TomCat_Ford
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- January 24, 2009
- Messages
- 210
- Reaction score
- 0
- Year, Model & Trim Level
- 98 Explorer
Hey guys,
Last year (around this time), I was having issues with my Explorer. Every once in a while after it sat for a while, it wouldn't start. It would crank over, the fuel pump hummed, etc., but it wouldn't fire. I would have to use starter fluid to get it going; once I did that, it ran perfectly (and started just fine, no matter how many times I shut it off and turned it back on).
The problems mysteriously vanished last year. In October, I started having issues with my battery not holding a charge, I replaced that, and I have not had one issue starting it since then.
Last week after I got home from the holiday weekend, we went out to do our grocery shopping. My Explorer had sat for a week without being ran. It fired right up, we left to the market. It fired right up after we left from there and brought our groceries home. It fired right up when we left to go to another store (all the while, running as it always does). But then, as we went to leave the second store...my same no-start symptoms were back. She's turn over, but wouldn't start (until I used starter fluid).
It happened again this week. Went to the market, came home (left it running), went out to dinner...and it did the same thing.
As I said, I can hear the fuel pump hum when I turn the key to run. Once it's running, it works perfectly normal. I replaced the fuel filter in the fall of 2009. It only takes one short shot of starter fluid to get it going.
Any idea why this is happening? Any idea why it went away and now has returned in a seemingly random fashion? And why is it different this year (last year it did it the first time I started it up, this year it does it the 3rd/4th time I start it within an hour)? I put some fuel injector cleaner in the tank last year, but the problem still occurred after I did that.
Thanks for any and all help!
Last year (around this time), I was having issues with my Explorer. Every once in a while after it sat for a while, it wouldn't start. It would crank over, the fuel pump hummed, etc., but it wouldn't fire. I would have to use starter fluid to get it going; once I did that, it ran perfectly (and started just fine, no matter how many times I shut it off and turned it back on).
The problems mysteriously vanished last year. In October, I started having issues with my battery not holding a charge, I replaced that, and I have not had one issue starting it since then.
Last week after I got home from the holiday weekend, we went out to do our grocery shopping. My Explorer had sat for a week without being ran. It fired right up, we left to the market. It fired right up after we left from there and brought our groceries home. It fired right up when we left to go to another store (all the while, running as it always does). But then, as we went to leave the second store...my same no-start symptoms were back. She's turn over, but wouldn't start (until I used starter fluid).
It happened again this week. Went to the market, came home (left it running), went out to dinner...and it did the same thing.
As I said, I can hear the fuel pump hum when I turn the key to run. Once it's running, it works perfectly normal. I replaced the fuel filter in the fall of 2009. It only takes one short shot of starter fluid to get it going.
Any idea why this is happening? Any idea why it went away and now has returned in a seemingly random fashion? And why is it different this year (last year it did it the first time I started it up, this year it does it the 3rd/4th time I start it within an hour)? I put some fuel injector cleaner in the tank last year, but the problem still occurred after I did that.
Thanks for any and all help!