ugh!! my car stopped running!

[ej1power]

i was turning at a light following my friends and my future love interest, when all of a sudden my car kinda stalls and so i drop it to 2nd hoping to jerk it back on, but to no avail. it cranks over but wont actually start up. so i get out to check all my vac lines, but they were all fine. my piping was all snug too. i need to figure this out b4 i gotta pay 2 have it towed.

it is also weird that the clutch pedal goes 95% to the floor and then has a popping feel and proceeds fully to the floor...... any ideas?? (help)

[bradboyd80]

Fuel pump maybe?

[mazdaspeedp]

maybe your clutch line exploded that happend to me look around your engine mount and intake and see if there is fluid everywhere

[ej1power]

there was no fluid leaking. and idk about the fuel pump. it literally goes, ka kakakakakakavr... like it is about to start then it just doesnt. i checked all the hoses and clamps. it just 13 seconds before was making a really small ticking noise like as if u were to run over a can on the road and have it get stuck in the tire, but it went away after it got to 30mph.

[nullbyte]

maybe your clutch line exploded that happend to me look around your engine mount and intake and see if there is fluid everywhere

Good plan, also check plugs and plug wires, test the coil packs :)

[ej1power]

oh and about the clutch line exploding... how much was it 4 u to replace and also how hard is it to find?? any pics?

and would the plugs just die in mid drive like that??

[nullbyte]

oh and about the clutch line exploding... how much was it 4 u to replace and also how hard is it to find?? any pics?

and would the plugs just die in mid drive like that??

Not sure the plugs would just die in the middle of driving but could be a loose wire. Plugs and wires and coil packs are the easiest thing to test and the most important thing to rule out as a cause.

Clutch line isn't too bad to replace but I would think you should be able to feel it in the pedal if there is a leak or the line is broken...

thinking about it...did you check that your timing belt didn't break?

[special--k]

battary/alt? does the acc stuff turn on? radio/wipers/gauge lights/head lights?

[nullbyte]

if the engine turns over I don't think it's a battery or alternator issue. Normally you will just hear the clicking noise if either of those are dead/dying?

[ej1power]

well the engine cranks but doesn't actually run. it does the whole startup deal but it begins to slow itself down. its like "gruuuuugruuuuuugruuuugruggurguguu brip brip brip ... dead." all my acc. stuff works but i cant get it to turn over. where's the fuel pump on these? on my civic it was under the rear seat...

my timing belt was just replaced maybe 2 to 3 months back. i am planning on going out to it tonight so i can try all these methods out.

[bradboyd80]

That sounds very similar to when my crank position sensor went out.

[ej1power]

really? howd u fix tht n is that the one on the throttle body?? i dont think i know where thats at...

[TheMAN]

what about a broken clutch? have you tried starting the car in neutral?

[bradboyd80]

really? howd u fix tht n is that the one on the throttle body?? i dont think i know where thats at...

Its actually located right next to the crank pulley. Passenger side bottom of the engine. I don't think you can tell its bad just by looking at it though. Long story short, I ended up not having to replace it, but it looks pretty easy if I remember correctly; just a couple of bolts.

[ej1power]

i always start it in neutral. and so what happened that made ur crank sensor act up? and how would u know its bad?

[TWISFM]

check all of your fuses... inside the car and engine... this happend to me ended up being the fuel pump fuse...or the oil prump fuse... dont remeber now...but it was def a fuse

[bradboyd80]

i always start it in neutral. and so what happened that made ur crank sensor act up? and how would u know its bad?

Found that one of my crank pulley fins was bent. So the crank sensor wouldn't allow the car to turn over.

[ej1power]

hmm. i will deff check that out too. oh any idea on how to remove those huge fuse box things with the clear tops in the engine fuse box?

[ej1power]

ooh wait... i meant to ask... what does the crank fin look like? it could be that too....

[bradboyd80]

ooh wait... i meant to ask... what does the crank fin look like? it could be that too....

you can see the fins here....

[ej1power]

hmmm, is the crank fin an external piece or internal? it looks internal

[bradboyd80]

hmmm, is the crank fin an external piece or internal? it looks internal

its attached to the pulley. Those fins are fragile too...not hard to bend. Not saying for sure that is your problem but, your problem sounds exactly like what happened to mine.

[ej1power]

so did urs make the real soft, yet noticeable clicking noise and then stop?

[bradboyd80]

When do you hear the clicking? Mine would try to crank, but wouldn't turn over. All while it was cranking, it sounded like fast clicking because the bent fin was hitting the sensor while it was turning. But would stop after I quit trying to start it.

[ej1power]

hmm sounds the closest to my problem. but it clicked when i was leaving the park. i got to the 1st closest light and it was kinda clicking soft on idle, on rev-up it clicked a lil more and quieted out, and at the next light is when it died out on me.

