QuestionThanks for the reply. It has happened a couple more times. I heard the fuel filter kick in when the key is turned on. It is a 2.5L V6 with multiport fuel injection. It appears to have no spark. I am not familiar with injectors, but I pulled one out and shorted a screwdriver to the frame while cranking and got no evidence of spark.
Thanks
Mike
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Followup To
Question -
I have a 97 Sebring convertible with about 75,000 miles on it. I have owned it for about two years. During that time the car would sometimes fail to start. It would turn over, but act like it was not getting gas or spark. It has EFI. These starting problems used to be rare. The odd thing was that after a 15 minute wait it would usually start up.
Now the "no start" thing is getting more regular, and sometimes I have to wait all day to get it started. I recently had it towed to a garage. Of course, it started right up for them as it always has.
In desperation I had the crank sensor replaced because these cars have a history of probems in this area. No joy.
I tried high octane gas plus some Gumout. No help.
I am now a bit desperate. There is no check engine light. Key dance shows code 55. Any ideas?
Thanks
Mike H.
Answer -
Hi Mike,
I am not totally familiar with the Sebring which is a little past my time frame of claimed "expertise". Does that have the 3.0, 3.3, 3.5, or 3.8 V-6 engine? Let me know so I can be more helpful in follow-up with you. When the car won't start is when you have to do the troubleshooting. First thing to do is check for spark. Pull off a spark plug cap and carry on board a phillips head screwdriver with a plastic handle for insulation. Insert the tip into the spark plug cap until it touches the wire that normally contacts the top of the spark plug. Then hold the shaft of the screwdriver 1/4" from the cylinder head using the handle to avoid getting shocked, and have an accomplice crank on the starter to see if you get a good strong spark for 5 seconds of cranking. If you do, then you have to shift you atttention to the fuel supply and begin by listening near the rear of the car for the fuel pump to come on when the ignition switch is first turned from off to run. You should hear the fuel pump for a couple of seconds. If not, then its relay is bad or the pump itself.
If you don't get spark then you need to test for 12V on the incoming low voltage plug for the spark coil to see if you are getting 12V for a full 5 seconds of cranking. If you are, then the coil is not producing spark or the controller is not sending the signal to produce a spark (though that should be accompanied by a fault code related to the crank sensor signal which you already know is not the case). So then you are left with the possibility that the wire from the controller to the - post of the coild plug is flakey and thus not "driving" the spark signal, even though the controller is putting it out. The other possibility, depending on which engine you have is that if you have a distributor (as opposed to a mult-tower spark coil) that the rotor is flakey or the distributor cap is cracked and loosing the spark to ground that way. So those various possibilities depend upon which engine/coil type that you have. So get ready for the next no start and be prepared to do a little bit of basic checking when it happens. Let me know about the engine size and its ignition system components when you follow-up back to me.
Those ideas are some basics. A no start with no codes and yet having fuel is a tough problem. You may have for example a mixture problem due to a faulty MAP sensor that is off-value (not reading the pressure properly) but not so much as to set a code. For that you almost need a diagnostic readout box that can tell you what the sensors are saying about the operating conditions. Similarly, there could be an off-value temp sensor that is giving you an inappropriate mixture. So lets hope its something simple like a spark issue!
Roland
AnswerHi Mike,
While awaiting your response I did get a chance to read the manuals and come to understand the 2.5L engine better. It is a somewhat more difficult to sevice the engine controller/spark coil/distributor unit than with earlier small Chrysler engines, and some of the testing necessary to isolate the cause of the no spark is going to require a voltmeter as I described, and to the extent that you want to nail everythig down it will take a commitment to try the various tests and take apart various connectors, etc. It is probably easier for me to send you copies of some of the pages from the manuals than to try and type in a description of what to do. If you haven't done engine tune-up/trouble shooting on a modern engine it may prove a challenge to you. But let me know where things stand and what your level of interest/competence is in trying this task. If it still is intermittant rather than solidly "no start" I think you may have to wait till it fails totally so that the true source of the problem will be revealed more easily.
Roland
Hi Mike,
Thanks for the clarification as to the engine that is in question. I assume too that you meant spark plug connector caps, not 'injectors' (which is the term for fuel supply not spark supply), when you tested for spark. I have the '96 and the '98 manuals for troubleshooting the 2.5L engine, but because I haven't studied them thorougly yet I will need a little time. Where do things stand now? Is the car unstartable and if so what alternative do you have for getting around (i.e. do we have any time to spend on this or is it urgent?) Do you have an analog voltmeter (the kind with a meter movement (pointer) as opposed to a digital readout type? Did you recheck for trouble codes and found none? Let me know the answers so I can plan to give it the time necessary to be helpful to you.
Roland
