1994 Acura Integra won't start. Plenty of gas, CEL goes out after 2 seconds in ON position. The fuel pump does not sound like it's working during this time either, although it rarely did when running "normally". When key is turned to start, car sounds exactly as it should but no ignition occurs, the engine vibrates as if the cylinders are moving also. On some attempts to start there was a brief wiff of gas after trying to start the car (engine flooded?).

Between the last time it ran and the first attempt to start the car, it rained very heavily, but nothing under the hood appears wet. Battery charge was slightly low, jumping did not help start the car. Because it is a manual trans. I considered popping it, but decided against it.

I'm thinking maybe it's the fuel pump (doesn't seem very likely because of gas odor), but probably the distributor or spark plug wires.

Please advise. I'm very new to car repair but I tried hard to follow the advice I've found on the board so far.

. Test all under hood and under dash fuses with a test light or multimeter:

https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/cars-t...tml#post252145

. Remove the gas cap and listen to hear the fuel pump run, as someone else turns the ignition switch to ON (Position II). Acura fuel pumps are extremely reliable--I've never seen a bad one.

. Clean main ECM ground, located on the thermostat housing.

. Check for spark. If none, replace the Ignition Control Module (ICM) and coil:

https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/cars-t...tml#post265896

Fuses are all in working order.

Fuel pump is working.

ECM ground was a bit difficult to locate at first and was very tricky to get to. It looked OK but we never actually got it off to clean it.

Removed a spark plug wire to check for spark... no spark :(

Tried to replace ICM and coil, got as far as removing the screw that looked like it connected the rotor to the shaft (rotor position allowed easy access) but the rotor seemed frozen. Rotor wouldn't rotate or come off. The rotor contact had some corrosion as did all four contacts in the distributor cap. Will likely have it towed to a mechanic... :(

. Perform Power to Distributor Test. Turn ignition OFF. Disconnect the 2-P connector from the distributor. Turn the ignition switch ON. Measure voltage between BLK/YEL (+) terminal and body ground. There should be 12+ volts read. If not, repair open in BLK/YEL wire between the 2-P connector and ignition switch. If the wiring is fine, check the ignition switch for wear, pitting, or melting:

https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/cars-t...tml#post224652

. Remove and fully charge the battery. Most auto parts stores will do this for free.

. Replace the whole distributor, before towing the car to a mechanic. You should easily be able to do this yourself and save money. It's easy to do and it will leave you in a better position, yet:

https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/cars-t...tml#post288473

Your problem is with the distributor, which should be easy to resolve.

I am willing to try this, and I think it will likely solve the problem, but I still need to get around removing the rotor. Me and my brother-in-law tried for 45 minutes to get it off without success. Like I said in my last post, I don't know if the screw we took off was the correct one because it wouldn't budge (that is it wouldn't rotate or pull out of the distributer). Is there a picture of this screw somewhere? What should I try to get the rotor off?

The "'hitting' the starter" thing didn't seem to do anything, either.

If you replace the whole distributor, you don't need to worry about that.

If the rotor does not rotate, when you crank the engine, the timing belt may have snapped. That's a completely different and extremely serious problem. Make sure the rotor rotates.

Well, that would explain a few things... I was planning on having the timing belt replaced again, as I'm around 174,000 miles. We tried "starting" it or cranking the engine with the cap off to see if the rotor would move at all, no dice.

This is a bit strange since it ran fine, I parked it and then it just wouldn't start. I should consider myself lucky it didn't snap while I was on the highway.

Would I be able to do any quick tests to see if the timing belt has indeed snapped?


By the way, thank you for all of your help.

Remove part of the timing belt cover or the valve cover and check things out. Have the car towed for repair--don't try starting it anymore, since it can damage the valves and pistons.

Obviously, the distributor is likely fine. I'm sure the timing belt broke or came loose, since the rotor did not rotate. Hopefully, no serious damage was done. My advice is to take it to Honda or Acura for repair.