1999 Cabrio Washed engine now it won't start

I washed the engine on my Late 1999 Cabrio and now it won't start. I have spark from the coil to the distributor but no spark from the distributor to the plugs. I took the cap and rotor off and blew them them out as well as I blew out the distributor both with air and then with a hot blow dryer....still nothing. Help!

Ugh, I hate it when that happens. A couple years back I washed my 1991 Ford Escort's engine, was never the same afterwards. I think the engine resented me for making it shine. The Escort didn't die on me, but rather it like when you neuter a cat, just not the same animal anymore...

Getting back on track, for your issue, it very well could be the ignition coil. Yes, yes, you have spark (just how exactly were you able to test spark from coil to distributor?), but the coils are notorious for failing whenever water is present. After the numerous stories I have heard and witnessed, I am convinced you can break a coil just by looking at it hard enough Wink

. A test you can do is when it's dark, take a spray bottle filled with water, try to start the engine while spraying the coil. If you see sparking, you know the coil has gone south.

Personally, this test didn't help me. However, when I removed my old coil (yup, I also suffer from the failed coil syndrome), there were cracks all over the casing. Replacing was the fix for my issue (a thread elsewhere on this message board).

Lastly, don't rule out the spark plug wires themselves. There's the possibility the wires were also affected by your cleaning.