74 911 Won't Start, Need Help!!

[nick325i]

I have a 74' 911 with the original 2.7. I bought it about 6 years ago and drove it often until about 2 years ago when the clutch fork snapped.

Anyway, I pulled the engine but due to my busy college schedule I put the car in the corner. Now, I have graduated college and have been busy putting the car back together. I've got the new clutch fork in and the engine back in the car which is where I am now.

I've got everything hooked up correctly to the best of my knowledge. The car turns over, but does it very slowly. This is with new or cleaned ground cables and a new optima battery. I can turn the engine by hand with a wrench.

It does not start but I am not even sure it is spinning fast enough to start. The fuel pump is definitely working and the CDI box seems to be working too. I will try and get a friend to help me soon so I can check for spark.

Are there any typical mistakes on engine installation or common problems from sitting for a long time to look for? Anything helps and thank you in advance!

[Paulporsche]

Once you've determined that the spark, fuel and air are all good, check your starter and current to it. Since it seems to be turning slowly, it may be jammed up after so long being inactive. You might get away w/ a few good hammer whacks to loosen it up. Or you may need to replace it. Someone else may be able to tell you if they can be cleaned.

[nick325i]

Ok it turns over normally now. It turns out my new optima battery wasn't as charged up as I thought and I cleaned up a few connections. It's still not trying to start but at least I can start figuring that out now.

Also, I've got a factory looking switch on the dash that kills the engine. I assume it isn't factory but does anyone else have this? I think the previous owner may have added it.

[JHinOH]

No factory kill switch on you 911 unless you're talking about that key thingy on the left. Does the engine sound like it's getting any combustion or just spining the crank? CDI box can just fail and the engine will just spin.

[T77911S]

the CD can make noise and still be bad. pull a wire and put a plug on it or use a timing light to check for spark. if all that is good and it is getting fuel, the first thing i would look at with cars that sit is a stuck plunger in the fuel distributor.
the way to check it is, first, with the key off, push the air sensor plate up. there should not be any resistance. then, with the key on, raise the plate again. the fuel pump should come on and you should feel resistance. there should not be any movement before it pushes back.

[Tom '74 911]

Fuel, spark, air. . . Some simple things I have messed up before - make sure you have the spark plug wires in the correct order on the distributer cap and going to the correct plugs etc..., double check ALL electrical connections, double check ALL the grounds - I once forgot to reattach the ground on my MSD ignition - that was 2 days worth of troubleshooting! Pull the injectors and verify that you're getting fuel out of them. It's usually something simple that was overlooked.

[T77911S]

my thing is forgetting to put the rotor back on. duh.

[nick325i]

Ok, on the CD box, there is the 3 wire connection on the bottom, then a small brown wire and then another wire in front of that. Does that sound correct?

Yeah, I've had my share of stupid mistakes, but on this car I didn't even take the dist. cap, plug wires, etc out. I just unplugged everything and dropped the engine out. On a good note, it did spudder just a little one time when I cranked it so maybe there is hope.

Thanks again for all the help. Now that I have time for the hobby, I want to get involved in the local Porsche scene.

[TV74911S]

the colossally stupid thing I forget to do is set the hand throttle - particularly when I haven't driven the car in a while.

[nick325i]

Ok, I don't know what I did but it started and runs well. But, the alternator light is on and it has a pretty wicked oil leak from the front of the motor. Any sugestions?