i just bought a ford explorer v6 4.0l it has over 200,000 miles on it originally the engine was a no start no crank . the guy who i got it from said two months ago he went to start the truck and it was a no start no crank . he put a new battery in it and still no crank . he said one of his buddys said it could be the timing chain . now from my experiences with timing chains you can start it but it looses power very quickly i didn't think its the chain i hear no rattling or knocks .so i hooked up the battery scrapped off the crap off the terminal and banged the positive terminal with a hammer and it cranks but still no start . i also switched around what i believe to be the ignition relay and the blower relay . i hit the fuel pump reset under the driver side now im stumped where to start . the guy i got it from says he has NEVER changed the spark plugs in 6 years hes had the truck . i tried to pull the spark plug on the passenger side and had a hard time getting just the plug cable off . i called my dad so he will pull them tomorrow and replace them. if i cant get it to start im gonna have it towed , but what could have caused the truck to have lost power like that . and what can i do now to get her running . i need that truck to run and at 500 bucks it was a deal so i cant cry to much. could the positive battery terminal need to be changed im getting power everywhere maybe its not enough for the engine?
PLEASE HELP,
SIGNED , lifeless nurse and mom of twins ... fishing for sympathy here

 

Welcome to the forum!

You're correct that an issue with the timing chain(s) would not cause the start to not spin the engine over. One of the 4.0L engines is known for timing cassette issues that will cause noise, but you're not even to the point of know if that's a problem yet or not.

After pounding on the battery terminal like you did, yeah, it could have damaged the battery internally. And a bad connection inside (or outside) the battery could cause you to have power, but not enough to start the engine. If you have a multimeter, measure how much voltage is at the underhood fuse/relay box when trying to start the engine. If it is less than 10.5 V there's a good chance the PCM could get in to a grey area and not allow the engine to start. This could be an issue with the battery, connection to the battery, or battery cables.

You also need to determine if you are getting spark and fuel. Also check the air filter and associated piping from the filter to the throttle body. If any of that is damaged or not connected properly, the engine may fail to start.

What year is your Explorer?

-Rod

 

Is the Anti_Theft flashing on Dash as you are trying to start it?

Neal

 

^^^^ Very good question.

-Rod

 

Its a 2002 explorer . Today I scheduled for a tow home for tomorrow . Nope antitheft/Pats light not blinking . And i did check the air filter that was clean but just in case i proped it open when i cranked it so i could smell for gas. Unfortunatley due to the cold today my dad was unable to comeout to help this morning he told me to just tow it home and we go from there . When I get her home where so I start spark plugs or battery terminals . The terminals did look like hell . That kid was mean to his truck no upkeep at all other than oil change and detailing . If the pcm is blocking the turn over do I start with the pcm relay fuse under the hood . Or spark plugs
Thanks for all the help. I need it .

 

when you turn the key to "on", not "start" the fuel pump should run for 3 seconds.. does that happen ? The pump builds up pressure in the fuel rail above the motor. There might be a Schrader valve ( like a tire fill valve) on the rail. Push the center pin and see if fuel squirts out.

You can also shoot a small amount of either into the intake and see if the truck fires a few times. That will tell you the "spark" is working..

If the motor is cranking over at a reasonable speed... how can the problem be the battery or starter ?

 

I'd still suggest checking the voltage at the fuse/relay panel when the starter is engaged just to confirm you have good voltage. If not, changing out the battery cables with molded cables for you application will not be a wasted investment. And as mentioned above by a few of us, you'll also need to check for spark and fuel.

-Rod

 

Fuel pump runs I can hear it . But still won't turn over

 

come on guy.. THINK for a minute... if the motor does not crank, then the battery cables / starter / battery are the problem, or the AC compressor is locked up... ITS NOT FUEL........ take the fan belt off and see if it cranks over.. Charge the battery, clean all the cable ends, reinstall and test.. Does it "CLICK".... check the voltage to the starter cable after all the above. Maybe the solenoid is not pulling in ?

 

Hi steve that's what I thought about the battery but the battery is new and I just changed the terminals. Still no start . Checked voltage its good I'm not getting thar combustion it needs to turn over it wants to but somethings not giving for it to hit

 

I think you're at a point where you need to confirm the correct fuel pressure at the fuel rail and that you have spark on all 8 cylinders.

-Rod

 

I had a strange starting issue yesterday. Try putting it in Neutral then try and start it.

Neal

 

"Fuel pump runs I can hear it . But still won't turn over " .......... why are we talking about fuel pressure ??? MOTOR WILL NOT CRANK !

 

I put it on a dignostic machine. No codes . Every system checks out ok. Could the ecm cause the motor not to run ? I took it to a machanic and he is stumped soi called a locksmith thinking it might be the key since its not a genuine ford key looks like a duplicate. But the locksimth said he was unable to get past the ecm/ecu to program the keys. It didn't help he didn't speak good english and mind u this was popalock smdh. how would u know if the ecu is malfuctioning ?

 

Above you mentioned the Security/Theft light is not flashing. If the key were not properly programmed, my recall is the starter would still spin the engine over but the engine will not start (fuel injectors are turned off) and the Security/Theft light would flash rapidly while trying to start the engine.

Would you confirm whether or not the starter motor is spinning the engine? In your first post you indicated that you used a hammer on the battery cables and the engine cranks but won't start. Is that still the condition you are in?

-Rod