98 XC: VERY bad starting sound after replacing injector seals

[erikv11]

...
if a fuel injector is unable to inject fuel, that means the piston won't be able to be powered to move. can this break crankshaft or piston parts? I'm hoping not. I'm prepping for that scenario by shopping for another volvo.

Definitely not a problem. Some people will disconnect one of the injectors due to a problem with the cylinder, and run the car like that for years. Runs a little rough at idle, almost normal at higher revs.

[CIK7]

The car should still start if an injector is bad and not working. Car will run rough. Try removing the spark plugs and see if any of the cylinders is full if fuel. If one is leaking you may have hydro-locked the engine.

Neil.

right now I'm guessing that the engine senses a chamber full of fuel because I replaced the battery (I thought it was defective), attempted to start the car and it does nothing. just removed the fuel rail, pointed it outward (with a water hose nearby), and then clicked the key to position number 2 (not starting). one of the injectors starts spraying w/o start attempt. one of the injectors seems bone dry (yesterday, when I was able to attempt start) and I had replaced the previous one with the current one because that one was bone dry too after attempted start.

[volvolugnut]

Charge up that battery or borrow a good one. Then remove all of the plugs and try to crank. If you have concerns that there may be fluid in the cylinders, poke a straw ( or clear tube) down each plug hole, cap the straw with your finger and withdraw. If fluid in the straw/tube determine what it is- fuel, oil coolant. You can use a vacuum pump with bottle to clear all of the fluid if you find any. I think you will not find any.
volvolugnut

[erikv11]

The injectors all spray at the same time.

[misha]

You have one leaky injector.
Injector MUST not spray fuel with key in pos.II.

[CIK7]

You have on leaky injector.
Injector MUST not spray fuel with key in pos.II.

yes I changed it and now it's normal.

[CIK7]

The car should still start if an injector is bad and not working. Car will run rough. Try removing the spark plugs and see if any of the cylinders is full if fuel. If one is leaking you may have hydro-locked the engine.

Neil.

so I did a little work. warrantied the battery, brand new and charged. removed all spark plugs and checked all chambers, no fuel or anything besides black stuff from the spark plugs. I turned the key to start and same click. I watched a video about no crank. check the battery, knock the starter, check oil, check for fuel, and then tap the pistons. the guy got to tapping the pistons (a 99 Honda 4cyl). first 3 were fine and where they were suppose to be. the 4th was down lower than suppose to be and sounded hollow when tapped. the guy said this could indicate a broken piston bracket

[abscate]

Broken connecting rod maybe?

This is a subtle difference in sound and not one that wIll transplant between engine types

[CIK7]

Broken connecting rod maybe?

This is a subtle difference in sound and not one that wIll transplant between engine types

the connecting rod is what I'm suspecting yes. what do you mean by the second part of that?

[erikv11]

He means whatever the guy said about a broken connecting rod in the Honda engine, may be irrelevant to your car's Volvo engine. The info may not be helpful here, you need to know what to expect for this engine.

With all the spark plugs out, turn the engine over by hand with something like a bike wheel spoke in the spark plug hole. Start with #1, how high does the spoke go at it's highest? When it is at it's highest, get a flashlight and look in the hole, how far away is the piston top? Go down the line, check each cylinder, they should all be the same when at their highest. This is a crude test but it's easy and it's free, and would detect a badly broken con rod.