[iamscottemge]

My 92 bombardier will not start. It was running fine two other times already this season but about a month ago it will not start. The battery is fine and the starter sounds like it always does as if it is about to turn over. Does anybody know what I should check out or which parts I should consider changing before taking this to a mechanic?

-Scott

 

[Knightofwyte]

So are you saying that it does NOT turn over when attempting to start it? Or are you saying that it sounds normal while spinning but just doesn't start?

 

[fedorov5549]

Likely the gear assembly at the end of the starter shaft is rusted. Just fixed one last week. I hope I understood you right.

 

[Knightofwyte]

federov's referring to the assembly called the Bendix. It's a spring loaded gear attached to the starter that allows it to engage and disengage from the flywheel. If it's stuck in either position (engaged vs. disengaged) you will have problems. In the disengaged position, the starter will spin, but the motor will not.

 

[iamscottemge]

The starter sounds normal when trying to start...the motor just won't turn on. How confident are you that this is the problem and is this a do it yourself job or do I need to take it to a mechanic?

 

[iamscottemge]

Let me clarify that one more time....sorry for the bad wording...it is turning over strong as it always has...I just can't get the thing to start. Any suggestions?

 

[bpann1]

getting spark??

Screwdriver in the wire you will know

 

[fedorov5549]

Spark? Good. Compression? Good. Fuel? Good. Narrow it down and you will find out. Thing I do real quick is pour some fuel/oil into the cylinders or carbs to see if it fires.

 

[Knightofwyte]

The engine needs 3 things at the right time and amounts to run: air/fuel, compression, and spark. Find out which one is missing in a step by step approach. Like fedorov said, pour some PREMIXED fuel, just a bit, into each cylinder and crank it over a bit and see if she starts. If so you have a fuel delivery problem. If not, check for spark. Unscrew a plug and ground it against the engine while cranking and look for it to spark. And the last thing to do is a compression test. If the pressure's too low, it also won't run. Anything below 110 psi is bad and it shouldn't be more than 10% difference between cylinders.