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nissan 9.8 transported on wrong side, now won't start

rhagan

New member
I have a nissan 9.8hp 2006 that I transported on it wrong side, leaking oil all over the place. I tried to start it with no luck. I took plugs out and drained as much oil out of the cylinders as I could, dried plugs, even used a new plug (only had one new), but no spark. I unplugged the kill switch thinking it may be fouled with oil. Still no spark. Any ideas that would help?

Richard
 
There will be a lot of oil remaining in the cylinders, and probably soaked plugs. The oil may even have gotten past an open valve and into the intake and carb. You can clean/dry the plugs with acetone, gasoline, or spray-type carb cleaner.

Of course refill the crankcase -- holds about a pint and a half. Don't fill it to the max. About half way on the dipstick is good.

Remove the plugs, clean them off. While they are drying, pull the starter a bunch of times to purge some of the remaining oil from the cylinders. Then reinstall the plugs, and pull a bunch of times, as the fuel will mix with the remaining oil in the cylinders. Once it fires, it will smoke a bunch at first.

And in the future, remember: shifter side up. That way, you won't snap off the shift lever, either.
 
Thanks for taking the time to respond. I did pump out as much oil as I could and with the plugs out, I propped it up so that some more oil drained out. I washed the plugs in paint thinner and tested them by grounding them against the body of the motor and cranking----no spark. I took the kill button out of the circuit by unplugging it and still no spark. By the way, I do get the led to light when I crank, so I know the mag is producing electricity.

When I get this loved motor started, I will never make this mistake again. I had a 9.9 Honda that stored with the tiller up so I guess I got confused. I used to transport the Honda to Montana on it's side and would get the big smoke cloud you mention on starting. But it always started. Thanks again--you give me hope!

Richard
 
Your plugs may still be "wet" with thinner (probably mineral spirits or stoddard solvent or similar). Be sure they are good and dry. Many years ago, we would put wet-fouled plugs on the wood stove to force dry them, or let them sit out in the open overnight. Also check that the disconnected lead from the kill switch isn't accidentally grounded.

The fact you get the oil lamp to trigger when cranking is a good sign... shows the mag is operating. No reason to expect the pulser coil died as a result of your mishap. A Factory service manual will detail resistance readings of the CD and pulser and ignition coils, but even without one, you can see if there's "fire" coming to the ignition coil, as long as you have a DVA-equipped voltmeter. You should expect maybe 50v at the input to the ignition coil.

BUT... If everything was OK before the "oil spill", I still suspect you have wet-fouled plugs. Clean/dry them with a fast-drying solvent (gas will work in a pinch)... Just make sure they are bone dry.

If all else fails, you will want to drag out the Factory service manual and go through the ignition system with a good analog ohmmeter.
 
Remember that the ignition coil input is a pulse; a digital voltmeter will not give you a true reading. A DVA-equipped analog voltmeter is the tool to use, unless your digital meter has a peak capture feature -- or if you have an oscilloscope available.
 
I live in a small town on the western slope of Colorado -- not able to buy an analog DVA Vom but tried the following: bought new plugs, gapped them to .035 in., grounded one to the case and cranked--no spark (used this technique on my old honda and lawn mowers). Then I unplugged the input side of coil and put a test light in line and got the expected flashing light as I cranked the starter. With lots of cranking, not a single firing. I can't understand why an oil spill would stop the spark!

I also loosened the intake manifold to see if oil drained out (getting past the valves) but no oil came out of the crack.

I really appreciate your time, you obviously know what you are talking about.

Thanks again
Richard
 
Hmm. You need to confirm whether you are getting proper output from the CD, or whether the ignition coil has a problem. Your 12v test lamp doesn't tell the whole story, but is a good indicator that the CD is making at least some amount of output. Verify the coil ground wire is correct; especially confirm that the ring connector is properly crimped -- not just partly crimped onto the insulation.

A Factory service manual, available from any dealer, would help for testing. Ignition coil resistances are: primary side 0.30 ohms, +/- 15%; secondary side 8.500 +/- 20%.

If you want to have test equipment of your own, it is available. Any dealer can sell you a good analog DVA multimeter at a good price. Part number 99998D530M $124.32. You can email [email protected] if you need to place a parts order.
 
