engine won't start

[SurlySteve]

I'm having a problem. My car is a 1990 toyota tercel with a 1.5l carbed motor. The engine cranks over but won't start. sometimes it sputters and sounds like it will start while cranking but doesn't start. It's getting fuel and there is spark. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated. Thanx.

[onephatcracka]

i'd check your pressures....... you may be getting fuel , but are you getting enough?..... also check your vaccum lines. sometimes that could cause it. Take off your air filter and cover around the carb and see whats going on. Your carb may be clogged too. It's hard to tell what could be wrong from here, but i would check and double check those things.

[Tercel GTS]

Is it spinning really fast? If so timing may have jumped. If not do this, take the cap off the distributor and look inside for a small capacitor. Does it appear melted? If so go to the dealer and buy a new capacitor. This is a common problem on that era of Toyota, in fact we did a few last week at the shop.
There are several things really that it could be. Start with the three basic needs, fuel, spark, compression. Good luck and keep us posted.

[SurlySteve]

hey thanx for the ideas guys. I'll look into it