My S wont start and I'm really worried it may be a major problem with the engine. I'm not very good mechanically (It took me a whole day to install my CAI), so I don't know for sure. I started my S yesterday morning and everything seemed fine but about 20 seconds after idling the engine shut down. I tried starting it again but no luck. The starter was still working but my engine wouldn't. I thought maybe it was due to having a AEM V2 CAI with all the rain we've been having in the Bay Area. So I got a ride to work from one of my co-workers. When I got home later that day It was dry so I decided to start the car again, same problem as in the AM. Next thing to check was the oil level and sure enough the oil level was really really low. The oil change place I went to set my next oil change at 4500 miles instead of 3000 due to the oil being synthetic. Right now im 4000 miles and my S "drank" most of the oil. I tried putting new oil in but the car still wont start. Do you think I damaged my engine in a really bad way? my CEL light isn't on by the way. I have a mobile mechanic coming over tomorrow to check it out but I wanted to see what you had to say.

 

How low was the oil? Was it still showing on the dipstick?

Here is my edit:

Come to think of it, if your motor has hydrolocked or if you'd run it out of oil, I doubt it'd turn over. The motor needs three things to run: air, fuel, and spark. It's pretty hard to screw up the air part, so I'd check the other two.

Some easy things to look for are:

Fuses. Check them and make sure they're all ok.
Fuel Pump. When you turn the switch, listen carefully. Can you hear humming for a second or two? That's the fuel pump. If the car ran for a second, maybe the thing had fuel in the line, but it ran out.
Loose wires. It's unlikely, but look under the hood and make sure everything is plugged in.

 

could be any number of things, but you need to ALWAYS keep tabs on your oil level in this car, it will go through some oil.

 

Thanks for your replies, makes me feel a little better about the situation. I didn't hear any unusual sounds when I started the car, it just seemed like the engine died. The dipstick was showing about 1/8 of an inch of oil right at the tip. After I put 3 more quarts in it's showing right at the H level on the stick.

 

3 qts??????
ouch

it could be the CAI + hydrolock issue.... do a search
also check that your headlights, radio, battery are functioning.....

 

Where are you in the bay area?

I only ask because here in SJ it hasn't really rained for shit. I have found that people out here think 1-2" rain = monsoon, but in reality things are barely damp!

For that reason I doubt it's hydrolock unless you recall driving through any seriously major ponds in the road.

 

If it took 3 quarts to fill it up the the H mark, then there shouldn't have been ANY oil on the dip stick. The full range of the dip stick is probably less than 1.5 quarts.

If you have a blown fuse, then you WON'T hear any funny noises when you turn the key on. If everything is fine then you WILL hear the fuel pump kick on for a second when you first turn the key (if the radio and A/C are both off). If you aren't hearing anything, then you may have a bad fuse or fuel pump.

 

BTW, it isn't uncommon for an S2000 to use about 1 quart of oil every 1K miles (especially if it is synthetic). My car has used less and less oil as I put more miles on it, but it still uses about 1 quart every 3K miles.

 

So the starter still spins the engine over, but it doesn't run?
If you didn't start the car in a big puddle, hydro-locking is not an issue.

If it was 3qts low on oil, It had at least 2+ qts in the oil pan. This is enough oil to keep the oil light out, but not enough to lubricate sufficiently at high RPM.

It sounds like your car need a mechanic to look at it.