Car not starting

[Jfo]

Ok here's the deal.I was driving last night and my car just shut off.I tried putting gas in and took the battery out and had it tested.The battery is good and the car cranks but won't start.I'm thinking either ditributor or spark plugs or fuel filter or fuel pump.Does anyone have any ideas on what it could be so hopefully I can avoid replacing things I don't need to replace.

Thanks

[wiseguy01]

pull a plug and have a friend crank it while holding the plug near the engine block so it will ground and you will see a spark jump across if not then more than likely the dist is no good based on what your describing what happened

[shockerman10]

yea check your spark, and if you have spark, then listen to see if your feul pump is activating when you turn your key(without cranking it) you should hear it. or have a friend listen to it on the out side of your car. if it died when you were driving, it could also be fuel injectors.

[Jfo]

Thanks for the responses.Imma have to try that with the plugs.Do you guys think a clogged fuel filter would do that?I have read that it has happened to people before where it wouldn't start because of no fuel.The fuel filter hasn't been changed in 3 years.

[dayellowboy]

It could very well be the distributer, I've had that happened to me before not only once but multiple times. Once I replaced the distributer, I haven't had any problems since. But you should check what the other guys are saying first, just so that it's not my word that made you buy a new distributer for nothing!!!

[Jfo]

Ok here's an update.I did the two tests one for fuel and one for spark and I have fuel I don't have spark.So my next question is what should I replace.I've read people say the coil, cap wires and plugs and just do the whole distributor.How much does just replacing the whole distributor cost? and lastly if I do just go with a whole new one should I do wires and plugs with it too.Thanks for the responses at least now I know what direction to go in.

[wiseguy01]

to eliminate your dist take it off and take it to autozone and have them test the icm ignition control module its internally mounted inside the dist and highly common for this unit to go out if it is bad it is better to replace the whole dist because there are five other boxes in the dist too that can go bad

[Jfo]

Ok so I replaced the distributor and it worked for half a day.Then I go to start it ,after I had driven it and started it multiple times today, and it doesn't start again.Again I have no spark.I tried the new cap and old cap both with the new distributor and it doesn't work.Do I need to replace the plugs and wires?It turns over just like before but won't start again.I don't understand how it can start over and over today then just die again randomly.What else could it be?Is something shorting out the distributor.The only thing different is this time it didn't die on me while running.

Thanks

[wiseguy01]

ok so did you have an autozone check your icm inside the distributor?? because if not then the dist maybe not the prob do the spark test on the coil and see if there is spark cause then it might be the main relay but it cant be plugs and or wires because the dist is the spark distributor so if the distributor isnt getting spark then changing the plugs wont help so look at the coil with the spark test and was the dist rebuilt or from the junkyard also make sure you check all your underhood fuses and grounds the dist requires ground in order to make spark so make sure that the dist is tight also make sure that the timing is good so get a timing light and time it

[Jfo]

I din't have them check the distribuotr icm.I though treplacing the whol ething woul dfix it.The distributor is rebuilt and worked for a few hours then crapped out.That's what I dont get how can everything work then just stop again.If it is th erelay how coul dit work then just stop.How do I do a spark test on the coil?And what all does replacing the main relay involve?

[wiseguy01]

if you have an external coil just pull the main coil wire and hold it close to the engine ground because it can be your coil too try checking it

[Jfo]

Ok Autozone says they can't test the ICM in a Honda dist.I took both of my distributors and mixedmatched parts and niether one worked.I see the "coil" inside the dist. but what wire do I disconnect or whatever to test it for spark.The coil is a TEC is that right?Do I need the car to be on ?Do I need to remove the coil from the distributor?Can there be spark at the dist. but not at the plug because of faulty wires or plugs?I also read the main relay has more to do with fuel pump etc. than ignition .

[turtlecrxsi]

Just take the distributor back and say it only worked for a few hours and it's defective. You should have limited lifetime warranty. As long as you have the receipt, they'll swap it out. I went and swapped my distributor after a year of having it to a non-working one (didn't need it to begin with due totally separate issue) then had it swapped out for a known good working one (all under the replacement warranty). Since you already spent the money on the rebuilt dizzy, just bring it back and get another one. If it doesn't work, then either you have seriously bad luck or something else is wrong with the car. Be sure to check all the grounds as well. BTW, changing the cap won't make much difference. And be sure the rotor button screw is in tight. If your rotor button screw is loose or pops out your car will die.

[wiseguy01]

take a multimeter and take the cap off and check the voltage by sticking one lead in the spring hole aka coil ang ground the other lead by leads i mean the leads on the multimeter and make sure that u have the meter set to 12vdc and check if theres 12 volts with ignition on

[Jfo]

I have 12v at the ICM which gets its power from the coil so I would assume the coil has power.I tested the black/yellow and green/yellow connections with ignition on and got 12v on both.I tried to get an ohm resistance reading on the coil but didn't know what setting to use on the meter so I used all three settings and none gave me the .6-.7 reading.I'm thinking the coil could be gone on both distribuotrs because both had power at the ICM.I'm going to get my money back and apply that towards another distributor.Any other ideas?