dead Cavalier

jvandyke

jvandyke

True Classic
Son #1 (graduating college this June) has a beater '96 Cavalier, he called me yesterday and he was getting low on gas, had pulled off the highway for gas, gassed up, started, drove about 100 yards and it died. Cranks fine but no hint of fire. I fiddled with it a little, could not verify spark with a screw driver in the socket and laying on the block but if we shot starting fluid straight down the intake it fires, so either there is spark or the ether is going off on compression alone? Anyway, thoughts on where to start are appreciated, I'm hoping to check the fuel system this weekend and go from there. Maybe the tank got so low he dragged up some junk into the filter or trashed the pump.
BTW the exhaust also fell off.
I dragged it home last night and now I have yet another pile of junk to get going. Ugh!
 
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Sounds like a fuel pump death to me. Those Cavaliers are horrible things and I bet your boy was trying to kill it either consciously or unconsciously or both. That's what I would do.
 
from My car towing day's Most tow to the shop's that turned out to be a fuel pump were just after a fuel up (sometimes still at the pump). Never could figure out why this would happen but it was/is a common thing to happen.

(sometimes if the pump quits working a dead blow hammer on the tank will rattle the pump enough that it will work again (untill it jams up again)
 
If it uses a crank position sensor for the ignition you might also check that. My Golf has one and it failed in an intermittent manner until I could actually gain an error code.

It's OBD1 right, so pretty primitive in regards to info communication.
 
If it fires with ether then it's getting spark. I agree that it sounds like a fuel issue. If he ran it too low on gas, it could have sucked up some nasty stuff from the bottom of the tank. So it could be something as simple as a filter but if you are like me, you won't be that lucky. Could be fuel pump, which will be located inside the tank. I don't know about that particular car but there is usually an access panel for it, if not you will have to pull the tank.
 
I don't detect any pump action (can't hear it with key on, should be on for a couple seconds I read. Can't hear anything. Smacked tank with rubber mallet (shielding eyes from rust projectiles). Did compression test, thinking cam chain/belt, whatever it uses, got 100, 100, 45, 100. #3 is obviously not a happy camper but it should still run on 3 (maybe it has been for a while, who knows).
I still want to verify spark again. Ran out of time. I'm trying to learn just enough to diagnose it. I think if the cam sensor fails you loose spark and fuel, so if it has spark I'll keep going after the fuel system. Car is worth about $400 running, about $50 as it sits, exhaust has fallen off completely from just in front of the muffler back. If I can make it go maybe it will serve as a winter beater for son #2 (so he can keep his '87 Porsche out of the salt). He only drives 4 miles a day. Son #1 is going to med school next year and he will NOT be taking this POS anywhere that far away.
 
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night time spark test, all four plug electrodes up against metal bits in bay, none of them spark after several revolutions.
 
Amy chance it uses a crank position sensor to drive the ignition? If so it is a pretty cheap fix.
 
That's what I went after today in the driveway, in the hail and slush, car up in the air and I was under it thinking I don't really want to do this and I stopped, put away my tools and went inside. I don't want to die working on this thing. I'll pony up the money for a real shop to look at it.
 
It was a 3 minute fix on my Golf, one of only two non general maintenance items I have ever replaced on that car in 16 and a half years. You can reach if from the ground and reaching up to the front of the engine next to the bell housing.

I hope it does the job.

That car is OBD1 as I recall, does it give much information with the codes?
 
I don't have a code reader and can't get the car to one. The crank sensor on the GM 2.2 is very difficult to access. If I could get the car to my lift.....I'm getting old
 
I man'd up and got the sensor out. Can't really test the thing off the car I guess, it's a three wire, could order one in $52 and 10 days or $80 tomorrow. and see, or? I'd test it in situ but there's no way to get at the wiring with it in the car, maybe trace them somewhere more convenient and pin probe them.
 
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jvandyke said:
I don't have a code reader and can't get the car to one. The crank sensor on the GM 2.2 is very difficult to access. If I could get the car to my lift.....I'm getting old
Click to expand...

Walmart has a basic one for $20. It will probably be the best $20 you ever spend.
 
So I have a voltage issue, only 1.12v on several circuits at the fuse box in the cabin, things like PCM, and Alarm and several others, bad ground somewhere?
 
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