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won't start

hi guys,

decided to pour 1/3 in my crankcase since i was going to do an oil change after. ran it for about 5 minutes. turned off the car and now it won't start. won't even turn over. ideas on what i did wrong and how to fix?

thanks.
 
Did you stall it with Seafoam in the PCV line or just turn the key off? What exactly does it do? Does it click when you try to start it? Your starter might have just chose that time as its time to die.
 
madmatt2024 said:
Did you stall it with Seafoam in the PCV line or just turn the key off? What exactly does it do? Does it click when you try to start it? Your starter might have just chose that time as its time to die.
i just turned the key off. i didn't do the seafoam in the gas tank or the vacuum line yet. just wanted to do the crankcase today. i do hear clicking but thats about it.

so you think its still the starter?
 
It sounds like a starter problem. I would try hitting the starter with a hammer (not kidding, this does work) then see if it starts. If its a 5 speed you could try pop-starting it. If it doesn't spin over when pop-starting then you have a serious problem.
 
its an automatic.

tried looking for the starter this morning but didn't find it. anyone have pics or easy way of finding it?

initially turning the key the first time this morning, i didn't hear anything. then on the second time i heard some clicking but nothing else.
 
Its on the back side of the engine under the intake manifold. You can easily see it once you are under the car. Check the battery connections as well.

You should probably start a new thread about this problem in the appropriate forum for your car. It will get more views and hopefully get your problem solved faster.
 
StealthStyle said:
Okay since there is so much confusion on how to run Seafoam through your Escort, here goes:
Hey, thanks for the how-to! I just SeaFoamed my intake tonight. I ended up with about 2/3 going into the intake due to pouring it into the PCV hose via a funnel, but it seems not to have hurt anything. I dumped the remainder into the gas tank.

Man, what a cloud of smoke on re-start!! I ran it at 4000 RPMs for a couple minutes to blow out the smoke, then drove it around for about 20 miles or so before changing the fuel filter.

Max seems to run a lot smoother at cruising speed and during acceleration, and definitely idles smoother. All the way home from the ranch (about 25 miles), the idle only acted up once or twice, which is a big improvement. Hopefully it will stay improved....

Thanks again for the how-to write-up!

C ya,
Dutch
 
limerence said:
its an automatic.

tried looking for the starter this morning but didn't find it. anyone have pics or easy way of finding it?

initially turning the key the first time this morning, i didn't hear anything. then on the second time i heard some clicking but nothing else.
funny you mention that. i did it the other day, then it didnt want to fire up. it was cranknig over but not starting. my solution to that was to put the gas pedal to the floor and start it up. works everytime!
 
I just seafoamed my baby for the first time tonight, I haven't turned it over letting it sit right now, but I did it through the pcv and while I was doing it I noticed some white smoke already coming out of the engine bay. Really light but definitely coming out. Is my exhaust manifold leaking maybe?
 
Nevermind, it's coming from my valve cover, which probably means that when I went through that fiasco with the bolts and grommets the gasket probably got damaged and isn't working again. i got new grommets from the j/y so I'll fix that this week.

Not to sound like a noob here, but gawd damn that was awesome. I laid a blanket of exhaust over my entire block practically and it swept forward to the front of the car too so I felt like I was in one of those creepy graveyard scenes. Took it out for a burn, and it may be too early, but I think it made a major difference. Now to try to get it outta my lungs...
 
I have a 95 LX bone stock with original 211k miles. I bought it with 210k miles last month so I have no idea how well maintained the car was. I treat her like gold but can't say the same for the previos owner. Would it be wise to seafoam her? I'd like to clean her out and put up some crazy smoke but if it's going to kill her I'll avoid it.
 
Discussion starter · #112 ·
sometimes it can cause a larger problem, one that would have appeared later anyway.

up to you to decide.


btw, wait the amount of time it says on the can before restarting. waiting less time or more time does not help.


extra points if you get on the highway and lay down your smokesceen :D
 
I use SeaFoam on my 1978 Datsun about every Summer. It smoked a LOT the first one or two times, and smokes less now, so I think my engine is getting clean.

If I can find a vacuum line on ly '97, I'd SeaFoam that one too, after I finish with the XADO treatment. :D
 
Seafoam

I love Seafoam. I have been looking around and there have been sooo many people talking about how unsafe it is and I even read a post where someone put a whole pint in their crankcase and drove around until their oil change and messed up their engine. After going to the website and reading many other things including some humorous stuff where people stopped using because it made their oil black (exactly what it is supposed to do and says it will do because the crud it is cleaning has to go somewhere) I have made this determination. It should be safe so long as you read the label, and read the website. The website does give much more information. I happily use it in my fuel and in my vacuume line every now and then and it is perfectly fine to use it just before an oil change or even just after an oil change if you want but you HAVE to check your oil often because your oil will turn black much faster because it is cleaning the buildup off and you will have to change your oil early if you have a lot of build up. Seafoam is an awesome product and is very powerful, and it is because it is so powerful that you have so many people not reading and using it like it means nothing.
 
alot of people dont like it because it frees up all the gunk that holds there engines together. i got some smoke after i used seafoam, like i mean it burns a little oil. but i did a compression test and all the same psi so the head gasket is fine. so the gunk was holding it together. but that fine cause i buy oil additive that seals the piston rings. i think that they wouldnt sell it if it was bad for your car.
 
FYI, Although I like Seafoam alot and have used it once on my '02 Escort SOHC, I won't use it again. I read there is a higher incidence of valve seat drop after using Seafoam. I'll probably still use Lucas injector cleaner at every oil change like I've always done.
 
5th car i've seafoamed. One was a 89 Bronco, the next was a 68 plymouth. 99 Altima, and 01 camry.

Bottom line, my escort loved it. haha Before hand I had this stall-at-stoplight problem. This is now gone, as is the coughing under load. See, I had bags of calcite in the back, and starting on a hill had me move off to the side of the road with my hazards on. Couldn't get it up to 15mph....It'd happen on the highway sometimes too.

After the seafoam job, the thing runs great. Accelerates smoother, no coughing, no stalling.

However, I recommend doing it at night....Seafoaming the bronco during the day got the fire department called..... ;-)


This was a couple seconds after first starting it. It got much worse.......
 
I have a 95 escort 1.9 high miles
Apparently this engine has a issue with dropping a valve seat at high miles. I used the seafoam in the gas tank, and my valve seat dropped the next day. Now it may have been close to failing anyway, my point is if your going to use seafoam on a 1.9 be prepared for the worst. Personally in hindsight I wouldn't have used the stuff if I knew I had a chance to blow the seat.

Just my experience
 
I have a 95 escort 1.9 high miles
Apparently this engine has a issue with dropping a valve seat at high miles. I used the seafoam in the gas tank, and my valve seat dropped the next day. Now it may have been close to failing anyway, my point is if your going to use seafoam on a 1.9 be prepared for the worst. Personally in hindsight I wouldn't have used the stuff if I knew I had a chance to blow the seat.

Just my experience
 
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