Mitsubishi Repair: 1995 mitsubishi eclipse, crank angle sensor, hurrican winds


Question
My car recently was parked during hurrican winds in North Carolina.  After the strom when I tried to drive it, it wouldn't start.  We had to jump the car to get it started.  It would idle but when you try to drive it, it dies.  It will not start without being jumped.  There was also water inside the car, but to my knowledge the sunroof never leaked before this, so I'm assuming just from the high winds and rain.  Someone suggested maybe it could be  an inertia switch because of the jolting of the car during the high winds, but I don't know if my car has one.
I'm stationed far from home in the military and a girl on my own.  Please help.

Answer
Julie: Not sure about that inertia switch bit. If you have a way to get the car to an AutoZone to have it coded. Could be your car has a weak sensor or more that is causing the problems. As you have the car in those years that the computer sometimes with time goes bad. But this coding would show that if that was true. It takes three things for a car to move down the road as far as the engine goes, stark, air and fuel. If the car had water in the inside, the wind could have pushes the water into the car by it's force. But also pushed water into other parts of the car too. I would do a good tune up on the car, stark plugs, stark plug wires, distributor cap(in the distributor cap is a crank angle sensor) and the rotor. You should change the oil and the air filter. Should take the car to a shop and have them change the fuel filter. You could have water in the fuel, maybe the shop could remove the old fuel and then you could put in new fuel. You need to check your battery and it's cables too. Think of yourself had you been out in those strong winds and all that rain. I am sure being in the military, you have got into things such a weather and found out how easy water gets into places on you that you thought you had wore enough clothes to stop that. So with the force of that wind and the water, it got into places on your car that you would be surprised about. Well maybe. I know I ride motorcycle, no matter how careful I dress. When in a nasty wind and rain storm, I often end up soaked. Well everything but the top of my head because of my full face helmet. So try those ideas, then keep me posted as I would like to know if you get the car running. I shall send you my email address...(oppedal50@yahoo.com) if you would like to write me there. You can do that too. I live in snowy Iowa, my husband is an over the road trucker and I am 55 years old. So pretty safe to be writing me too. So have a good one, I hope this helps you, right proud of those of you that are in the military too. Take care and good luck!