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Thread: Car wont start....after snow melts

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Posts: 1-10 of 14
2008-02-14 14:13:35
#1
Car wont start....after snow melts
Hello everyone, well the unfortunate happened to me yesterday. I left work early because I am very sick, its been rivers (exageration) flowing through the streets due to snow melting. Anyway I get home and I have to pick up my cleaners, I go to crank the car, it acts like its going to turn over...but it doesnt. I had just driven it the night before with NO problems, the car had a good 3 inches of snow of top of it when I left in the morning, but none when I came back.

Anyway...

I live on a hill so I let the car go down the hill and tried push starting it and nothing, wouldnt start.... I looked at the SAFCII and the battery showed enough Volts, I still thought hmmm... maybe because of the cold weather it needs more power, I have a 1/4 tank of gas so it should be enough. So my neighbor lends me her VW and I connected the battery wires, and nothing wouldnt start. I did notice when I popped my engine bay that it was all moist in there, just like when you take a hot shower and everything inside the bathroom has mist on it.

I spoke with Miko, he told me to do several things to check if fuel is getting to the engine, and spark etc... but it started to rain so I could not proceed (and I was super sick).

I called my aunts brother up here who is a mechanic (over 30 years) and he told me that typically cars do not start due to the high moisture in the air because of the rain and snow melting, he told me to check the distributor (or dry it off) and dry the electronics in the engine bay, it should then start....or wait till the end of today because its going to be sunny and nice. So ill wait till today, I hope it starts this evening!

Any guys up north ever dealt with this?
2008-02-14 16:27:32
#2
I've had this problem with my p11. Exactly as you described, crank no start, then start but stumble for a bit before the idle settled. My engine bay was soaked. Looked like I just took a hose to it. Ironically my p10 was having issues starting last night. Bay was wet. Lotsa cranking before it fired up!
2008-02-14 16:32:47
#3
Sounds like your dizzy has excessive moisture. Take a hair dryer out there
2008-02-14 17:09:50
#4
Thanks for replying guys. Thats what my aunts bro told me, dry up the dizzy or take a hair drier out there. Today is pretty sunny, so hopefully the distributor will dry up.
2008-02-14 18:53:19
#5
Happens all the time if you wash the engine bay with the engine off. Older toyotas were notorious for this. open the hood and let the sun get on the engine. then try to start.
2008-02-14 19:37:22
#6
seems like a easy fix
2008-02-14 23:47:03
#7
The snow had nothing to do with it, cause a lot of other SR20's here in NY would not start. I highly doubt that you kept the hood open. Sounds like you have a dirty throtle body and bad gas. Get a bottle of dry gas, throw it in and clean out the gunk from the T/B. Reverse spray the hose that leads to the IAVC as well. If that works then it will fire up much much better next time and everytime after.
2008-02-15 13:46:31
#8
She fired right up!!!!! Not even with a bit of hesitation either.

Originally Posted by Pretty
The snow had nothing to do with it, cause a lot of other SR20's here in NY would not start. I highly doubt that you kept the hood open. Sounds like you have a dirty throtle body and bad gas. Get a bottle of dry gas, throw it in and clean out the gunk from the T/B. Reverse spray the hose that leads to the IAVC as well. If that works then it will fire up much much better next time and everytime after.


Thanks for the post, but im not going to go through that trouble when Im sure everything is clean in there (maybe 10k miles with the VE). The car has never had an issue starting up and it has a clean nice idle and runs very strong. I believe the moisture thing, especially since I drive the car once or twice a week, it just sits there in the cold on a slope for the majority of the week.
2008-02-19 22:16:46
#9
Alright guys, so I just got back from some upstate skiing and chilling at my uncles cabin and I get back to my uncles house in LI, and the NX had been sitting for 3 days, it was raining when I got to the house, I go to start it and....it wont start. But this time it sounds more like its about to turn over but it doesnt.

So I quickly dried the "mist" off the battery, wires, MSD 8969, distributor and went into my uncles basement, took his leaf blower out and blew air on these parts for a good 10 minutes. I then went to crank the car, and it turned on...a little weak but then it started idling perfectly. Im thinking moisture is getting into the distributor.

Should I get a new cap and rotor? I dont remember EVER tuning up the car since the swap was done, the old parts from the DE are on the car (who knows how old?) so im thinking of doing a little tuneup (cap, rotor, wires, spark plugs, fuel filter). Can anyone chime in? This never happened in Florida when it rained, but then it is colder in NY Thanks guys.
2008-02-19 22:35:58
#10
Had a similar problem in my old SE-R, and actually on the Blazer I own now. A few years ago we got something like 28" of snow in like 36 hours. I tried going out in the middle of it in my SE-R. Well I made it about 100 feet before I got stuck. Rocking it back and forth kicked a TON of snow up onto the engine. When the engine got warm, it melted the snow and it got into the plugs and wires. Wouldn't start at first, and when it did it ran like ****. Replaced wires/plugs and it ran fine.

The Blazer I have now all of a sudden decided to not start on me. Literally one day I go out and nothing. It had been working fine without a single problem. Pulled the cap and you could see green crap over all the terminals. Replaced the cap and runs better than ever.

So I'd say start with plugs/wires/cap/rotor. Should work, and it's cheap as hell on a lil 4 cyl.
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