starts great...sometimes...
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New User
Joined: Apr 2008
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starts great...sometimes...
Hi, I'm a new poster and would appreciate your advice. My 97 V6 3.0 (150,000 miles) runs great and starts right up, most of the time. For about the last 6 or 8 months, she occassionally won't start if I try to restart within 5 minutes or so of shutting off the engine. Turns over, just won't start. It's beginning to happen more often, say half the time I turn the engine off briefly before restarting, like when I stop for gas, but if I wait for 10 minutes, she'll start easily and always runs great. Length of time I've been driving doesn't seem to matter and neither does outside temp. The engine light is off. Battery is only a year and a half old.
Any thoughts?
many thanks, Lydia
Any thoughts?
many thanks, Lydia
Posting Guru
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 1,533
Likes: 1
From: Dexter, MI
Welcome to FTE. This is the place to get lots of good help.
When did you last have the truck tuned up - new plugs and wires? What does your temp guage indicate - is the engine running hot? If so, flushing the cooling system and replacing the thermostat may be the cure.
When did you last have the truck tuned up - new plugs and wires? What does your temp guage indicate - is the engine running hot? If so, flushing the cooling system and replacing the thermostat may be the cure.
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Thanks, michigan66:
Tuned up around 100,000 miles, and the temp gauge is as it should be, not running hot. Although I've been intending to change coolant for routine maintenance before summer kicks in....
A friend had a similar problem with a Mercury, and it turned out to be the fuel pump. In my own experience, fuel pumps either work or they don't, instead of working intermittently, so I was curious if any other Ranger owners had encountered a similar fuel pump problem. Don't want to drop the tank unless I have to!
Tuned up around 100,000 miles, and the temp gauge is as it should be, not running hot. Although I've been intending to change coolant for routine maintenance before summer kicks in....
A friend had a similar problem with a Mercury, and it turned out to be the fuel pump. In my own experience, fuel pumps either work or they don't, instead of working intermittently, so I was curious if any other Ranger owners had encountered a similar fuel pump problem. Don't want to drop the tank unless I have to!
Senior User
Joined: Feb 2006
Posts: 311
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From: Ellington, Connecticut
Welcome to FTE lydia,
When in doubt pull the codes for possible resolutions.
And sometimes it takes time to gather answers when others read your thread.
When in doubt pull the codes for possible resolutions.
And sometimes it takes time to gather answers when others read your thread.
Last edited by crazypaw; Apr 9, 2008 at 08:46 PM. Reason: more wording
Lead Driver
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From: Abilene Kansas
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Logistics Pro
Joined: Jan 2002
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From: suburban atlanta
Listen for the pump activating for about 3-5 seconds when you turn the ignition key to "ON", not start. If the pump does not make its whining noise, there are several things to check. If it does make the noise, then the likely problem is in the ignition system. I had a distributor pickup coil in an Escort that would do the same thing you describe. Go to the store, buy groceries, get in to go home. Watch ice-cream melt. The pickup has a bazillion turns of hair-thin wire, and it would break continuity when it got to a specific temperature. Wait a bit, and it worked. Dickens to find.
Your truck has a different system, but it could be similar. Pull the codes, and the next time it fails to fire, check for spark. Sounds easy, but it's not that hard.
tom
Your truck has a different system, but it could be similar. Pull the codes, and the next time it fails to fire, check for spark. Sounds easy, but it's not that hard.
tom
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Cargo Master
Joined: May 2001
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First you have to determine whether it is fuel or fire. As was stated can you here the pump run when you turn the the key to run if not maybe a fuel pump. If you can here pump then you have to check for fire. How long a trip does it take for this to happen? If you can reproduce it at any time it will be easier to fix. One quck trick to try on the fuel pump is smack the bottom center of the gas tank with a rubber mallet and see if it starts right up. I have seen that work more than once. If it works then the pump is going south.
Logistics Pro
Joined: Jan 2002
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From: suburban atlanta
A *good* mechanic, if you can find one, can do a current draw test on your fuel pump(s) to know if they are on their last legs. As they age, the current draw increases, from what I have heard. When it gets to a certain point, it indicates that the pump is very close and standing on a banana peel...
tom
tom
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