97 chevy cavalier won't start changed plugs ran fine two days

[ladagosta]

2.2 L engine automatic
well then it died and wont restart.
fuel is getting in and there appears to be compression.
I was wondering if this could be the timing belt?
anyone have a similar situation.
I drove it fine for 2 days after i changed the plugs then it seemed to over heat but it didn't it just wont start.
it would chug for a mile and then stopped running I thought it was the cataylic converter fixed that but still no starting changed plugs back swapped out a few sensors with used ones and still no start.

[tempfixit]

Check fuel pressure with fuel pressure gauge.

Do you have spark at plugs??

What sensors have you changed and are they known good sensors??

[ladagosta]

Originally Posted by tempfixit

Check fuel pressure with fuel pressure gauge.

Do you have spark at plugs??

What sensors have you changed and are they known good sensors??

there is plenty of fuel that is why I stated that
spark is hot
all oxygen sensors were replaced with known good ones..
my mechanic is leaning towards timing do you concur?
He recently had another cavalier come in there that turned out to be the timing tensioner and belt
my car has been sitting for a year and he is now leaning toward this being the problem.
he has swapped as many used good parts on it and is agrivated that when I thought on the lines of timing he did not go with it to begin with
he gave up and well I did too until last month when he had this other cavalier in and it was the timing belt
we both started thinking it was the converter but that was replaced and it got 5 miles started out slightly rough and got real worse and died and would not start again,
he double checked fuel and compression and looked at the timing but didnt go much further than looking. he now regrets not going further and looking at the tensioner cause that was what turned out to be the problem with this other cavalier.

I needed the car when my trans was being replaced on my honda and got it back the week before this one crapper out but I would like to get the honda off the road altogether so time to look at the cavalier again.
just need to confirm if you would agree to go ahead with the timing or if you think it might be something other than timing if the fuel is there and the compression checks out. spark is hot..
thank you

[tempfixit]

I assume the camshaft and crankshaft sensors were checked and replaced????

Has injector pulse been checked?

I know some of the other 97 GM models had ignition switch problems, worth checking out.

If that is the case I would agree to check timing belt, it may have slippped a couple of teeth and is off. Only way to find out is to check the crank and camshaft alignment with TDC.

How many miles on vehicle and when was the timing belt last changed??

[Airjer_]

It has a timing chain not a belt

[ladagosta]

Originally Posted by tempfixit

I assume the camshaft and crankshaft sensors were checked and replaced????

Has injector pulse been checked?

I know some of the other 97 GM models had ignition switch problems, worth checking out.

If that is the case I would agree to check timing belt, it may have slippped a couple of teeth and is off. Only way to find out is to check the crank and camshaft alignment with TDC.

How many miles on vehicle and when was the timing belt last changed??

a whoping 185,000 miles.
I dont know it was owned by mail carrier and he gave up on it at 175,000 they drove it around for the last year never had trouble with it I buy it and it drops a month later.. it only figures..
has to many dents and bangs in it like there isnt one part of the body that he didnt hit.. trany needs a tune up too.. tell me does this car have a trans pan or is it a disposible tranny?

I will make mention of those issues and let him know as well.. I know he has swapped out a great deal of parts and alot of time the car is not worth it, but he owed me, I helped him out with some stuff not sure he owed that much.

now I dont know if it is chain or belt dont frankly care. autozone lists belts as chains and vise versa .. that is not a concern if it needs to b replaced
so to anwer any questions .. about when was what done.. i cant help but I know the mail carriers out here have the company pay for service.. so it was probably maintained well until he dumped it, which was when the company siad it is too old to fix get rid of it..

thanks for the insight I will certainly relay this to my friend..

[tempfixit]

Is your Passlock lite flashing????

Have you tried the Passlock relearn procedure for the hell of it???

Try starting engine, leave ignition switch in the run position and walk away for 10 to 15 minutes. Try starting by turning ignition switch to start, do NOT turn ignition switch to off first.

Try this before checking timing chain, hopefully this will work.