[bradboyd80]

I'd actually get under it and look at the fins to see if maybe one got bent or broken off somehow. It is exposed, so if thats the problem, its not unlikely that you ran over something that flew up and hit it. Then again, it could be a blown fuse just like twisfm said; so I'd check those out too.

[ej1power]

yeah i plan on checking it all out. oh, and how would u fix it if that's the problem? like would u get under it and bend em manually?

[bradboyd80]

I ended up buying an upgraded pulley anyway. You can try to bend it back into place, but its hard to do because they are so frail and must line up perfectly with the rest of the fins. I tried to do that with the stocker and it didn't work out so well. I got the car started, but it ran like straight ass. But I guess if you can get it started and get it to a shop or home, then thats better than paying for a tow.

[ej1power]

true. my car is at least 40 to 50 miles from my house so the closer i can get it, the better. and i wonder... is it hard to swap it? if i can find one from a junk yard, i wonder if i can swap it myself.

[bradboyd80]

Make sure you have an impact wrench. If you don't, its damn near impossible. I had to get a friend of mine do it at his shop; otherwise I would have been screwed. Make sure you check the other problems also before you go out buying parts. You could end up finding the problem elsewhere and being an easier fix.

[nullbyte]

yeah, If the engine starts and then sputters out it's not a broken belt but could be a crank or cam sensor issue. Also check the timing marks to make sure they still line up correctly. Belt might have jumped a tooth.

Check fuses too. Could be pump fuse is blown....

[ej1power]

would they carry those at stores like autozone or checkers?

[ej1power]

sorry i meant the pump fuse, not the pulley fin things

[bradboyd80]

Not sure about that one man...

[mazdaspeedp]

replaced clutch pressure hose 90.00$,bleed hoses 35.00$ brake fluid 15.00$ shop materials 15.00$ when it happend to me i thought it was my clutch and my brakes were soft too just ended up that the fluid had leaked out cuz it exploded look at your battery and see if there is brake fluid on it and see if any of the paint on your engine mounts is pealing it is a small rubber line you can see it easily if you have a cold air intake its right infron of the battery almost

[ej1power]

k so i got to my car yesterday and tht wasn't the case.... i changed out the spark plugs and coil pak but nothing, then i took out the fuel pump and strainer and checked it out... no visible problems, but when i put it back in and turned the key, i didn't hear it turn on so to speak. so i think that might be the case.

if so, do the regular protege fuel pumps work for that too? or is it a higher flowing one than the N/A protege's?

[ej1power]

any one know if the fuel pump is the same as the regular protege's??

[bradboyd80]

Why not just go ahead and upgrade? I'm pretty sure a new walbro will only run you a little over $100.

[ej1power]

k, so i dropped in the new fuel pump and it still wont start up. it will still crank , but at least now i can hear the fuel pump, whereas i didn't b4. k also my battery is drained..... any ideas?? and can anyone direct me to where the fuel pump fuse is? i never found it.

[special--k]

if you can hear it... the fuse is not dead.

[ej1power]

hmm any other ideas? i need this car up n running asap cuz i need to sell/ trade it in to get outta a car payment!!! i cant afford this thing anymore

[Wagonbacker9]

if you've been at it for a week and you still don't have any progress you're probably better off having a shop diagnose it than to keep throwing parts at it.

[ej1power]

k so i swapped my battery out 4 a new one for free from walmart but my mom thinks its my timing belt. where should i go to check that? it that right by the other belts and pullies??

[Wagonbacker9]

k so i swapped my battery out 4 a new one for free from walmart but my mom thinks its my timing belt. where should i go to check that? it that right by the other belts and pullies??

a new battery won't be the problem, a dead battery will stop you from starting it, but only if there aren't any prior issues.

the timing belt is covered by the valve cover and timing covers. you'll have to check the timing marks and make sure all 3 line up. you have to take all the timing cover pieces off, which I believe requires removing the accessory drive belts first. theres a mark on the crank, and one on each cam gear.

[MAZDA_SPEED]

Do you have a Check engine light? thats the first question everybody should be asking!!! Scan the car...and you'll find your problem..

[Wagonbacker9]

if it died that fast, my bet is it didn't have time to throw a code.

[ej1power]

yup no check engine light. it wont turn on neither so i cant tell just by merely looking at it. i am at a total loss...

[MAZDA_SPEED]

So you have no power to the vehicle at all? any updates?

[bradboyd80]

I'd also recommend just taking it to a shop. I think Pepboys charges a flat $80 fee to diagnose the problem. If you don't have one nearby, I'm sure any other shop would be comparable in price. That way you can just be done with it instead of throwing more and more new parts at it.

[ej1power]

ugh, finally got word back on the prob! it wound up being the timing belt afterall! they never replaced it when i had it in the shop to rebuild the motor in the 1st place! grrr! i refuse to take it to them ever again! it took em 4days to finally find where i hid the key, and i left directions 4 em, called em everyday, and even walked em thru how to find the key!