Hey guys,

Yesterday, while driving in a snowy road, I slid and hit a snowbank and the left-front side of the car was basically buried in the bank. The car suddenly turned off on impact and smoke was coming from under the hood. Nothing smelled weird so I'm guessing it was the snow evaporating. I tried turning the car on, but to no avail. There were some click and vibrations it seemed as if the car was trying its hardest to turnover, but it just couldn't. After further inspection I noticed that the timing belt was shifted to the left, but it didn't seem to jump a tooth or anything. I don't really know if it's a timing belt issue (I really hope not, I know it's a kind of expensive fix) or if I just need to let the ice melt since there's still some caked on the belts. I tried to take off as much snow and ice as I could but there's still a substantial amount of ice "attached" to the cogs and belt(s). I just wanted to know if the car isn't turning on because of the time belt, or is it because of the ice caked on it.

Thanks in advanced

P.S: I have no knowledge what-so-ever about cars, so please excuse my inexperience about parts and such. I know the basics, but just not enough to really jump to a conclusion as to what's going on with my car. This is my very first car by the way. I can provide pictures and more details if necessary.
Car's a 1996 Neon Base, automatic trans, SOHC engine.

 

You cannot see the timing belt unless you either take off the timing belt cover, or open up the inspection plug on the timing cover, so what you are looking at is the belt for the power steering pump and A/C and the other belt inside of that one that drives the alternator. They cannot slip out of timing, but if they are loose, it is because they need to be tightened. However, neither one being loose will prevent the car from cranking.

You need to answer some basic questions. What may have happened is that you hit the snowbank hard enough to jar some components loose. Having ice up in the engine compartment all around the belts makes me think that you hit that snowbank pretty damn hard! The fenders and or plastic splash shield underneath should have protected the belts, etc.from snow and ice getting into that area unless you either did not have it installed, or hit so hard it pushed it into that area, melted, and refroze there.

When you turn the key to the crank position (all the way), do you hear the motor turning over? or do you just hear a click? You may have messed up the starter and/or selenoid when you hit. There is a PDC where all the relays are located behind the battery box. You could have hit hard enough to jar some of the relays loose and if the auto-shutdown relay senses a problem (fuel, fire, whatever) it will not allow the car to crank. You could have blown some fuses that could prevent the car from starting if they blew because of the ice and snow creating a temporary short - check them all. You could have cracked or knocked the crank sensor connector off (it is near the area where the alternator is and could have been affected if that much snow and ice got up in there) and that will prevent the car from turning over. There are a number of things that could cause what you are experiencing, and since you have no mechanical experience, you really need to get a good mechanic (or a friend who is) to check out your car.