I have a 2000 Civic LX and it won't start. Driving down the road yesterday the car began to hesitate when accelerating and then died. It would not restart even though the starter was turning over fine. I replaced the started two weeks ago and have had no problems until yesterday. I checked the fuel pump and it is working fine. I went ahead and replaced the distributor cap and rotor but it still won't fire. Gas flows through the fuel filter fine so I am at a loss. I am getting spark from the spark plug to the spark plug wire so I have no idea where to go from here. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

i think your timing belt slipped.
need to check where the timing is.

 

Thanks for the advice. One mistake I made though, it is an EX not an LX. That shouldn't matter though should it?

 

No. It doesnt matter. If your timing belt slipped you might be in big trouble.

However, I think its something more simple like your distributor crapped out.

 

Well, it was a long afternoon. As I said earlier I have checked the fuel pump and filter and they are both fine. I replaced the distributor cap and rotor, I verified spark on each cylinder, and there is is fuel getting to each spark plug. I then removed the upper Timing Belt cover and rotated the entire lenght of the belt checking each tooth. They are all intact and there is no shredding or seperation to the belt. the tension on the belt is taught with minimal if any play. I have checked all fuses and they are all good. If it is the timing I am at a loss as to how it could have slipped after verifying everything. Any suggestions before I tow it to a mechanic and get raked over the coals?

 

do you know how to set the timing ?
is it at the BTDC mark ??

if so, then put a little oil down into each cylinder. then try to start.
if that does not work, need compression test.

i have had the belt slip on me - and just looking at it definitely appeared that everything was normal. belt was good, tight, moved perfectly - but it had changed positions.

 

Definitely run a compression test. It's really easy, and free if you do it yourself. Just gotta rent it from Autozone, Napa, Etc..

 

It could be your ignition system. Somebody had that problem before and that was the remedy.

 

IF you have spark in each cylinder then your ignition system should be fine. However, that doesn't mean the timing is correct. If you have fuel and spark at each cylinder then i think your problem is going to be timing. Your compression could be bad, but what is the chance that the compression is bad in most of your cylinders? I could understand if it was one cylinder, but your car will still run with one cylinder down.

 

That's what I was thinking too. Everything points to the timing so I guess I will continue down that path. The top timing belt cover was a piece of cake, but the bottom is going to be a MUTHAH!!!!!!!!!!! Oh well, cheaper than taking it to a shop.