Van will crank but won't start (After headgasket)

[Megadysart]

First off this is my first post, I've been lurking for awhile and I love this community and everyone's vans! My dad just gave me his 1986 Van Wagon LE last month, and it had been overheating, and had been sitting for almost 2 years because of it. I ordered a headgasket, cleaned it up, pulled the engine apart, cleaned the old gunk and dirt out of it, and then patched it back up. I had a bit of a run in with vacuum and cooling hoses, but after hours and hours of work I finally got 99% of the hoses patched up with the correct diameter hoses. When I finally finished the job, I put a new battery in and I cranked the engine over. It turns without any resistance and the starter turns no problem. The thing just will not fire up. I can crank it for 10 seconds and then leave it for 30 minutes, try again, and no luck. I've purchased a spark tester and I'm getting spark on all 4 cylinders, I bought new plugs and wires just to replace the 20 year old ones that had been in there since the original owner bought the van, most likely. I made sure the metal fuel lines with the hollow bolts were lined up correctly, and just to check and see if there was fuel pressure I loosened one and cranked the motor, which made it super obvious that there was good fuel pressure when gas shot all over the place. I don't have any blocks in the intake, I'm fairly certain I don't have a vacuum leak, since I spent about 3 days making sure that all the vacuum lines were routed correctly. I'm at a loss here, and I can't figure out what could be wrong with it. Maybe you guys could give me some ideas? Any chance it could be electrical (any fuses I should check maybe)? I need to make this van run!

Also, when I was taking the engine apart I accidentally broke the old, brittle Engine Coolant Temp sensor (ECT) but I did some soldering and cleaning and tried to repair it the best I could. Could this be why the engine will crank and spark and get fuel but just won't run?

[djshimon]

I had a similar problem. Did you put in your distributor at TDC, on the one cylinder? That's my guess.

[timsrv]

When you say it turns without any resistance are you suggesting no compression? If it sounds abnormal (no or irregular pulsations) while cranking, then you should do a compression test. If that tests good, then use the compression tester to find the compression stroke for cylinder #1. To do this crank the engine in short bursts with the tester in #1 cylinder hole. When compression spikes, stop cranking immediately, then align the crank pulley to the TDC mark. With the engine positioned at TDC, pull your distributor cap and make sure the rotor is pointing at the #1 spark plug contact (inside the cap). If it's not, then pull the distributor and re-align it so the rotor points at #1. Tim

[timsrv]

BTW, the Engine Temp Sensor for the ECU is important. Having a bad one would not likely prevent the van from starting, but it will not run well if it's messed up. It's a variable you don't need while attempting an initial start. This sensor is inexpensive, so if it's broke or even questionable just replace it. Tim

[Megadysart]

The van pulsates when cranking which indicates that it has compression. Just to be sure, I took the plugs out of all 4 cylinders and i pulled the EFI fuse and cranked, and it was smooth and obviously different sounding than when the plugs were in. When I said that there was no resistance, I was referring to mechanical resistance, like piston slap, something being misaligned, ect. Would I still have a timing problem if I never adjusted the distributor or timing when doing the head gasket? It was running fine before the van was pulled apart to do the repair, besides the fact that there was a blown headgasket. I never ran it for more than 10 seconds, but I did actually drive it up the driveway and into my garage. What I'm basically getting at, is that it seems weird that there would be a timing problem to me. The fact that the van was running ~3 weeks ago, and the fact that I never adjusted timing at all while taking the head off seems to suggest to me that the timing would still be the same as it was before I drove the van into my garage. Should I be looking into other things, (bad gas, electrical issues) first, or would it still be worth the time to go in and check the timing? I don't have the funds really to spend on a compression tester, but I could go borrow one, so if I absolutely have to I would be able to. Thanks again for all the replies, this community of van owners and people who share a passion for these "Twinkie mobiles" as my dad would call them, is seriously amazing!

[timsrv]

If you didn't pull the distributor then there's no need to mess with or check timing. No need to purchase a compression tester if you have an ear for this. I rarely use mine, compression problems are rare & can usually be detected by listening to irregularities in the cranking. But here's the thing: if it's got spark, fuel, compression and it's timed correctly, then it should be running. Obviously one of these things isn't present (at least where it counts), so you should recheck a few things. One thing we don't know is whether or not fuel is making it inside the cylinders. To test, spray some starting fluid inside the throttle body tube, reattach it and try to start. If it starts for a second, then you'll know it's a fuel system or an injector problem. You did hook up your injector connectors..........right? Good luck. Tim

[Megadysart]

You did hook up your injector connectors..........right?

Hahaha, that made me laugh because the first time I tried to crank it after 6 or 7 hours of work, I was over-excited and forgot to do that, and I had to take the upper intake and all of its hoses and lines off again and attach the electrical connectors...I tried the starting fluid test but I actually did it with some intake cleaner and then I tried it with some brake clean (the flammable kind). Could it just be that the gas that's in the tank is old? I remember siphoning most of it out and using it in my other car, and I've added an extra gallon of new gas, but there could have still been old E85 in there which is known to go bad in less than 3 months in some cases....maybe that's a step in the right direction? Are there any fuses you'd recommend that I check?

[timsrv]

What happened when you did the starting fluid test? Did it fire?

[Megadysart]

Tried the starting fluid test, and the funny thing is, it actually sounded like it was going to fire. Then I got a little carried away with the starting fluid, sprayed a little too much, and the engine backfired like a gunshot. I noticed there is a connector at the front (the belt side of the engine) on the injector rails that looks like the wires were pulled out of it. I've had a bunch of problems like this throughout this repair with these old connectors, but I've managed to at least "ghetto rig" them for now until I know the van will at least run, and then I plan to get the proper connectors and repair the wiring harness. Could this be my problem? This morning I checked timing, and the #1 compression stroke perfectly matched the #1 ignition timing. There's fuel pressure, the battery and starter are good....is it possible that my injectors are dead because of this connection being damaged? I've inserted the clip looking wires into the actual connector on the injectors, and I've had no luck, even when I tried to reverse the polarity on the off chance that they might have been put in backwards. Thanks again.

[Megadysart]

I just jumped the terminals on the test connector for the fuel pump and heard it whirring. I tried starting a few times and it sounds like it's really trying to start. If I keep cranking, it sounds like it's running (very roughly) but as soon as I let off of the key, it dies. Could this be an ignition switch issue? The van has a damaged tumbler, and will start with ANY key shaped object, screwdriver, ect. Maybe that could be another issue?

[timsrv]

I don't know. Questionable connectors & other parts are variables you don't need when doing a job like this (too many variables). Your problem might even be a combination of several little things. How are the spark plugs? Maybe it's something as simple as fouled plugs? The ignition tumbler thing is common (happens on all the vans), but that doesn't affect the actual ignition switch (just makes the van easy to steal). On a positive note, at least yours isn't easy to steal right now . Good luck. Tim