No Codes, No Start?

[Expl01]

Hi everyone!

I have been reading this forum for a while, and the exchange of information and maintenance tips has been great. But now I have a problem.

“01 XLT 2WD 4.0 SOHC A/T was running fine as usual, parked it at home, then the next AM it would not start. There was No CEL showing, but I ran the scanner anyway and it showed no codes.

Now: The engine cranks strong, near new battery, so battery, starter, relay, etc are all Ok. Pull a spark plug, ground it, crank the engine and I can see solid spark at the plug, ignition must be Ok. Schrader valve check: fuel spurts [but is pressure high enough? Fuel Pump is new]. Check inertia switch: button not up. Still no start: Why not? What is left?

Could the Timing be off, timing chain jumped 2 or 3 teeth? Would that set a code if the Cam/Crank Timing were off? Would it have run rough last night when it was running? There were and are no unusual noises before or now when I crank it.

If something happened when I tried to restart in the morning, would it set a code? Does the engine need to have been running for some length of time in order to set a code?

Jake
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[budwich]

try spraying some starting fluid in the air intake, IF it starts/tries to start.... then you know you have a fuel delivery issue (likely) and go from there.... when you pulled the plug... was it wet???

 

[matt0248]

Is the theft light on the dash blinking when you try to start it? I can't remember if the anti-theft disables the fuel injectors from firing or the starter from cranking. Just a thought.

 

[Expl01]

Thanks for the suggestions & advice, guys.

I had tried starting fluid, but after your suggestion, I wanted to try again. This time I pulled the hose at the MAS in order to give the spray can a better shot. It did not help, but when I began to pull the hose again to put the Air filter box back in, some fuild dripped out of the hose. It was not excess fluid that I had sprayed, but it turned out to be Raw Gas! This is in the hose between the MAS and the Throttle Body. I took off the TB and below is a pic of how it looked inside [Ok, I can't figure out how to insert a pic here]. How does gas get into this area in front of the TB?

It is clearly way rich & apparently flooding enough to stop it from starting, but Why? And this would not set a Code?

In recent months I had noticed that the tailpipe was turning from its previous Lean burn light grey color to a very dark charcoal. I was concerned that it could beginning to burn oil, or it was running rich. At 160K miles it still burns almost no oil, but mileage has dropped and it is now obvious that it has been running way rich.

When I pulled the EGR, it looked dark and sooty, but not wet, and there was not a large build-up of deposits.

As a note to “budwich”, the plug did not look wet when I pulled it.

"matt0248", the theft light blinks as it usually has.

So what causes this? Is it the Fuel Pressure Regulator? If so, where is it & is it tough to change?


Jake
01 XLT 2WD

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[budwich]

I think your pcv "feeds back" that way... major issue with gas there... maybe its a "collection" of starting fluid.

Anyways, you need to back up further.... probably get a compression test to see if the engine is machanically sane. While you do that, you can pull / dry / clean the plugs. Doesn't sound good though. Further IF it was running that rich for a while, you might have caused your cats a problem in the future... :-(

I guess another question is "does your CEL go out during the cranking effort?".

 

[2000StreetRod]

FPR location

You have a returnless fuel system with a constant pressure of around 65 psi at the Schrader valve. The fuel pressure regulator is located in the fuel tank. I suggest that you test the pressure and suspect that your problem is elsewhere. You may have a defective engine coolant temperature sensor making the PCM think that the engine is cold when its warm. Spraying fuel at the MAF sensor is not a good idea. I suggest you clean it with MAF sensor cleaner. The best way to spray starter fluid is thru an open throttle body. Also, make sure your air filter does not have a mouse nest in it blocking air flow.