My 1996 Isuzu Rodeo is getting old and things are starting to go wrong. I bought it new and it has served me well all these years. I live near the coast for the past 4 years, and it would appear the salt air is taking a toll on it with rust issues underneath. A few months ago it decided to not start. Over the past 2 months, I’ve replace the battery, the fuel pump (twice - the first one they put in it was defective), the fuel relay assembly. My mechanic also lubed the throttle cable because it was a bit stuck. After each repair, it starts fine and runs fine but a few days later, doesn’t start again. The car has 124,000 miles on it, so there is still a lot of life in it. I’ve also recently replaced the valve gaskets, belts and radiator hoses, as well as a leaky brake line. What else could be wrong that’s causing the car not to start? It turns over, but doesn’t ignite. Is it time to give up on it? I keep thinking the next fix will be the one to give me back my up until now reliable car, but it’s becoming a money pit. Any ideas from this great community? Thanks!
From your post, it’s not clear exactly what is going on and what has been going on.
Do you keep ending up in a position where it won’t start, and then your mechanic does something, and its starts for a while but then goes back to not starting again? And are you back there now where it just won’t start at all ever?
Or has it been mostly not able to start over the past 2-3 months?
Or did you have it not starting a few months ago and then it got fixed for a while and it’s now not starting again?
Or are you dealing with an intermittent thing - like sometimes it starts and sometimes it doesn’t?
Part of the problem is that you say “after each repair…” - well, most of the things you mention have nothing to do with whether or not the car will start. The only one I see is the fuel pump. Perhaps you could give some more chronology in the description.
I don’t know the Rodeo in any detail. Does it have a “chip key” where the key has to talk to the car’s security system? If so, then it has a security light - what is the light doing?
Aside from that a typical way to check out a car that will crank but not start is to find out if it gets spark and fuel. Spark testers can be gotten for not much $$ at any auto parts store. You can also get some starting fluid and if a shot of starting fluid gets it to fire some then you know its got a fuel delivery problem.
Has fuel pressure been checked after the fuel pump replacement?