91 RS not starting

I have a 91 RS 3.1 with a 5 speed that is not starting.
This has been a good car but she's showing her age and I can't afford to replace it right now.

The problem started with the key not engaging the starter at all, a friend who is much better at electrical than I was helping and we found the security relay switch behind the kick panel is not engaging on it's own. we manually engaged the switch and now the key will spin the starter but the engine is not firing up only spinning.

I guess my first question is does the security relay switch control anything other than the starter engaging.

There is gas in the car. using a screwdriver and spark plug wire we have verified that we are getting spark.

Does anyone have any hints as to what I should be looking at next.

Thanks for any help or input.

Chances are you have a black resistor chip on your ignition key?

When you turn the key to "on"(don't crank the vehicle), the SECURITY light in your dash should come on for 3 seconds and then go out.....does it go out?

If it doesn't, that is your problem......if the light stays on, it means your starter enable relay is not being grounded AND that a fuel enable signal is not being sent to the PCM, so the injectors are not being fired.....so even though you bypassed the relay, the car didn't start because the injectors were not firing.......you can verify this, by bypassing the relay so the vehicle cranks, and by spraying carb cleaner into the intake......the vehicle will start and run as long as you spray....

The problem is the lock cylinder the key goes into.....there are two wires that run up the steering column to the lock cylinder......these wires help the Theft module "read" the resistor on the key....over time, the wire breaks due to flexing......so the key can't be "read" by the Theft Module....if the module can't read your key, it won't ground the starter enable relay to crank your car, and it also won't send the fuel enable signal to the PCM to fire the injectors.....

Two options.....replace the lock cylinder, which involves tearing down the column.....you will also have to buy a new chip key, which will be cut to the blank that comes with the new lock cylinder(the new key has to have the same resistance as the old one) or you read the resistance of your key, and buy a resistor at a place like Radio Shack......under the dash on the drivers side, you will see an orange sheathed harness with two white wires coming out of it, coming down the steering column.....it goes to a black connector.....disconnect the harness and attach the resistor to the half that goes away from the column....the resistor will signal the Theft module and you can still use your old key to turn the lock cylinder....

Thank you for the response!! I'm about to go help Mr Blackheart with his car. Are the resistor color codes on the key, or do I need to measure it. I do remember seeing what looked like resistor color codes. Again, thank you so much! We will let you know how it goes.

Thank you Tech II
While a bit over my head when talking about resistors ohms and such my friend knew exactly what you were talking about. We had to stack a couple resistors together to get the correct numerical value and it worked perfectly.
If you are ever in the Orlando area I want to buy you a beer.
Once again, thank you for the advice and this is a great site.

I really like 7&7's......:smile: