Why won't my 1998 Toyota Corolla start anymore?
Asked by Kyondra Sep 11, 2015 at 11:44 PM about the 1998 Toyota Corolla LE
Question type: Maintenance & Repair
My car was working fine except for
sometimes when I was in drive and
stopped like at a red light or drive
thur it would kill. I went away for 8
days on vacation and during that
time my boyfriend would sit in my
car and cut it on but not start it like
to charge his phone and when I got
back it would crank but not fire. I
checked the spark plugs and they
wouldn't spark and I brought a fuel
pump but it still isn't sending gas to
the engine. I charged the battery and
that still don't work!
5 Answers
Your '98 Corolla has the first year of the coil-on-plug 1.8L 1ZZ FE engine. Putting the key in and turning it to 'run' position without starting it could have caused a problem with the immobilizer, if done repeatedly. So.... when you checked spark plugs what exactly did you do? Take one out..or what? Also, the fuel pump is accessed by taking out the back seat then there is an access port right there on top of the gas tank. Did you DIY or a mechanic put a new pump in? There is a test port on the fuel rail to measure fuel pressure. Have you put a gauge on that test-port to measure fuel pressure? We have to start there to get to a fix.
Well I do everything myself and when I checked the spark plugs I checked two of them and they both was unresponsive so I check the pump with the key and it doesn't turn on but with the fuse out and a wire in the port it cut on. The key isn't turning anything on just cranking the car. The lights or anything is cutting on.
Sometimes a fuse will appear to be good - not blown- by the naked eye but has in fact blown out. So when I see 'fuse out but wire in port' then the pump works... leads me back to fuse. But there is a problem, hopefully solved with new pump, to blow the fuse. that is never good, to state the obvious. If I was in your predicament I would invest $50 on a basic OBDII scanner. Then you can get at least some information where the problem is. It's either that or have it towed to a dealer or shop, and that same 50 bucks is more than gone. If you decide to do this, do NOT buy anything, especially electrical parts that can not be returned, even if never installed... come back with codes. Myself or one of the guys will be happy to help you on the next step
Afterthought: Don't crank the engine over and over for a long time; keep foot OFF gas pedal and crank it for no more than 5- 6 seconds at a time. If it does not start in that amount of time it's not going to. All you will do is heat up your starter and ruin it and battery
Now the battery is battery is dead it won't cut on at all. Guys I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place and I order the scanner thing. It comes in Tuesday.
