Alternator problem?

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Well the car started right up with no problems… So it’s a mystery to me what happened yesterday

I think I know what you was saying about the car not cranking but sometimes people state that their car wouldn’t crank when in fact it did crank over but wouldn’t start . Did your engine crank over & not start or would nothing at all happen when you turned the key ?

@Sloepoke well when I turned the key over to start her I heard the engine trying to start… But I don’t think the battery was giving off power… Or something related to the battery. But now she starts right up so I don’t know

It wouldn’t start but it was cranking over

Thanks , That’s not what I was thinking by your post . If a vehicle cranks over reasonably well { not real slowly } that usually moves battery & alternator problems farther to the rear & brings fuel & ignition problems toward the front . If the engine cranks over ok , the battery has power & the battery cable connections should be ok .
Occasionally a vehicle will have a hiccup then be ok & the problem may rear its ugly head again . It’s hard to diagnose & repair a vehicle that seems to be working properly . I don’t really remember what all has been said in this thread but the problem may have set a code . You should probably get it checked to see if it did set a code .
There are people on here that are a lot more knowledgeable than I am & perhaps they will chime in .

If the starter motor is cranking the engine over then the battery is certainly “giving off power”. Your original post does not indicate the starter was working when you described the trouble you were having at the time. If the engine cranks but doesn’t start up then there are a number of possible issues that can cause the issue. The two biggest areas to check are the ignition and fuel delivery systems. Spraying a small amount of starter fluid into the intake and then see if the engine starts can tell you which area to check for the trouble.

I don’t think the battery was giving off power ??

My interpretation of this is that the starter was cranking slowly. Is that correct?

Sorry guys I don’t want to confuse you anymore just trying my best to describe what happened… I mentioned the battery because when I turn the ignition to the “ON” position I hear the fuel pump turn on so I ruled that out. But the little needle gage for the battery didn’t move to the middle like it usually does when I switch the ignition to the “ON” position if that makes sense?.. And the engine was cranking over… Slowly I would say is correct

What we really need are the exact symptoms of what occured on your No Start. Did you get the dash lights? When you turned the key to the start position…did you hear a click? Or did the engine TRY to start by turning the engine over properly albeit more slowly than normal.

Your response dictates the troubleshooting route considerably

Blackbird

“When you turned the key to the start position…did you hear a click? Or did the engine TRY to start by turning the engine over properly albeit more slowly than normal.” I didn’t hear a clicking noise at all nor did I get any check engine light coming on… Everything worked same as any other time I start the car… except for the engine wouldn’t turn over fully to run… Does that make sense?.. But I’ve started it 5 times since yesterday morning and it’s started up right away with no problems… Oh and I cleaned the battery posts as well

Cleaning the battery connections may have solved your problem from returning. You stated that the voltmeter and CEL light didn’t work when the trouble happened. This could mean the ACC contacts of the ignition switch had a problem at that time.

Here’s the nomenclature mechanics use for starting problems

“crank” means when you turn the key to “start”, you hear that rrr rrr rrr sound. It may or may not catch and run, but if you hear than rrr rrr rrr sound, that’s the starter motor, so the engine is cranking.

“engine starts” or “engine catches and runs”, means when you turn the key to “start” it cranks , you hear that rrr rrr rrr sound, and then shortly thereafter you hear the engine is running, so you can return the key to “on”, and the engine continues to run.


So you have a problem w/ the second one it appears. It cranks, but doesn’t catch and run. The most common reason for that is the fuel pressure isn’t holding like it should. The car designers design the engine so that the fuel pressure in the fuel rail – that’s where the fuel injectors get their gasoline to inject into the engine – the fuel pressure should hold steady after you turn the engine off. That’s so there will be plenty of gas ready to go at the next start, making it easy to start the engine. There’s two common faults why the fuel pressure doesn’t hold like it should. First, the gasoline is leaking from the fuel rail back into the fuel tank due to a faulty fuel pump check valve. Second, the gasoline from the fuel rail is leaking into the intake manifold through a leaky injector. Mechanics would hook up a fuel pressure gauge to the fuel rail to test for these conditions. If the fuel pressure drops after the engine is turned off, they know where to look next.

As long as you are meaning that by Turn over…the engine was in fact turning over…but it did not start.

On the 4.6L V8 when you turn the key to the on or run position…you will always hear the fuel pump prime for 2-3 seconds… Its quite audible if you pay attention. If you do not hear this hiss or noise of the fuel pump prime they usually will not start…or will take a long time to start and take a lot of engine and starter turning to acheive a running engine.

In this instance I would check your fuel pump relay or relays. Usually there are identical relays in the fuse box with which you can swap… Swap it…pay attention to where you put the original…or better yet mark it… Then test again. The “New” relay may be healthier than the original FPR and work better. See what happens…EZ Peasy

Blackbird

“turn over fully to run”, sorry, this makes no sense.

Here is the sequence. Let us know where it deviates.
insert key
Turn key to first click, ignition on.
Panel lights should come on, showing all sorts of warning light.
turn key to second click, start position
you should hear the starter run, a whir-whir sound.
if not, do you hear a click?
After a second or so, the engine should start to run.
you release the key.

but you seem OK now

"“crank” means when you turn the key to “start”, you hear that rrr rrr rrr sound. It may or may not catch and run, but if you hear than rrr rrr rrr sound, that’s the starter motor, so the engine is cranking. " This sounds about right as to what was going on yesterday @GeorgeSanJose.

@“Honda Blackbird” I can hear the fuel pump come on just fine :smiley: it was replaced recently actually about 2 years ago I believe.

“After a second or so, the engine should start to run.
you release the key” yeah see it would make the whirr - whirr sound but the engine wouldn’t catch and stay on after I released the key back to the “ON” position. Didn’t Hear any “click” sound @BillRussell

But like I said I haven’t run into the issue since so I’m not sure if I should take it in until it starts acting up again… If it does

Intermittent crank/no start problems are common; weeks can go by before they repeat. Usually, they become more frequent. The next time, try putting the shift lever into neutral, as suggested above.

If this symptom occurs more often when the car has been sitting idle for several days, that’s consistent with a fuel pressure problem.

Well I guess I’ll just keep an eye on it and see if it happens again