does anyone have any suggestions as to what I could do to get it started? I have been trying to start it for 2 days now. Thanks...
ShaolinMassa is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-19-2006, 08:13 PM   #2
roadxing
AF Newbie
 
roadxing's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Kansas City, Missouri
Posts: 69
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Send a message via AIM to roadxing
Re: Car Won't Start After Sitting For A Long Time, Please Help...

what kind of car do you have?
could be the starter if its not turning over at all or the solenoid. first just make sure the like to the starter and solenoid isnt loose or corroded. that could keep it from turning over.
does it make any noises when its trying to turn over? like a clicking noise
are you sure you have a hot battery, even new ones sometimes arent good.

for now, until it turns over you really dont need to try to spray starting fluid into the engine. (on a fuel infected car you can also spray some in where the air goes in. take off the closest part of the air filter system to the motor and spray just a little in there. iv done it before, i dont think its recommended but...sometimes you got to do what you got to do.)

also...just my opinion and it being a year in a half since its been started, but you probably should drain the gas and replace the fuel filter UNLESS you had some sort of fuel treatment to keepthe gas good. if you dont, the gunk from the gas can mess up the fuel pump and clog up parts of the fuel system.

GOOD LUCK!
roadxing is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-19-2006, 08:24 PM   #3
Moppie
Master Connector
 
Moppie's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: Auckland
Posts: 11,781
Thanks: 95
Thanked 101 Times in 80 Posts
Send a message via ICQ to Moppie Send a message via AIM to Moppie Send a message via Yahoo to Moppie
Re: Car Won't Start After Sitting For A Long Time, Please Help...

Lots of things can happen to a car thats just been sitting for a long time, before you drive it any where be prepared to:

Drain all the gas out, and refill it with freash fuel.
Change the Oil.
Change the Brake Fluid and Clutch Fluid if it has one.
Unsieze/Replace the brakes, very common for them to rust solid.
Be prepared for a number of rubber components to have gone hard as they have dried out, and may start leaking fluids.

If the car was just parked and left, then I wouldn't hold high hopes for it ever being much good again.
If it was preped before being left, then theres no reason you can't get it working properly again, but cars like to be used and looked after, not forgotten about for 18 months.
__________________
Connecting the Auto Enthusiasts
Moppie is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-19-2006, 09:09 PM   #4
ShaolinMassa
AF Regular
Thread starter
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Nassau
Posts: 64
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Re: Car Won't Start After Sitting For A Long Time, Please Help...

Thank you everyone for the replies.

The car is a 1995 BMW 325is. I am pretty certain the brakes have seized up too moppie. I put it in neutral and tried to push it and it wouldn't budge. The only noise it makes when I try to start it are the regular noises a car makes when you try to start it. It is making the sounds that it wants to start, but doesn't turn over. I will try to get it started though, I really want to save this car.

The battery may also be a problem roadxing, the one I used is kind of small and this car had a huge truck battery that was used to start it when I first got it.

I feel really bad about leaving it there like that, had a rat living in the hood too when I checked and a wasp nest, had to get all that out. I checked to see if any wires were cut by the rat, but it doesnt look so. I will try the starting fluid and then if that doesnt work, i'll move on to the more complex things like draining the gas and installing new filters and stuff.

I appreciate the help guys. Will let you know how it goes.
ShaolinMassa is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-19-2006, 09:12 PM   #5
Moppie
Master Connector
 
Moppie's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: Auckland
Posts: 11,781
Thanks: 95
Thanked 101 Times in 80 Posts
Send a message via ICQ to Moppie Send a message via AIM to Moppie Send a message via Yahoo to Moppie
Re: Car Won't Start After Sitting For A Long Time, Please Help...

It might also pay to remove the spark plugs, and put a small drop of oil in the cylinders, then turn the motor a few times by hand.
After sitting for that long the cylinder bores would have gathered some surface rust.
Unforuntatly you've already turned it over a few times by cranking it, by hopefuly not faster enough to do any damage.
__________________
Connecting the Auto Enthusiasts
Moppie is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-19-2006, 09:43 PM   #6
ShaolinMassa
AF Regular
Thread starter
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Nassau
Posts: 64
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Re: Car Won't Start After Sitting For A Long Time, Please Help...

Quote:
Originally Posted by Moppie
It might also pay to remove the spark plugs, and put a small drop of oil in the cylinders, then turn the motor a few times by hand.
After sitting for that long the cylinder bores would have gathered some surface rust.
Unforuntatly you've already turned it over a few times by cranking it, by hopefuly not faster enough to do any damage.

Thanks, i will try that. I feel kinda stupid because I changed, the plugs, the oil and all the filters just before I let it sit up, but the battery went dead and I never bothered to get another one so I could start the car. Now it's gonna cost a whole lot more to fix.
ShaolinMassa is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-19-2006, 11:13 PM   #7
UncleBob
AF -Advisor
 
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Seattle, Washington
Posts: 1,482
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Re: Car Won't Start After Sitting For A Long Time, Please Help...

Quote:
Originally Posted by ShaolinMassa
The only noise it makes when I try to start it are the regular noises a car makes when you try to start it. It is making the sounds that it wants to start, but doesn't turn over.
is it turning over or not? You seem to contradict yourself here.

