# just a little help please?



## SATURNTERMINATOR (Nov 12, 2004)

Hi everyone. I have a 86 300zx turbo with about 75k miles. Any way I was driving the car and all of a suddenly the engine shut off, mid you it didnt sputter or bog, it just shut off. Then when I tried to restart it still cranks but never fires. Im guessing this is just some sensor that maybe went bad but was wondering if anyone maybe had an idea. I tried to look for a test port to test for fuel but didnt see one. Just basically wondering if maybe this is something that happens with these cars often. thanks

also the battery is new and i still have power, so i was thinking either fuel or ignition, I just hope its not the fuel pump.

-Brandon


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## asleepz (Feb 24, 2004)

Well take a spark plug out and see if your getting spark and see you if you can hear your fuel pump running right when you turn the key on for 10 or 15 seconds.


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## z31 (Oct 19, 2004)

take off the dist cap and crank the engine. If it doesn't spin, you need a timing belt and possibly some valves.


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## Zen31ZR (Mar 24, 2004)

z31 said:


> take off the dist cap and crank the engine. If it doesn't spin, you need a timing belt and possibly some valves.


 Not necessarily. Most engines have a distributor gear with a spring pin holding it to the distributor drive shaft. If the distributor locks up, that pin sheers, allowing the engine to coast down to a stop with no damage to the timing belt and consequently the valves. It's possible, though unlikely, that the distributor may have seized or binded up for a split second, sheering that pin. So the distibutor may not spin for at least 2 very different reasons. 

I saw what happened once to an engine where a solid pin was used as a replacement instead of a spring pin and which consequently failed to sheer at the appropriate time. It held the cam solidly in place, basically caused about 1/2 the teeth to be ripped off the timing belt by the lower part of the engine still rotating. The cam gear was able to be freewheeled due to no teeth on that part of the belt, and all 8 valves in the (4 cylinder) engine were bent. This was on a 2.3 Ford turbo engine, in an 86 T-bird.

That being said, it's more appropriate to spend the few extra minutes to remove the top T-belt cover and check the belt itself. Not to mention if the belt really _is_ broken, you want to avoid any possible further damage to the valves themselves, so cranking the engine in uncertainty is not a good idea.


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## z31 (Oct 19, 2004)

[email protected] said:


> It's possible, though unlikely, that the distributor may have seized or binded up for a split second, sheering that pin. So the distibutor may not spin for at least 2 very different reasons.


I don't know of a shear pin in a z31 distributor (and I can't find it in the fiche). But I've also never broken one to find out for sure


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## Zen31ZR (Mar 24, 2004)

z31 said:


> I don't know of a shear pin in a z31 distributor (and I can't find it in the fiche). But I've also never broken one to find out for sure


99% of engine distributors have them, as a safety device. It would be very strange for it not to have one, but I also have never pulled my distibutor to find out.


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## z31 (Oct 19, 2004)

[email protected] said:


> 99% of engine distributors have them, as a safety device. It would be very strange for it not to have one, but I also have never pulled my distibutor to find out.


It's probably one of those parts that you have to buy the whole distributor to replace 

Like the leather steering wheel cover....


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## SATURNTERMINATOR (Nov 12, 2004)

Well the dealer called today and confirmed that the timing belt broke. Im looking for my haynes manual but havent been able to find it yet. Is it very hard to replace and or line up. Ive never replaced one before but im pretty mechanically inclined. Im just wondering if I should do it myself or shell out the cash for them to put it on? thanks everyone.

Brandon


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## JAMESZ (Mar 12, 2004)

SATURNTERMINATOR said:


> Well the dealer called today and confirmed that the timing belt broke. Im looking for my haynes manual but havent been able to find it yet. Is it very hard to replace and or line up. Ive never replaced one before but im pretty mechanically inclined. Im just wondering if I should do it myself or shell out the cash for them to put it on? thanks everyone.
> 
> Brandon


If your timing belt broke you have bigger issues on your hand. You have most likely fried your valvetrain. It is not hard to change out the timing belt but if it has broken you have other problems. The belt is pretty straight forward, if you have a manual it is really easy. But you might want to have everything else checked first.


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## Zen31ZR (Mar 24, 2004)

At 75,000 miles, it probably was the original belt. Catastrophic failure can occur from 15,000 to 30,000 miles past the recommended replacement interval.


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## SATURNTERMINATOR (Nov 12, 2004)

well guys. I talked to the dealer today and they wanted 1100 to change the belt plugs wires and oil, hahahahaahhaahhaha. I told then I didnt even pay that much for the car. So i went to the parts store and bought a new timing belt for 17 bucks. I looked in my haynes manual at installation and it looks pretty straightforward. Is there anything I should keep in mind or something that I may have trouble with while doing this?

Its an automatic too.

Thanks,

Brandon


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## z31 (Oct 19, 2004)

http://z31.com/repairs/tbelt.shtml

I'd toss the belt on and then do a compression test on the cylinders to see how much damage was done to the valves. You might end up pulling the heads before you're done. You should be able to get a set of heads on the cheap though.


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## Zen31ZR (Mar 24, 2004)

z31 said:


> http://z31.com/repairs/tbelt.shtml
> 
> I'd toss the belt on and then do a compression test on the cylinders to see how much damage was done to the valves. You might end up pulling the heads before you're done. You should be able to get a set of heads on the cheap though.


And you should be able to get a set of higher compression NA heads for cheap. Yields about 10 more Hp on the turbo engine. Shouldn't be any issues with knock unless you boost way over stock.


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## z31 (Oct 19, 2004)

[email protected] said:


> Shouldn't be any issues with knock unless you boost way over stock.


but where's the fun in that?


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## Zen31ZR (Mar 24, 2004)

z31 said:


> but where's the fun in that?


 I think about 80% of us here are still mostly stock. Especially the NA guys.


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## SATURNTERMINATOR (Nov 12, 2004)

Wel I understand where the damage to the valves would come form. So when I towed the car home today I talked to the tech and he said the cars do have the pin thatll shred when it breaks. He also said that they checked everything and he believes my vavleves are just fine, all it needs is the timing belt. But everyone there made the issue of installing it seem like it was rocket science. The one guy was saying ive been doing this 20 years and its still hard to make sure you line the marks up. Im thinking yeah right, it seems pretty straightforward at to me. Ill post again when I get it completed and thanks everyone for all your input I appreciate it.

Brandon


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## asleepz (Feb 24, 2004)

It's not as hard as people say but there is a little front end disassembly involved.


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## Zen31ZR (Mar 24, 2004)

SATURNTERMINATOR said:


> Wel I understand where the damage to the valves would come form. So when I towed the car home today I talked to the tech and he said the cars do have the pin thatll shred when it breaks. He also said that they checked everything and he believes my vavleves are just fine, all it needs is the timing belt. But everyone there made the issue of installing it seem like it was rocket science. The one guy was saying ive been doing this 20 years and its still hard to make sure you line the marks up. Im thinking yeah right, it seems pretty straightforward at to me. Ill post again when I get it completed and thanks everyone for all your input I appreciate it.
> 
> Brandon


 The marks on the cam pulleys are very small, but one simple way to keep them visible is correction fluid. Liquid paper, whatever else they call it......


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