Van mysterously cut off while driving down road now no start

[dcb0821]

Hi everyone,

I hope you all had a great holiday.

As I was driving my van down the road at 45mph in normal condition the other day it mysteriously cut off and drifted to a stop. I AAA'd it home and am just now getting around to taking a look. At the time, all the gauges looked fine, including gas. When I try to crank it the motor does turn but never runs.

I replaced the fuel filter and can hear the pump buzz when I turn the key. I also went ahead and replaced the battery, and inspected the grounds, which looked fine. So far, still the same story, turns but wont run.

I am headed to get some fresh gas and some gas dry, although I have no reason to suspect water in the fuel...

Any other areas to look or suggestions are appreciated!

Thanks again,
David
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83.5 Westy, WBX, auto

[WM971252]

Spark...

Are you getting any? I have had the wire come off the coil and on an early (62) the wires like to come off the fuse box.

[seanjenn]

Idle Control Unit: in the engine compartment, same side as the coil, plastic 3" square box with two plugs in the bottom. Disconnect plugs and plug them into each other, if van starts..there you have it.

Ignition Switch..maybe. Possibly loose terminal on the switch. You could try bending and twisting on the wires that plug into the switch. If it starts, dig a little deeper.
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1987 GL Sunroof
2.1 4 spd

[singler3360]

If you think you have fuel, then establish you have spark by unplugging the wire on top of the distributor coming from the ignition coil. Ground it to something metal while someone turns the key. Or can unplug a spark plug wire to test the distributor.

I'm no mechanic just road-side troubleshooter. I hope you get it working soon.

[RBEmerson]

You need three things to make the motor go: air, gas, and spark. Unless something really ugly happened to the air plumbing (filter, etc.) that's not likely to be it (and the cause would be hard to miss when you look at the engine, anyway). Usually a gas failure isn't sudden but more like "runs, runs poorly, cuts out, runs poorly" before quitting altogether. Spark, OTOH, can quit suddenly. Given what you said, I agree with the folks suggesting you look for spark.

Fool question: does the vehicle otherwise act as if it should run? You said you're able to crank the motor, so it seems that the vehicle at least wakes up (gauges, lights, etc.) when you turn the key, but, just to avoid missing a clue, is this right?

If the vehicle is otherwise electrically awake but there's no spark, I'd look at the easy stuff first. How's the low voltage wiring to the coil? Are the HT leads OK? What's happening under the distributor cap? The ECU may well have failed but this stuff is easier to check, and cheaper to fix, too.
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Lord, give me coffee to change the things I can change, and wine to accept the things I can't change.

[dcb0821]

Hi Everyone,

Thank you for your replies. I was convinced that it wasn't spark, because I had done a full tuneup 4 months ago. Low and behold, it was spark... A wire to the coil had vibrated or otherwise come loose. Back on the road!

Thanks again,
David
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83.5 Westy, WBX, auto

[RBEmerson]

Ah, that demon "assume"... It's a bad thing to bring to troubleshooting.

Congrats on getting back on the road with an easy fix!
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Lord, give me coffee to change the things I can change, and wine to accept the things I can't change.

[climberjohn]

A happy Samba solution from combined minds in under 8 hours . . .
I love stories like this. This forum continues to rock!

-CJ
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'86 Westy, 2.5 Subaru power
Know your limits. Exceed them often.