Questionmy check engine light was on i put in a quart of oil now it wont start it turns over but that is all it will do fuel battery compression spark all good i got a code 12 -6rc23 55 check engine still on
AnswerHi Brenda,
O.K., then I assume that you are only getting a 12 and a 55 code, correct? (You might try re-reading the codes at this time to be sure). And I assume that you have a 4 cyl 2.5L non-turbo engine, correct? And I assume that the engine seems to "catch" as if it is about to start but that it won't actually idle (as opposed to just cranking with no other signs of life), correct?
If all my assumptions are correct, then my first suggestion is that you may have a sticking exhaust gas recirculation (egr) valve. If it sticks slightly open then it prevents a proper mixture of air/fuel to sustain an idle. It is located behind the engine (between the engine and the firewall) and it is closer to the front of the engine so stand on the passenger side and look behind the engine for the egr which has a pipe coming from the exhaust manifold to its underside and a pipe from the valve going to the intake near the throttle. Use a flashlight to help see it. There is a vacuum operated round fitting on its top, and also a vacuum line going to an electrically operated valve closer to the engine, nearer the throttle body. Look under the round fitting (which is mounted on a saddle with openings for access to view) on the top of the valve where you will see a vertical rod with a slot in it which is the valve stem. Take a straight blade screwdriver and use the slot to lever the valve up against spring pressure and see if it is dropping back down due to spring's action and closing positively. Spray WD-40 or other pressurized solvent on the stem to loosen it up in that motion if necessary. Check to make sure the vacuum lines are all attached and not cracked. Then try to start it, and if it not idles warm up the engine and observe the slot to see if it goes up when you rev the engine to 2500 rpm and then drops back down fully, closing the valve, when you let the engine go back to idle rpm. Make sure that the fully down position is really down because if it is not fully closing when you let go of the accelerator and coast that will cause the engine to stall. It may be that to get it to close you'll have to unbolt it and clean out the gas flow passage past the valve due to buildup of exhaust fumes in the valve as sticky crud deposit around the internal valve.
If this doesn't solve your problem, then ask a friend to turn the ignition key from off to the run position while you listen for a sound to come from the fuel tank for about 1 second and then stop. It is a humming sound of the fuel pump. You might hear it better if you crouch down by the right rear wheel and listen for the sound to come from under the car. In your initial question you said you had fuel, but in the response you said you couldn't hear the fuel pump so that is not consistent.
Finally though you said you get spark (but not for how long: 1 second or for a full 5 seconds of a 5 second crank?) you may need to measure the voltage at the + post of the spark coil while cranking the engine and for that you will need a voltmeter. Do you have that, or a simple neon glow light?
Please do the above observations and give me the answers to my questions so we can move ahead to solve your problem.
Roland
