Hi Folks

[trudy]

Hi all, new to this so excuse me if I waffle on a bit. My name is Trudy, I am the proud owner of a Toyota Avensis 1.8, R reg. Came on here for some help. My Toyota has just died on me. It sounds like it wants to start, but just wont. Hubby has been told there is no compression so could be the cam belt, stripped teeth or a cog problem. I think it's not quite that serious. Possibly a fuel issue, but then, I am a mere woman who knows nothing,lol. Any tips for detecting if either problem is present???? Open to any advice.

All the best,

Trudy

[chr1s]

the first thing i check when trouble shooting are the plugs.i would remove one and look at it.if it is wet with fuel then possiably an ignition problem,if it is dry then a fuel problem.when you turn on the ignition previously could you hear the fuel pump operating(would be a low buzz for about 10 seconds).can you hear it now

i take it when it died you tried restarting.when a cambelt goes you usually have valves and pistons colliding with each other which would lead to lack of compression when a valve has bent.although i did have a car where the cam seized and snapped the belt.result was the motor sounded like it was turning over really quickly.as for checking the cambelt remove the cambelt cover and look all around the belt for missing teeth,usually they will be missing from around a pully if they have stripped

[waynne]

Tough one to diagnose. Could be a damaged valve or just a sticky lifter!

Taking the plastic cam belt cover off should help you ascertain if it is a belt problem - any slack would be bad news

[p4paco]

Chr1s, Had a good point o check spark plugs.

it may also be the HT Leads, (cables to the sparkplugs)
They carry a very high voltage (like a stun gun) and sometimes the power can leak through the rubber on the wire if i has been damaged (you cant normally tell visually).

My last car started o suffer problem with flooding.
THE AA man taught me t take te fuel pump fuse out, and replace it whilst cranking the engine, and it always started first time if i did that fiddle.

Although this may be a good time for a Service, considering you dont know when the cambelt was last done or if its due. Missing a Cambelt replacement Can mean TOTAL engine Failure, which is beyond economical repair. & then you may end up selling the car for scraps.

Point to note : sometimes Careful previous owners have their cambelts serviced early, this means that the 2nd Cambelt service has to be don early.