Title says it. I live in the valley, it easily gets to 90deg around here even at night it wont drop below 60 and has been usually around 69 or 70deg lowest, but for some reason almost like clockwork between the hours of midnight and 1pm my car will crank and turn over and over and over but will not fire up and start. Sometimes it will and i will have to hold the pedal down until it surges enough and the idle levels out then it is able to stay on by itself. But if i dont catch the sputter and push the pedal it will immediately die and continue to crank. Also when im cranking with my foot on the pedal i must keep the key turned on until i feel like the sputtering has shortened enough.
Things i have tried, Replaced Fuel filter, cleaned IAC valve, chilled the battery to test CCA and replaced spark plugs
Car runs fine in heat starts up with no issue immediatly, but when it is a tad less than blistering heat it wont.
Im at a loss and dont want to spend another $500 or more at a mechanic this last year i have had to replace the power steering pump and the water pump already at about $400 each. I have so many ideas of what it could be but it is hard because it seems my issue is soo unique, its not like im facing freezing or even “cold” tempetures in most places its still tropical lol I feel its more a thing of my car wont start unless it is very hot. Also if i go out and start my car every hr or less during the night and leave it on for 15 min it seems to start but if i forget for even 2 hrs between those times i mentioned above it wont start again. Any ideas anyone? Thank you for your time.
BTW it is a 1995 Continental
The next time you know this problem is going to occur, turn the ignition switch on so the dash lights come on for two seconds and then turn the ignition switch off.
Repeat this a half dozen times and then try starting the engine.
If the engine fires right up, there’s a problem with the anti drain-back valve on the fuel pump assembly.
I have actually tried that and it does not seem to do anything. But it might be coincidence but last night i messed with some egr vacuum lines but i had the key in the ac on acc the whole time (i forgot) but it was prob about 10 to 15 min, then the car wanted to start, but i tried again a few hours later and it didnt work
There are four primary inputs the computer must see when the engine is cold in order for the engine to start.
These are, a crankshaft position sensor signal of some sort, the coolant temp sensor signal, a throttle position sensor signal, and MAF/MAP sensor signal.
Ok ill try testing all those others. I know the Coolant Temp Sensor is maybe a week old so that cant be it lol it was one of the first things i tried. Ill look into testing those. Just curious if you may know why those would be fine in heat but not cold and again when i say cold it is all relative because it can be 85deg outside and it still wont start but it will in about an hr or two after what i assume is the time it takes for the engine to soak in some of that heat.
Oh and something else i noticed and am not sure if it is a problem or something im just paying attentin too now but when i turn the acc on i hear a high pitch whine almost like electronic coil whine coming from around the rear 4 spark plugs/ near the fire wall. I can not tell exactly where but i do have a good idea and can take a picture of point out where i hear it the most.
i googled just now more about the Throttle Position sensor and i think that could be more it. Yesterday when i cleaned the IAC i was messing with that some and noticed it seemed loose where the tension cables are against it. And that could explain last night how it wanted to start slightly easier if i pushed around the right thing (if that is even how it works) I think that will be my focus for now as i feel the MAF is highly unlikely due to it performing so well in heat. I really hope it isnt the CPS because that could mean it isnt just the sensor but a worn CrankShaft…
Well thank you very much ill reupdate everyone after i replace those parts, i plan on doing that this coming friday ill probably just do both the CPS and TPS
very doubtful there is only one i could see( i just got under to see if i could tighten it and i could but not much more than it may be worth when i have to remove it next time lol) But it looked fine dunno what it was probably a sensor of some sort but all looks good from under in that area.
If it wouldn’t start when hot, then I’d guess the crank position sensor as the number one suspect. But it starts ok hot, and not on the first startof the day after sitting overnight? It cranks ok, but won’t catch and run? Ok, another guess, since it seems to help holding the accel pedal down when this happens, that could be the engine is a little flooded. You could have a leaking fuel injector, and when you park it at the end of the day, the fuel rail leaks through that injector into the intake manifold, and floods the engine for the next start. A fuel pressure leak down test would confirm/deny that idea.
If it had a carburator with an automatic choke that could be the problem but I imagine the car would have fuel injection. Also, the input manifold runner control might cause the problem. Sounds like a real enigma. Good luck. BTW the intro says a Bentley Continental but I presume it is a Lincoln Continental but there weren’t any that year, Is it a Mark VI?