No start - big help needed.

[Dave Hord]

Okay,

I'm starting to reach my wits end with this car. EVERYTHING seems to be going
wrong with it (since I parked it in the trees)...but NONE of it has been the
damn cars fault!

Current Problem: No start.

Vehicle: 1989 90 quattro, 5cyl non-turbo

History: Replaced fuel lines from filter to metering head with Aeroquip rubber
lines (inside the car).  Car drove perfectly fine for the week and a half I got
to drive it. The exhaust system needed to be replaced (temporarily), so I took
it to a customer of ours to have an aluminized steel version installed.

Car drove _perfectly_ fine the entire six weeks before I took in for the
exhuast (which mostly consisted of driving from one shop to the next). Full
power, no problems.

Shop showed me that the O2 sensor was damaged. It's damaged near wrench
fittings (looks like top was being broken off). The wires have probe holes in
them, shop explained that the wires are all corroded.  Diagnosis: New O2 sensor.

O2 sensor was _most likely_ not removed when they cut out and welded up a new
cat.

Started car to leave shop...it would _barely_ make it down teh street.  Fixed
vaccum line they knocked off.

Car runs incredibly rich.  Put your foot down on the gas, car stumbles.  Lift
off gas (after you've been going a bit) car backfires repeatably. Shop says "O2
sensor is dead, runs rich".  Unplugging the O2 sensor changes nothing...agreed,
O2 sensor dead.

I _HAD_ to drive home on tuesday night with the car running rich for 45min to
home.

Car stayed parked from Tuesday at 9pm to Wednesday at 8am.  Car will not start.


NOTHING.  It turns over, cranks away.  Pushing on the gas doesn't help.  Just
letting it turn over does not help.  ONCE (in 15min of trying) the car kicked
over ONCE and then promptly died.

Could a dead O2 sensor really cause this?  Is it possible that running the car
with the backfiring and such damaged something else?

Anyone want to guess why I will NEVER EVER go back to that shop again!?!

sigh.  Any ideas would be incredibly helpful.

-Dave

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89 90q  300km+ Rally Conversion in High Gear...
(sometimes it helps to hit trees??)
http://home.the-wire.com/~spokes