Gothica1129

I need help. So a year and a half ago, my Jeep ran hot and shut off while I was driving. The heat gauge never went up so I didn’t know it was overheating til it cut off. My grandad is a mechanic so I knew he knew what was wrong. I cracked the head. It sat for a year and a half until we finally installed a new head and put everything back together. But now it won’t turn over. It is trying to crank but it won’t. My question is, what could this be? My grandad is saying it’s either the distributor and it’s not getting fire or I could have messed up the rings in the engine, and it sitting as long as it did surely didn’t help. If any of you guys have any ideas, I’d be happy to hear them. I just want my Jeep running again.

Mortgage Payer

Trying to crank or trying to start?
Trying to crank means the engine won't turn over.

Is it seized?
Can you put a socket on the crankshaft in front of the engine and turn it over by hand?

Gothica1129

It is turning over but not starting. My grandad is assuming that since it got so hot that it shut off, the piston rings are now messed up and there’s not enough compression to start. I’m hoping it could be something else because if it’s in the engine, he will not fix it. It already took this long to put a new head on it.

jordan96xj

If grandad is a mechanic, he shouldn't have to assume these things. He can test for them. Spark should be tested, fuel pressure should be tested, then compression should be tested. A crank-no-start is a day-in-day-out job for mechanics. Lack of spark or fuel are your most likely culprits, compression -maybe-, but that would be less likely on these motors.

fb97xj1

My first thought was a cooked crank sensor. Or a failed cam sensor. Of the two, the crank sensor is most likely. They get weak as they age, and can fail altogether when they get too hot.