Land Rover Repair: 97 Range Rover not starting, phillips screwdriver, schrader valve

Question
Hi John,
My 97 4.0 RRover recently had a replacement engine put in from the dealer (1 year ago).  A couple weeks ago the car had some problems turning over but eventually started.  Now I can not get the car to start.  There is a series of fast attempts but no success.  It just isn't catching.  I would hate to bring it back to the dealer because I feel like I was taken advantage of last time ($10,000 in repairs).   Any advice is welcome.  Thanks, Andrew

Answer
If you had a new engine put in at the deaer, $10,000 is par for the course.  That alone does not say you were taken advantage of.

If you want to sort this out yourself have someone crank it over while you pull a plug wire, insert a phillips screwdriver, and see if the spark jumps 1/4 inch to ground.

If not, you have an ignition failure.  If it does, check fuel pressure at the schrader valve on the fual rail.

One or both of those things is missing.

Let us know what you find if you try and do it yourself.  Otherwise, it's time top tow it to a workshop with the proper tools to diagnose the problem efficiently.  If you want to find an alternative to the dealer look at the shop list on www.rangerovers.net


Good luck

If you find our advice useful please give us a good rating on the feedback page.

John