Key word "properly functioning" new engine like this not firing most likely a cutoff sw NOT oil in cly is my penny worth of knowledge ..
 
Key word "properly functioning" new engine like this not firing most likely a cutoff sw NOT oil in cly is my penny worth of knowledge ..

Oil pressure is not detected during cranking, hence it has no effect on starting. Don't confuse an ignition malfunction with an ESG condition. It would appear that there is an ignition malfunction here, and it would appear to be co-incidental to the wrong-side-down oil-in-cylinders problem.
 
Since there is a signal (of as-yet-undetermined characteristics) being generated to the coil, but no output spark, one of two things is true, and some more troubleshooting is needed to determine which. Either the ignition coil is not receiving the proper input, or it is malfunctioning. As soon as we have complete troubleshooting information, we will know which bit is causing the issue.
 
I am finally able to get back to my Nissan. I have been building a house and had no time to work on the motor. I purchased a factory manual and a DVA meter and have checked the following: the coil shows no resistance when I hook one lead to the orange wire, the other to the black. I tried it on and off the motor. I don't know how to check the high tension to core as mentioned in the manual, but when I check for resistance on any of the sparkplug wires I get no reading. Not a direct short, but the meter doesn't even move. I'm not sure that I am hooking it up right. Help!

Also, when I try to check the peak power, I get nothing, but I am no sure that I am hooking it up right. The manual is no help on this issue that I can see.

Thanks again for your help.
 
Check your service manual, page 75. The exciter coil should read 295 ohms, The pulser coil 185 ohms, and the alternator coil 0.72 ohms. All +/- 20%.

The ignition coil should have 0.30 across black-orange, and 8.5 from the HT connector to ground. Again, anything within 15 or 20% tolerance is OK.

When you say "no resistance", do you mean Zero ohms, or do you mean infinite ohms? Maybe you need some help using your meter, or maybe it's defective?

Reading DVA on the orange wire (with your other lead connected to block ground) should show the signal going to the ignition coil. Expect something over 50 volts when cranking.
 
When I set the VOM to resistance and on x1 OHMS, and connect one lead to the orange wire from the primary side of the coil and the other lead to the black wire or to the block when the black wire is connected to the block, I get O ohms. The meter shows the same reading as when I connect the leads to zero the meter. Then, when I check the secondary side of the coil, I connect one lead to the block and the other to one of the spark plug wires and the meter reads infinite resistance.

It seems there is a direct short in the primary side of the coil and a broken connection (no connection) in the secondary side. This seems to indicate that I need a new coil. True?

Then when I set the meter to peak voltage and connect the orange lead from the CD unit (which connects to the orange lead of the coil), I get the meter to read about 40 volts when I crank. It doesn't hold at peak voltage, but slowly drops after cranking. I have hooked up as the manual for the meter describes but it doesn't hold the peak voltage.

The other ohms readings are as follows: exciter coil 400 ohms, pulser coil zero ohms, alternator coil 500 ohms (the white and yellow leads are stubbed with plugged connectors
Code:
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Its like this motor got hit by lightning while in the storage unit over the winter.

Any ideas?
 
It sounds like you have a cooked siamese coil. 3V1060400M IGNITION COIL $44.43. If you took the primary-side reading with the orange wire disconnected from the motor, there should definitely be at least a little resistance. Likewise, the 40v input signal to the coil is OK. So it seems you have isolated the problem. Just like a computer, the electronic parts often don't wear out, but rather just pop one day.
 
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Thanks for your help. I will order a coil. What do you make of the zero ohms on the pulser coil. Do I need one of those also? Richard
 
Since you have signal to the ignition coil, it appears to be working; the low ohms reading on the pulser could be a poor reading on your meter. Those pulsers typically don't fail shorted, but rather open, so you should be OK.
 
Good news, because the pulsers are much more expansive. My new ignition coil is on its way. Thanks again for all your help

Richard
 
I finally got my new coil and installed it, but still no start. I decided to take the carb apart and found oil in the float chamber. Cleaned it out, put it all back together and what a thrill, it started on the second pull. I can now get back to fishing! Thanks for all your help.

Richard
 
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