seems in the past couple months my car will start when it wants to, it started when i was driving along and it would studder now and then. then one day i was at work and it wouldnt start after work. i put jumper cables on it (didnt seem to need it, battery was cranking car fine without) but it fired right up, so i drove it to my parents house (2 miles) and the studdering came back. next day wouldnt start, so i try things for about a week, spark looks good, but i replace plugs and it fires right up and runs good for a couple months. then about a month ago it happened again, car died and wouldnt start, put new plugs in it and drove it home then to another side of town (about 20 mins total drive time) and it died again and now it sits. i have not replaced the plugs again yet, however i replaced the wires and still had no luck. the first time it happened there was fuel on the plugs like it was fouling, now there is no fuel so i dont think there is a flood problem (fuel pump maybe?). im going out there this weekend with a compression tester and some marvels mystery oil to see if i can get it going, if thats a no go then i will have it towed home. does anyone have any suggestions or ran into this problem before? fwiw i do know that the tps is bad, i have it zip tied in such a way that the ecu is receiving a signal (0v when throttle is open or closed kinda like dead spots) and i havent had a chance to get a new one yet, but it has ran fine for months with a known bad sensor. any info would be greatly appreciated

 

Firstly, what year and model is your RX7? Secondly was it cold outside when you were starting your car? Thirdly pictures or video would help us figure out what could be causing this. The bad TPS definitely isn't helping, could also be fuel pumps/injectors are clogged up- when you said it looked like the plugs were fouling, but not anymore- sounds like you should make an ignition checklist and go through everything to see if it's healthy. Coils, cap, wiring, plugs etc

 

^ 1987 (That is what his profile states.)


Rock Auto has TPS' for $178+. A cheaper alternative would be to find a known good used TPS.

http://rockauto.com/catalog/x,carcod...,parttype,5136

It seems that you're going about this the right way. The compression test you're going to do is definitely a great idea. Of course the plugs wouldn't be wet now... They've been sitting long enough to dry up. You can always check to see if your injectors are stuck open. (I only suggest this if you choose to rule this out.)

Strap/secure the injectors to the fuel rails. Unbolt and remove the fuel rails. (There's an illustration of this in the 88' FSM. "Fuel and Emission Control Systems" 4A-70) - Obviously you do not remove the injectors or any of the fuel lines. Be sure to set some rags or something under the injector's fuel outlet nozzle, to absorb fuel in case they are stuck open. Jumper the yellow fuel pump test connector at the passenger side strut tower, near the AFM. Turn the key to "ON"... Not to "START". You'll hear the fuel pump running... Now go check the injectors to see if they are spewing/leaking.

If you do not have a Factory Service Manual, here is a link to the 1988 FSM "Fuel and Emission Control Systems": http://foxed.ca/rx7manual/manuals/19...SYSTEMS_NA.pdf


How long has it been since you've had your fuel injectors professionally serviced?

 

To ,me it sounds like your fuel pump is starting to crap pit on you.
Funny thing about fuel pumps,when they do finally go,they just GO...but when they are going it is intermittent.

 

im sorry, the car is an 87 na, it was cold outside when it was acting up, i havent had a chance to mess with it for a couple weeks (ohio weather lol). also i have no idea the last time the injectors were serviced, i just aquired the car last october, however the guy told me the engine has been replaced with one that has only 50000 miles (hearsay, no proof on his end so im a bit skeptical about that). like i said im going to test the compression this weekend, and if i have time ill try the other fuel related things here, i will post back as soon as i do the tests and let you all know whats goin on. thanks for the info btw, very informative.

ps, the plugs and wires are brand new, they are also getting a good bright blue spark at the plug, i have checked each one individually.

 

ok, so as of tonight, i went out to the car, did nothing to it and it started right up and ran fine, not sure what the issue was but i parked it at my inlaws house until tomorrow (e-brake is sticking on rear caliper). anyhow im going to bring it home tomorrow and go through it with a fine tooth comb and see what i can come up with, the only thing i can think of is weather related issues (maybe a cold start valve? dont think that would cause it to stall when fully warmed up though but idk)