I have a 2000 2 W/D Ranger P/u 4 cly. standard, It will not start after leaving overnight. No spark. When you jump start with a battery charger it will start right up. We know it is not getting spark in the morning, once started it starts all day ??. untill next day. we checked all codes and none registed. New battery, fuel filter, air filter, been installed in the last 6 months. maybe this has happen to someone else that could share there fix. Also only 13000 miles on the truck, Stays in the barn most of the week. If that helps.

 

When you say you jump it in the morning, what voltage does the battery read after it has sat all night? And by "no spark", does this mean the engine is turning over like it normally would? I know you said it is a new battery, but that isn't the point. If there is a short somewhere it may be discharging the battery.

Also welcome to FTE.

 

Welcome to FTE, 32822.

Well for grins I'd have the electrical system tested at your favorite autoparts store.

Most will do it at no charge, with their portable tester, which can properly test & load check the alternator, battery, battery cables & detect any excess parasitic drain, bad battery cables, or grounds or weak alternator output.

Once you know all is well there & seeing as how you say you don't have any spark & no trouble codes, I'd maybe suspect a acting out computer power relay, as they are a common problem point.

When it won't start, do you have any dash warning lights on, that would indicate the computer is awake???

You could try "thumping" the computes relay & see if you can wake it up, or swapping the computers power relay with a like one not needed to run the vehicle, like say the A/C relay, if the A/C system functions ok & you know it's power relay is ok.

These power relays are in the under hood power distribution box, located on the drivers side fender, back accross from the brake master cylinder. The relays position is marked on the distribution box cover.

If the problem clears up with the relay swap, suspect the old computer relay. They can be had for about $5-$10, depending on where you buy them.

It's also not uncommon for the fuel pump power relay to act up like this, but it doesn't affect spark. just the fuel pump. If you come to suspect the fuel pump relay, just swap it for the A/C relay & see how things go.

Let us know what you find.

 

Jump in the morning means , that I jump it from my battery charger, It has a jump start point, I think its 40 amps . on the battery it was about 12.6 voits before starting. I though it was the battery at first, but after putting in a 90 amp brand new one it still wouldn't start. the engine would turn over very well, But no spark to plugs.I have looked at the relays and replaced the fuel pump relay, I wasn't sure if this was the problem, before i discoved no spark. I didn't know of a relay for the computer or i didn't see one, I will check tonight for one and replace it and see if it will start. I feel that the problem is something going bad when it sits overnight and when i jump it with the added amps it wakes it up for the time being, and then goes back to it orginial position as it sits overnight ??Ive also cleaned the battery cables at the battery, Cleaned the terminals to the frame and the engine Block. The charging system, starter and cables are great and doing what they are suppose too. I'm preety good at figueing out problems but this one's got me baffeled and thats why Im here asking for help. Thanks for the welcome and i hope to be a daily reader.

 

welcome to the neighborhood..you said it was a standard im assuming that you have to push in the clutch so the starter will turn thre should be an electrical connection by the clutch pedal i would check that out to make sure the wires and contacts are good im wondering if that may be dirty or the wires may be wet or something that could need the jump to get her going.. you did clean the grounds and the battery cables maybe the cable on the starter? i would check the relays like the other poster said too

 

This sounds mighty familiar 32822. I went throught it a couple weeks ago actually. I took the same steps as well, new battery, plugs, wires, cap, rotor, etc. The truck would run fine all day long, but when it sat overnight it was no go the next morning. Take it G21C_WRAITH said and bring it to your local parts shop. I had a bad battery off the shelf! I figured, surely not me, and was in denial the battery was the prob. But it was!

 

Have you checked out the plug wires? Not sure of the troubleshooting procedure but I would check out the coil pack. Try having someone look at the coil area and it's electrical connector while you crank it. Maybe you have visable arcing going on in that area.

 

i'm not sure what's going on with the 'no spark' issue, but try disconnecting the battery when you park it for the evening. From what I've read so far, It should be ok when you reconnect in the morning. If that works, with the truck shut down and parked, disconnect the battery and check for current flow between the disconnected cable and battery terminal. It may be as low as in the mA range.

Good luck,

 

Just to let everyone know, The truck turns over normally in the morning, it just does not have any spark untill I jump it with my battery charger,. I will try disconnenting the battery at night and see what happens, But I have put in a brand new charged 900 CCA battery in place of my old battery and it still had no spark when I started in the morning. It's got to be something that grounds out when left overnight or when given the boost it opens up and lets the spark work and continues for the day ??

 

Don't forget to check/thump/or swap, the computers (EEC) power relay, in the underhood power distibution box.

The engine can crank ok, but If the computer isn't getting power, you won't get spark, as the computer has to work, to ground the coilpack, to get spark.

So make sure the EEC relay is ok, before moving on to something else.

 

Ok, I removed the battery cable overnight and it still would not start. I did a voltage test at the coils. got 10.8 volts in the morning, Is this enouef voltage to get the coils working ??. or is my problem in the computer. I did a check after starting with the jump and it showed 11.8,not running and 14.2 while its running. any help would be appreciated.

 

11.8 VDC unloaded, says the battery is between 30 & 40 % charged, after sitting overnight with the battery cables disconnected, so this would suggest to me there is a internal problem with the battery, perhaps a shorted cell.

10.8 volts has to be on the low tolerance end of the voltage scale, for the coil to operate well. Throw in any other loads left on during a start, like a heater blower motor, stereo amp, lights, ect & cold temps, with the batteries lower operating effiiency & output at low temps & all together it's a good recipe for trouble.

Why not have the battery load tested, if your still unshure it's bad.

 

I load tested the battery and it was fine. I also took a brand new charged battery 950 cca, and put it in the truck and it acted the same the next morning. I'm sure it's not the battery. I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure it's not the battery, I will do a test on voltage before starting. It will only start with a jump from my battery charger set on the 200 amp jump start. after i get it running it will start all day with no problems. over the weekend while driving I notice that it had stalled while driving on the highway. the engine stoped and started back up. another words it went dead for a second or so then contiuned running OK. hope this helps. Thanks

 

Dang I must be mising something here.

Are you testing the battery voltage at & across the battery posts???? If so & it's as low a you say, then the battery has a problem.

If the voltage test is made across the cable clamps, then you likely have a high resistance/poor electrical connection between the battery post & cable clamps, maybe corrosion, or excssive lead oxide deposits, which aren't a good conductor.

The voltage to the coilpack should be close to the values made across the battery terminals. If it's substantially lower, then you have a electrical connection problem, or if the open circuit votage readings at the battery posts are as low as you've reported, then seems to me there is a probem with the battery.

 

Sounds like you changed enough batteries.
The voltage tests you did should be helpfull. The low voltage first thing in the morning, then being higher afterward with the engine off may be it. I don't have a wiring diagram for your truck, nor do I know how the ignition is set up( I'll have to read up on it) but is there some kind of control module between the battery or alternator and the coil pack that may have a bad ground or problem with its electonics. I think Pawpaw was going in the right direction with 'the box'.

Just a thought, and I'll follow up with what I find