car suddenly wont start - never ran great anyway, esp. cold, now cranks, but won't st

[rjSupra]

Hi guys, thanks for the assistance!

I have a battery charger with a 50 amp starting setting, to start the car with the battery in it from your garage A.C. This worked pretty good with a bad battery before on the car, before I bought a new (cheap) battery. Autolite Silver series $67 with core on sale direct internet. Probably not a great battery, but I was not sure at that point I could keep the car (had that unsolved mega coolant problem that grounded it for 2 months at the time, and had thought if the steel line under the headers was toast I'd probably sell the car as is with disclosures).

So, I am guessing I should be getting enough juice. I am separated from the car's location for another day, hopefully when I get back it will warm up a bit and I can re-try. The car sat about 24 hrs overnight in fact (not same day), in biting cold since it had last been driven 30 miles / 45 minutes. So far, the alternator has been keeping the battery charged. The car has sat for 7+ days in bad cold before and fired right up as always.

I have not done the spark plugs. They looked, well used, but not terrible. No real oil that I can recall, although it's possible one was wet a little bit. Mostly I remember normal carbon deposits (at the time no plug gapper tool, so could not check the gaps). Have not done the wires, no idea when they were done last, although visually they look ok (i've seen a lot worse).

Any thoughts what that wisp of smoke behind the motor, close to the firewall could have been? And the slight plastic-y burning smell? That happened the last time I tried to start her, with a paper clip jumping either the engine error code check terminals, or the fuel pump 12v bypass I can't quite remember which one I had it in.

It sounds like the 02 sensor can't be at fault for all these issues, so I appreciate knowing that now. Don't really know what they do aside from I gather measuring oxygen levels in exhaust to send setting info to the car for fuel rich / lean levels etc... I do have a multi meter so next step would be to test a few of the components that way. It was just too cold and dark the other day to deal with it.

Thanks again.