[J-Ri]

Make sure the exhaust isn't plugged. Remove the exhaust pipe from the exhaust manifold and see if it starts. Also, what is the fuel pressure, what is the compression pressure, and what is the kV of the spark? If an engine has good spark (at the right time), fuel (into the cylinder, not just in the rail), and compression, it will run. Timing chains don't jump teeth.

[CoolasIce]

Hey J-R, how did you fix that Dakota for $65 + $10?

[J-Ri]

Originally Posted by CoolasIce

Hey J-R, how did you fix that Dakota for $65 + $10?

a PM would be more appropriate... but since it's here anyway:
The minimum diagnostic fee is $65 which is for up to an hour of diagnosing. I discovered the problem was simply a corroded splice (keeping power from the ASD relay and PCM [and also a few non-essential things]), which needed nothing more than a few inches of wire, some solder, and some heatshrink tubing. $10 may actually be a bit more than it actually was, but I'm not really too sure on that.

[manicmechanix]

I have to say your mechanic doesn't seem to know what he's doing. If he checked compression like he claimed that would tell if the timing chain was broken or out of time or not. A clogged catalytic conv. normally won't keep a car from starting and idling, at least it would run for a moment, but the cat was changed anyway. It could very well be the timing chain, but a compressioin test would point that out. It doesn't sound like your mechanic is really runing all the diagnositic tests, so it's hard to know if you actually do have spark and fuel pressure or not. But assuming that compression, fuel and spark is good, the injector need to be checked to see if the PCM is cycling them.

Your transmission has a drain pan, all GM automatics do.

[ladagosta]

okay thank you all for your replies..
I know my mechanic does not appear to know what he is doing that is why i am coming here.
I used to work on cars when i was physically able and he has run into old age and legal issues (not around his garage), he had to sell out most of his equiptment and is going back to trying to diagnose without the machines. which is causing me trouble getting this car back to running and off his yard.
I considered having a friend tow it to the junk yard for even up but it is a car that was running decent before this rough idle thing happened right after changing the plugs to high preformance plugs and then the sputter sputter when it got hot and we both thought first off the cat converter..

after dealing with that.. the thing still ran rough, appeared to over heat in 10 minutes my home is only 10 minutes from his garage but that was cause he forget to put the radiator cap on and i took care of that.
but then when i went to take it home the thing would not start. he had his brother flat bed it back to his garage. I should have left it at home and figured it out myself but it has been there since last march.
He has more parts to swap out than I do, I have nothing since I can no longer work on cars due to my totally distroyed back (i dont have one disc that is in good shape had 2 surgeries and nothing is getting me back to running)
but anyway my back up car is useless unless i can figure a way to get it running or I will strip what i can, like only tires and a few engine parts since it looks like hell body isnt worth sh!t.
At this point i know he wants it out of there too so..
any suggestions are welcome..

[tempfixit]

First I would do a fuel pressure test, fuel pressure needs to be 41 to 47 PSI. You may be getting gas but not enough to start. I know you stated that it is getting gas, worth a try at this point.

Also remove air cleaner hose from throttle body and try starting using starting fluid or preferrably carb cleaner, etc. If you have good spark and timing is good it should run until what you squirt in is burned up.

Post what the fuel pressure reading is.

[ladagosta]

okay I already tried the starter fluid in TB which produced nothing just sounds like it is trying to but cant. as what i recall it has been a year..

[manicmechanix]

Originally Posted by ladagosta

okay I already tried the starter fluid in TB which produced nothing just sounds like it is trying to but cant. as what i recall it has been a year..

Well no start with starting fluid would indicate that you have a spark problem or an engine mechanical problem (low compression from timing chain etc.). You said it started acting up right after the plugs were changed. The thing to do is check for spark and then take these plugs out. inspect them to see if perhaps they were the wrong ones and made contact with the piston or such, run compression test and if that checks out ok put different plugs in. If compression and ignition check out ok, then check fuel pressure and check that the injectors are being cycled on and off by the PCM.

By the way, is the engine the 2.2 or the 2.4. I'm guessing 2.2. You said it ran hot. Just how hot and for how long? Did it run hot and die. Overheating can blow the headgasket. Anyway, following the diagnostics in the first paragraph should find the problem.