"A. S." <adakota4x4@hotmail.com> wrote:
: Need some advice on what to check. These are the symtoms. My truck is
: getting harder and harder to start after it has been sitting for 4-5+ hours.
: It used to start instantly. Then it went to two cranks. This morning it
: took about 8 trys before it started. When it finally started, it stumbled
: and coughed a couple seconds before smoothing out. Then it ran perfectly
: for a 45 minute drive.
: I can hear the fuel pump whine when I turn the key to the correct
: position. I've done the trick of letting it pump up 2 or 3 times before
: actually cranking but it still takes 2 or 3 cranks before it fires up.
: The gas guage has been going crazy for about 60,000 miles now. I assumed
: I would have fuel pump problems by now, but I can still hear it pump up. It
: has never stalled....only hard starting problems, and I've never run it out
: of gas.
: And this is the best/worst part of the whole thing....when I go to start
: it tomorrow morning, it might fire up instantly. There's not much of a
: pattern.
: Any ideas on what to check? Anything at all would be great. I'm going to
: go through some things over the holiday weekend and try to fix the problem.
: Right now I plan to replace the spark plugs, remove and clean the t-body and
: sensors, and check the Gen-II wire splice problem. I'll replace the fuel
: pump if all else fails.
: Any advice is welcome.
: Thanks!
I'm guessing that when the engine is warm, it will start up right
away - it only does this when it has been sitting for a while?
I would definitely pull the plugs and take a look at them; being
a 95, if you don't know when they have been changed last, it is probably
due for a fresh set anyway.
I would also recommend checking it for spark when you first crank it
over (after it has set for a while); you will need to leave the
wires hooked up though in order to determine if there is spark while
it is struggling to start, so you will need to use an inductive pickup
or an inline spark plug wire tester on the coil wire. That should
tell you wether the problem has anything to do with the ignition
system. (If it isn't ignition, it is probably fuel, and if it isn't
fuel then computer related [sensors, etc.])
Although it doesn't seem likely to be the injectors, I suppose it is
a possibility; I'd probably hold off on checking this until you get closer
to the bottom of the barrel though.
If you have access to a fuel pressure gauge, you may want to screw
it onto the fuel test port just to verify for certain that you are
getting proper fuel pressure at startup. (Sounds like this is probably
not the problem, since you have tried the "pump up" trick already,
but it is still a possibility.) (But definitely check the fuel pressure
before buying a new fuel pump - a $20-50 fuel pressure tester is a lot
cheaper than a fuel pump, plus you can usually use it to check for
vacuum too.)
After checking that stuff, I would probably look into some of the
throttle body sensors.
My first inclination though would be to suspect the spark plugs. I
would recommend changing them out and seeing if that does the trick.
If that fixes the problem and the old plugs look pretty nasty then
you can be fairly certain you have it licked. When you change the plugs,
inspect the plug wires as well, for cracking, burns, melting, etc.
Good luck!
---Jon-
.---- Jon Steiger ------ jon@dakota-truck.net or jon@jonsteiger.com ------. | I'm the: AOPA, DoD, EAA, NMA, NRA, SPA, USUA. Rec & UL Pilot - SEL | | 70 Cuda, 90 Dak 'vert, 92 Ram 4x4, 96 Dak, 96 Intruder 1400, 96 FireFly | `------------------------------------------ http://www.jonsteiger.com ----'
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