Cars Lrp Zr32 Spec 4 Nitro Engine Starting Problem.

Hi guys I have just installed in my kyosho scorpion buggy the lrp zr32 nitro engine. And it does not want to start. I have tried everything. New glow plug. Charged glow ignitor. Fresh fuel. New fuel lines. The needles are set at factory settings for breaking in the engine. I also tried to lean out the low end needle in case the factory setting was too rich without a result. Every time I prime the engine as I should but she just does not want to start. Any suggestions?
The installation of the engine was perfect. I have not done anything wrong. I am afraid it might be a factory faulty engine I don't know.

What glow igniter are you using? If you are using a power panel (starter, glow igniter all in one, used for planes), it is really easy to plug that glow igniter into the 12v port and pop a glow plug instantly. Anyone with these panels has done this lol. Just make sure you are only putting a max of 1.5 volts to the glow plug. Also, make sure the glow plug is glowing by pulling it out of the engine and checking it.

My next thought was the carb. Are you absolutely sure the carb is not clogged? If you are not 100% sure, take it off the engine and go through the whole carb to make sure all ports are open without trash in them. I have seen brand new carbs that had an O-Ring get slightly ripped and that small piece that came off clogged a port somewhere.

The last thing I can think of is make sure you have new fuel tubing on the buggy and make sure yoru carb and backplate are sealing correctly. The head is another area that you want to make sure is sealed properly. If you are looking at the front of the engine, turn the engine counter clockwise and make sure you feel a good *POP* as it goes past the compression cycle.

I am using an 1cell lipo igniter. And I have checked the glow plug it’s glowing as it should be. I am going to strip down the carb and then the entire engine. Thanks Tony.

I just had to mention the power panel just in case. I popped 3 plugs in a row once because I plugged into the wrong port lmao. Yea, $21.00 up in smoke that fast lmao.

Let me know what you find with the carb. Be sure to do this on a white paper towel or something so that you can see the little bits that may fall out. Nothing worse than not knowing what was causing the issues lol

I have just disassembled the carb. Everything looks right. The orings of all the needles are new, the main body of the carb is clear, everything looks perfect. I have also restored the factory settings of the needles. So the carb I’m sure it’s not the problem. Maybe I have to lean more the low speed needle than the factory setting and try again. What else can I say?

Other than something clogging the carb... there's very little that can go wrong with a nitro engine. You ensure you have fuel, air and spark ( or glow in this case ) and that's about it. So everything will depend on you setting the needles properly and that's is usually a pretty picky setup to find the right settings for.

Most times factory settings get it running. Pig rich, but running. Did you try to start it after cleaning out the carb? Have you looked inside the backplate to see if anything is clogging the hole in the crank? Also, have you put your finger over the carb to make sure you can feel a vacuum and also on the exhaust to feel some pressure coming out while cranking? Just tossing ideas at this point.

I will look for those things and try it again.

Guys I have tried everything. I disassembled the carb, everything was fine. Then the entire engine to see if there was anything wrong. All looked normal. This is what is happening now. I restored the needles at factory recommended settings. The engine starts only if I apply 1/4 throttle and keep it steady there. I also keep the ignitor on the engine. If I release the throttle to zero engine dies. And if I take off the ignitor no matter how much throttle I apply the engine also dies. Every time before I start I preheat the engine at 90 celcius degrees with a heatgun. I have also turned the idle screw clockwise to add some idle. Nothing happens. I burned 2 tanks by keeping the throttle steady to 25% and the ignitor on the glow plug. I also noticed that the temperature of the engine was going to 50 celcius degrees not more. Thing which means that factory settings recommended for break in the engine are too rich. I cannot understand what is happening. I have also replaced my glow ignitor with a new one. The engine has good compression as it is new. What else can I try?

Having to open up the throttle to 25% means it is way too rich. 50c is also an indication of being too rich. The fact that it is dying when you remove the glow igniter also tells me it's 1 to rich and 2, you need a new glow plug. I can upload video of me fighting with one of these engines doing the exact same thing with a 'known good' plug, but once I replaced it, it purred like a kitten.

Start leaning it out until it runs good at idle, actual idle. If it still dies, replace the plug.

Leaning out the low or the high speed needle? And the glow plug I am using it’s a new one. However I replaced it with another new one to see if it makes any difference without a result.

lean out the low at first. Just know you may need to richen it up later on. We are just testing to see if we can get it running.

Thanks let’s see what we can do..

I'm hoping to have this issue with one of the engines that I will be working on soon so that I can make a video of what is going through my head right now lol.

Hi guys after a lot of combinations of the two needles I finally managed to start the engine. I have burned 7 tanks of idling at the moment but I have this issue. The factory settings for breaking in the engine in the manual of the LRP is 5.25 turns the high speed needle and 4.25 turns the low speed. As I have mentioned above with these settings the engine starts only if I apply 1/4 throttle and keeping it there steady and with the glow ignitor on the glow plug. If I leave throttle to zero engine dies. And if I take off the ignitor engine also dies. No matter how many times I try. So Tony suggested me leaning out the low speed. And here is what I found. The only position of the needles giving the engine a very good idle with no interruption is low speed needle at 2.25 turns and the high speed at 2.5 turns. I consider a turn of 360 degrees. I hope the factory manual also considers a turn of 360 degrees. Which is far away from the recommended factory settings. The temperature with these settings when engine idles rises at 65 celcius degrees not more. If I apply 1/5 throttle for 30 seconds temperature reaches up to 80 celcius and then when idling falls again to 65c. All this is taking place on the bench. I'm not driving the car yet, so with these settings I don't know where temperatures may rise if I drive it. I'm using 25% nitro and a medium glow plug as it came with the engine. The thing is that these settings I found out that idles engine very well are way too lean theoretically related to the recommended factory settings. What should I do from now and on? Any suggestions?

If this were me, I would toss the manual unless you need to follow something for a warranty. If not, bin the manual and do what works. I'm a firm believer in following the manual to get an engine running (I just put my 2.5 to factory specs on the T-Maxx per the manual), but if you are having to go a full turn IN just to get it to idle, then the manual is wrong, you have the wrong carb, or something else is going on.

65c is pretty cold, about 150F. Nothing to worry about there. 80c is only about 175F, again, nothing to worry about. 115c is when I would start adding fuel back to the engine. Just remember, these things were built for short bursts of full throttle, not wide open all the time. WOT all the time will destroy an engine in no time. I raced oval, ask me how I know that lol. One night of racing, one engine lmao. It got expensive.

Well racing gives all the fun. I don't race, I'm just going to places that reminds me a track and I do my thing. I want to get sometime in the future in 5th scale gas but I'm a little bit worried of how much it going to cost me with all the necessary upgrades and the maintenance of the car. The other problem is that here in Greece you can't find any parts for a 5th scale car. You have to order from USA or from UK. Which means a month more or less waiting. Anyway thanks a lot for your advice.

There is actually not that much maintenance on 2 stroke gas engines. Keep the carb clean, make sure the reeds are not gummed up and make sure you have a good spark plug in it. I want one, just can't afford one lol.

well consider 1500 dollars for a losi 5t with a Zenoah 32cc and start from there.!!

Move that decimal to the left two spots, and I 'might' be able to afford it hahaha.