Turning over = crank shaft is rotating, but due to whatever issues, the combustion process isn't working enough to keep the engine running

Not turning over = starter will not turn the crankshaft, and nothing happens, other than maybe a clicking sound, or possibly the starter bendix spins but nothing else happens.

Trying to start = crank is turning over, and combustion is happening speradically, but not enough to cause it to run. IE, you hear it "catch" now and then, like its about to run.

Its important to discribe exactly what happens when you try to start the car, otherwise we won't be able to help you.
__________________
life begins at 10psi of boost

Three turbo'd motorcycles and counting.
UncleBob is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-20-2006, 01:59 PM   #8
ShaolinMassa
AF Regular
Thread starter
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Nassau
Posts: 64
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Re: Car Won't Start After Sitting For A Long Time, Please Help...

Hi Unble Bob, it is turning over, just will not start. It won't stay to the point where you let the key go and the car stays on.
ShaolinMassa is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-21-2006, 02:18 AM   #9
534BC
AF Enthusiast
 
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Babylon
Posts: 946
Thanks: 0
Thanked 1 Time in 1 Post
Re: Car Won't Start After Sitting For A Long Time, Please Help...

good question Bob. If its spinning then check for spark on a easy plug, if it is getting spark then you can fog some gas or lp gas out of a torch into the airhorn. If it runs then you will know that it is in the fuel system somewhere and can probably assume the ignition is fine.

Last edited by 534BC; 08-01-2006 at 02:18 PM.
534BC is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-31-2006, 10:28 PM   #10
ShaolinMassa
AF Regular
Thread starter
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Nassau
Posts: 64
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Re: Car Won't Start After Sitting For A Long Time, Please Help...

Well here is the latest guys. I used the starting fluid and it was so close to starting, but still wouldn't stay on. So bought some new spark plugs and when I went to change them the first plug and the last plug had a lot of oil on them, the middle ones had small amounts of oil.

Also one thing I noticed, the stock BWM spark plugs had one side electrode on the first two plugs and the last four plugs had two side electrodes. The ones that the store gave me had one side electrode on all the plugs. Will this be a problem? Also, is there an easy fix for the oil getting on the plugs, can it be fixed any way at all without changing the piston rings?

P.S. I didn't put in the new plugs, I decided to ask here first. Thanks...
ShaolinMassa is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 07-31-2006, 11:57 PM   #11
Moppie
Master Connector
 
Moppie's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: Auckland
Posts: 11,781
Thanks: 95
Thanked 101 Times in 80 Posts
Send a message via ICQ to Moppie Send a message via AIM to Moppie Send a message via Yahoo to Moppie
Re: Car Won't Start After Sitting For A Long Time, Please Help...

Well oil on the plugs will stop it starting.
How it got there after the car has been sitting for 18 months is another matter.

I would put the new plugs and see what happens.
It already sounds like the plugs that were in there with 2 differnt types, generaly not considered best practice.
__________________
Connecting the Auto Enthusiasts
Moppie is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-01-2006, 10:12 AM   #12
ShaolinMassa
AF Regular
Thread starter
 
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Nassau
Posts: 64
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Re: Car Won't Start After Sitting For A Long Time, Please Help...

Does it matter that the ones they gave me only have one electrode on the side? The NGK and Bosch replacement ones for this vehicle that I looked at online all have two side electrodes. Will it make any difference? Thanks.
ShaolinMassa is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 08-01-2006, 02:54 PM   #13
Moppie
Master Connector
 
Moppie's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: Auckland
Posts: 11,781
Thanks: 95
Thanked 101 Times in 80 Posts
Send a message via ICQ to Moppie Send a message via AIM to Moppie Send a message via Yahoo to Moppie
Re: Car Won't Start After Sitting For A Long Time, Please Help...

Theres a good thread in here somewhere about running one or more electrodes.
Quite simply the laws of physics show it to be a nothing more than a marketing ploy. It won't do anything to help performance.
__________________
Connecting the Auto Enthusiasts
Moppie is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-23-2018, 05:10 PM   #14
putster47
AF Newbie
 
Join Date: Mar 2018
Location: Huntsville, Alabama
Posts: 1
Thanks: 0
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Re: Car Won't Start After Sitting For A Long Time, Please Help...

I've also seen the rubber hoses on the fuel pump to deteriorate and fuel pump go bad from sitting too long.
putster47 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-24-2018, 08:49 AM   #15
maxwedge
A990 racer
 
Join Date: Mar 2002
Location: Chestertown, New York
Posts: 16,946
Thanks: 25
Thanked 369 Times in 363 Posts
Re: Car Won't Start After Sitting For A Long Time, Please Help...

Good advice but look at the dates this is a dead 12 year old thread.
__________________
maxwedge is offline   Reply With Quote
 
Reply

POST REPLY TO THIS THREAD

Go Back   Automotive Forums .com Car Chat > Engineering/Technical

Thread Tools

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off



All times are GMT -5. The time now is 04:55 AM.

Community Participation Guidelines | How to use your User Control Panel

Powered by: vBulletin | Copyright Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
 
 
no new posts