Nissan Repair: Nissan Stanza 90, nissan stanza, harmonic balancer

Question
I have a Nissan Stanza 1990. It won't start. It's getting fuel but no spark I replaced the coil, harmonic balancer but still no spark. People keep telling me it could be the timing chain but how do I tell. The car was making this loud knocking noise before it just cut off and wouldn't start again. My mechanic said that the noise was coming from the harmonic balancer. Could that throw the timing off? Before it quiet I had problems with the car just cutting off and not starting. I would leave it for a couple of hours and come back and it would start right up. This happened mostly when it rained. I need good advice PLEASE HELP ME.

Answer
Danielle,

Yes, the harmonic balancer could be a sign that the timing has jumped.  I would first take the cover off and make sure the timing is correct before I sunk any more money in the car.  If the timing has jumped and engine damage has occured you would be better off getting a used motor from a wrecking yard instead of spending money on correcting what you have.  Quite expensive engine to repair...  For the stalling part I would look at a cracked distributor cap.