[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Power washed engine, now no start. (Page 1 of 2)
Posted: 7/8/2017 10:18:10 AM EDT
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95 accord v6.
We got grandma's old car for our kids to drive. It has an oil leak and everything under the good was caked solid with crud so I power washed it. It turns over fine and every once in a while it starts to catch just a little bit but doesn't start. There was water in the spark plug wells, I blew it out with compressed air but no dice. It sat over night but it was rainy and humid so it likely didn't dry out much. What should I check before I have to start disassembling things? Specifics? |
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Like an actual power washer? No bueno. As you now know, the engine is meant to get wet, obviously, but can't be power washed without covering electronics.
I would just let it continue to dry. Most likely everything will be fine. I guess you could hair dryer the electronics. |
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I once worked as a tech for a shop that had a lot of used car dealers as customers. They would frequently bring us cars that didn't run or ran like crap after being powerwashed. They seemed surprised when it would happen even though it happened weekly.
If you are reading this and you aren't the OP, do not powerwash your engine. If you are the OP, leave the hood open and let it sit and air out for a long time. Aim a big fan at the engine compartment if possible. If it has been airing out all day and it still won't start, begin checking ignition system components and electrical connectors. Usually they'd start up or run better if we let them sit and air out long enough. |
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replace the distributor cap and rotor and check for broken sensors from the pressure washer  |
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Check ignition system components. Coils/dizzy, whatever it has. Especially the crankshaft position sensor and camshaft position sensor if applicable. MAF sensor will flat-line an engine on the spot (get CRC MAF cleaner, kind of expensive, but a little goes a long way). Ensure you didn't soak the air filter, no air flow, no start.
Check the vacuum lines as well. They likely wouldn't cause a no-start, but will make it run like shit. Hopefully you just unplugged something. Found out the hard way with my wife's 04 3l ranger, that ford waste spark coil packs LOVE to crack as normal wear/tear. This let water in when I washed her engine. |
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When you really want to get it clean and you're okay with not starting it for a while.
Attached File |
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Lol oh man, if you are lucky it's just the cap n rotor. But any sensor or the ecm can be your issue. Did you use a detergent? |
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Check ignition system components. Coils/dizzy, whatever it has. Especially the crankshaft position sensor and camshaft position sensor if applicable. MAF sensor will flat-line an engine on the spot (get CRC MAF cleaner, kind of expensive, but a little goes a long way). Ensure you didn't soak the air filter, no air flow, no start. Check the vacuum lines as well. They likely wouldn't cause a no-start, but will make it run like shit. Hopefully you just unplugged something. Found out the hard way with my wife's 04 3l ranger, that ford waste spark coil packs LOVE to crack as normal wear/tear. This let water in when I washed her engine. |
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When you really want to get it clean and you're okay with not starting it for a while. https://www.AR15.Com/media/mediaFiles/61196/o-CAR-IN-POOL-facebook-248849.JPG |
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No detergent. Like I said, it has an oil leak. There was so much oil it make a burning odor when the engine got hot and I need to find out where the leak is. 
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The air filter housing has broken screws so it could be that. Its has a distributor but I don't want to pull it until I try the easy stuff. |
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pull dist cap spray everything with lots of wd 40 gently blow out with air, pull spark plug boots spray wd 40 in them shake and re install...... should start unless your a moron and drilled every electrical connection mercifully with a 3000 psi washer. |
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It seemed like a good idea at the time. Quoted:
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lol oh man I'd let everything dry out real good and hope you didn't tear anything apart. |
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Power washers run the stream at 1,500 psi. NOTHING under the hood will put up with that, it drives water into every connector you point it at.
Car is essentially watersoaked at the electrical connections and it's going to take time to dry out. Lots of air movement and warmth needed to get the water to drain out, a lot of it will be capillary action as it weeps from the seals on the connectors. Water will also be traveling under the insulation now, going at a rate of a foot an hour which will soak the copper wiring and start the corrosion process. It's why flood cars aren't allowed to be sold in some states - 6 months down the road the wiring harness has be taken completely out and a new one installed. Not economically repairable. The new owner gets screwed. Anybody who tells you it's ok is the same kind of guy who says carrying a SAFE action trigger in your pocket with no holster is ok. He just hasn't shot himself. Yet. I get a couple of those a year every summer, there is no magic spray to make the waterlogged connections dry. Short of disconnecting every single one and blowing them out, it's a matter of time, air movement, and heat to dry them out. And disco'ing those connectors is problematic, they are rated for less than ten separations. In my experience 50% break or fail trying to do it and you wind up zip tying them closed to hold them together after that. You paid your admission cost into this club. Enjoy it when you hear someone else do it and just chortle quietly as they refuse to listen to your hard earned experience. Never power wash cars. Much less it strips off any weakened clear coat and forces a repaint. I swear it was invented and financed by Detroit to speed up junking cars. |
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Pull the distributor cap loose & prop it open. You can leave the wires attached. Use a hair dryer to warm it up well to dry it out. Warm the coil(s) well. Set a fan blowing onto the motor area for a while, then reattach dist. cap, make sure all wires are tight & it will almost certainly start. Unless you blew something loose. Check for that too. Vacuum hoses, wires etc..
Every time after cleaning an engine I'd make sure it was good & dry, then give cap, coils, etc. a good shot of a silicone spray to repel water better. Also, as others said, don't blast the shit out of the electrical parts with direct pressure. (You may have to repeat above procedure if you really went full retard on the blasting of sensitive areas.) |
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http://i.imgur.com/7r057M3.jpg Quoted:
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No detergent. Like I said, it has an oil leak. There was so much oil it make a burning odor when the engine got hot and I need to find out where the leak is. 
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The air filter housing has broken screws so it could be that. Its has a distributor but I don't want to pull it until I try the easy stuff. |
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pull dist cap spray everything with lots of wd 40 gently blow out with air, pull spark plug boots spray wd 40 in them shake and re install "WD-40" was originally the manufacturer's shorthand for "Water Displacing Formula #40" - That's what it excels at. It's also non-conductive, so it works great for drying out wet ignition systems. |
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leave the hood open and let it sit and air out for a long time. Aim a big fan at the engine compartment if possible. A heat gun also works, but you have to be VERY careful to avoid melting wire insulation and other plastic parts. |
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You don't have to pull the distributor. Just the cap. If you have an air compressor. Blow it out. If not you can use canned air like for cleaning computers and or WD40. I used to run a detail shop. We pressure washed engines on every car we did. We rarely had a problem and it was almost always moisture in the distributor cap. Quoted:
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The air filter housing has broken screws so it could be that. Its has a distributor but I don't want to pull it until I try the easy stuff. |
