I've never let the 'clipse sit that long before, but this time I had to.

Anyway, I go to start the car today (99rs manual) and it would crank, sound like 1 cylinder would fire, then crank again and again. it was weird - sounded like crank, boom (1 cylinder), crank, boom, crank, boom... gettin the picture? checked under the hood, didn't notice anything weird (like a cat in there or something)

waited a few minutes, tried again, same thing. repeated that again a few minutes later.

so finally I just said eff this, and when I cranked it I pumped the gas and it started. I backed off immediately so the engine wouldn't rev high before oil pressure built and then it idled weird for a few seconds, then it was okay. There was a ton of blue/white smoke coming out the exhaust for a minute or two. The engine sounded strange for a while. Also, the exhaust tip was drooling water for a while (a LOT of water, weird!). then the smoke eventually disappeared. I drove around and it seems fine now. I came back later to the car and it started just like normal again.


So my question is WTF happened. And when your car sits for almost a week, what happens?


This is the first time my car has ever failed to start! Oh, I feel like I've lost my innocence...

I think you gave the car long enough time to release the gas out of the gas lines while it was just sitting, expecially if when you pumped the gas pedal a couple of times and it started. The whitish smoke with blue in it: I suppose this is from condisation build up from the past week. We have had some really really cold nites here, adn then the days have been warm, almost hot. So I am thinking that the dramatic weather changes could have knocked some of that built up carbon out of your exhaust system. Nothing to worry about I am thinking. (my wording may confuse you, but it makes sense to me :P)
I think you will be fine, however, if you notice that it is hard to start tomorrow too... Then we can look at it.

cool then. thanks danny :thumbsup

Off topic, you can reply in an Email if you wish to ml.strykerd@verizon.net...
I am extending an invitation to anyone that is in the Riverside/San Bernardino area, to go ahead and come over to my place this weekend (first weekend of the year). We will be in the garage starting at like 9 or so on saturday morning, prolly the same time on sunday, till it gets to cold outside to work.
I will be putting my engine back in my car. Thanks to Kaiser, Jamesman, and Dan, I have all the necessary parts to do this.
My address, so you can look it up on mapquest:

112 Dolores Ct.
Redlands, Ca. 92374

yea man I'll swing by. so you have all you need? I have torque wrenches of different ranges. you should post in the annoucements "redlands meet" :)

>Also, the exhaust tip was drooling water for a while
>(a LOT of water, weird!).
>
>

water always comes out of the exhaust. its just when the exhaust piping is cold the H20 vapor condenses back to liqiud form on the cool metal and runns out the muff. when its hot it stays as a vapor so you can't see it.
a mechanic friend of mine once told me that for every gallon of gas the engine burns, 1 gallon of water will come out the exhaust.

Hey the same thing just happened to me the other day and I got a cel after it started. Is it possible that I f'd something up?