Mustang Won't Start Please Help

[brad12]

Alright, i have an 86' GT with the 5.0 (manual) in it, i am having a problem with it starting. It is an all original car with about 210k miles on it, the only thing it has done to it is a k&n air filter and a sound system that is hard wired into the factory stereo wiring harness. Now i was driving to work a few days ago and i make it to the road that my job is on and all of the sudden i have no throttle response, the radio was still playing and the lights never dimmed so i assumed i had just stalled the car so i pushed in the clutch and tried starting it while i was still driving but it didn't start so i just coasted into the parking lot. I turned off the radio and tried again to start it, no luck. So i went to work and when i got off my uncle came to help me trouble shoot, we pulled the spark plugs and did a spark test and it was strong (the spark plugs are old but they were not oil covered and it isn't running rich or lean) so we checked to see if the fuel pump was turning on, which it was. So we decided to see if the engine would even turn, we sprayed ether into the engine and cranked it and this is where it gets weird, it didn't turn over at all, no pops anything the engine never got off the starter, so that is where the quick test ended. Now we are going to tear into the engine but before we do we wanted to see if anyone had any suggestions on what might be going wrong or any ideas where to start. This is my daily commuting car so if the admins can keep this near the top for help that would be great. I love this car and the community that comes along with it long live the stang and hopefully mine will live again soon. Thanks Again

 

[MustangLX-5.0]

Don't spray ether (starting fluid) to try and start it. That stuff is no good and can cause detonation. Try Non-chhlorinated brake parts cleaner (CRC.. valvoline etc) . Any spray brake or carb cleaner that is non-chlorinated.. which means it is also flammable .. and a good way to test fire the engine. Can you hear the fuel pump priming when you turn the key on? I also forgot, since it is an 86, is it carbed or fuel injected?

 

[HISSIN50]

It should be SD.

Can you turn the motor over by hand? Is the battery charged up? Does 12V reach the trigger on the solenoid?

Start by pulling the codes and then run the following checklist (assuming it will crank after being charged. If not, we can get it cranking first).

http://www.stangnet.com/mustang-for...o-start-checklist-fuel-injected-mustangs.html

Good luck.

 

[Hour13GT]

Well, keep it simple. For an engine to start, you only need 3 things. Fuel, spark, and timing. If it didn't fire with ether, and you're getting a strong spark... timing. Easiest way to check if you lost the timing chain, just pull the dist cap, and see if the rotor turns when you crank the engine.

 

[brad12]

Don't spray ether (starting fluid) to try and start it. That stuff is no good and can cause detonation. Try Non-chhlorinated brake parts cleaner (CRC.. valvoline etc) . Any spray brake or carb cleaner that is non-chlorinated.. which means it is also flammable .. and a good way to test fire the engine. Can you hear the fuel pump priming when you turn the key on? I also forgot, since it is an 86, is it carbed or fuel injected?

the fuel pump is priming when we turn on the key, and it is fuel injected.

 

[Kdubslugga]

If you have spark, and you have fuel, i would suspect the timing chain either broke or jumped time, assuming it has probably never been changed in 210k mile. 1st thing is verify the motor is turning over

 

[Manewaymja2]

Timing N more timing. Check that old timing chain set. May have broke or jumped.

 

[brad12]

hey guys i appreciate all the help, it turned out that the timing chain had jumped, really helped with repair cost knowing the problem and helped to keep me from being screwed over by the shop, i would have done it myself but i don't have time (packing up to go to Air Force Basic) thanks again guys!