Cranks, No Start. Have spark & fuel.

1990 XJ 4.0 Renix.

Ok, the car ran fine when I picked it up in PA and drove it 300+ miles home. Well, it leaked tons of oil, and wouldn't engage the starter at one point... but that's it.

I have since replaced:
valve cover gasket
oil pump (HV Melling now)
front & rear main seals
oil pan gasket
FAI & CCV hose
plugs (went with Champions)
wires
cap
rotor

After I buttoned it all up, it wouldn't even crank. I hammered on the starter and now it at least cranks.
I put a plug on the coil to distrib wire, and it gets a nice consistent blue spark.
I depressed the Schrader valve on the fuel rail and it shoots out a nice stream.
I believe that I set the timing incorrectly when I first primed the oil pump, but I have since reset it at TDC with the rotor on #1.

The cranking sounds good and healthy, though a bit of a strain on the battery after a few revolutions.
So, what sensors would allow me to get spark & fuel, but no ignition?

The new FAI hose is actually located backwards of the old one, so the largest tube off of the valve cover doesn't meet and link up with the one coming from the air box (I only replaced the FAI assembly on valve cover side). When I had someone cranking it last night, I plugged both of those open hoses and it did sound like it was trying to catch moreso than the usual no start cranking. There's also another small diameter hose from the new FAI assembly that I can't even locate where it is supposed to plug in. The old one didn't have a hose there? Doesn't that assembly run over to the MAP sensor? Would that allow spark but no starting? I have already ordered the rest of the FAI set, so that will be in place tonight.

Ideas? I'm thinking that the Crank Position Sensor would create a no spark, right? I've tried starting in Neutral and with it in Park but pushed to the right, but no luck from the NSS switch side of things. Thanks for the help.

maybe you could check to see if your rotorbug is turning.and i believe your right about the CPS letting it crank but no spark.what you need is some magical touch powder!they sell the stuff in wonderland.it will fix ANYTHING!:gee:

So, something else dawned on me. Could someone either refute or back up this idea?
So... if the hose between the crank case and the air intake box is basically disconnected, the MAP sensor is going to be getting a crazy reading from the lack of vacuum in the system and the abundance of oxygen. So..... it is reading too much air and subsequently dumping large amounts of fuel in to counterbalance it? This would lead to the major smell of gasoline after trying to crank it several times, right? I haven't actually checked to see if the gas smell is coming from the tailpipe, but I don't notice it as much when under the hood.
Basically, I'm wondering if the no-start is being caused by the MAP sensor flooding the cylinders when cranking. This might be backed up by the fact that it sounds the most likely to catch on the first try, then less so on subsequent tries?
I'm picking up the second half of that FAI system this evening, and planning to drop it on tonight. Yet again, I'm telling myself that I might just get it running 'this time'.

EDIT: Also, I now realize that I need to put a plug on a dizzy to block wire to see if it's getting spark beyond the distributor. Maybe the hall sender wire could've been damaged when the dizzy was pulled.

no help, but i am having a very similar problem. mine cranks and starts sometimes, but not all the time. if you figure anything out, post up so i can try that

No reports tonight. I apparently ordered the wrong part number FAI hose when I called yesterday. I should be getting the correct one in the next day or so.

Since it cranks OK, it's not your NSS. The MAP sensor connects to the side of the throttle body. A bad CPS would allow it to crank but not start.

For some basic sensor diagnostics, check out:
http://www.lunghd.com/Tech_Articles/Engine/Basic_Sensors_Diagnostics.htm

For the whole bloody Renix manual, go to:
http://www.pirate4x4.com/tech/billavista/PDFs/index.html
Then scroll down to the Jeep section.

Check all of the vacuum lines. You could have split some while doing your other work.

Good luck.

Here's the vacuum diagram. Click on it to view the large size.

If it seems to be straining when it cranks, more than you'd expect from just battery drain, the distributor might be a tooth too advanced. Try reinstalling it one tooth back.

This could be totally offbase, but maybe you should check it out. My co-worker recently had a similar problem with her XJ -- even had to have it towed -- turned out, it was just low on coolant! -- check it out.

I was thinking about what Matthew Currie had said about the strain when cranking, and I decided to go ahead and set the timing again. It was a good decision. It cranked right up and had a pretty good run around the property.

It poured white smoke out of the tailpipe for the first five minutes or so, and I think there's still a little bit that comes out after it's warmed up a bit. That's a different issue though.. I'm just happy to have it running now. Thanks.