No restart after stalling when its cold

[stx4.0]

I've had 2 explorers now that do the same weird thing.On a cold morning you will get in and start it up and then when you go to take off if you stall it like I did this morning because of the heavy snow built up around it it will absolutely refuse to fire back up..really aggravating to say the least.Now if you let it sit for an hour or two it will fire back up no problem.This obviously has something to do with the choke but neither of my explorers have ever threw a code on this so I assume all else is good I just don't understand why it won't fire back up.Now a guy at ford garage told me last year it is because of the "batch fire" system and said it can be an annoying issue on explorers with a clutch?Does anyone know if there is another cause of this problem that can be fixed or at least made better?I should add all the ignition parts on this is fairly new.It has an accel coil pack which probably isn't any better than the original but also has new wires,plugs etc and compression is excellent so all else shouldn't be an issue.Its hard for me to believe a computer controlled vehicle would have issues with the choke if all else is in good shape.

 

[2stroke]

First of all, maybe it was a type-o, but no explorer was built with a carb/choke. To my understanding, not even throttle body fuel injection used chokes, and the explorer has a direct fuel injected engine. That said, it is still possible to flood the engine. If you start it, and stall it right away, it is very possible. Have you tried throttle wide open when starting it after a stall? The easiest fix is to simply warm up your engine before driving it, which you should do anyway. Even a minute or two in cold weather lets the piston/cylinder expand, and oil to flow. Just drive more aware, these are not easy to stall. I actually find the 4.0/5 speed combo is one of the easiest trucks to drive.

 

[stx4.0]

I never said it had a carb but the computer does run the engine in a choke mode in cold weather startup.I know thats not the proper terminology for it but you get the idea and I agree with you 100% they are very easy to drive and with 3.73 gears they are very hard to stall,this is the first time in a long time i have done that but I had a little help in the form of ice and snow being caked behind it.Still it should not refuse to start if im not on my toes and kill it.I was told it was because of the "batch fire" but that doesn't make sense to me but also I dont have any other ideas what causes this when everything else is in perfect working order and like I said both of the 93 sports I have had did this.As long as you dont kill it when its very cold your in great shape and won't have any issues with startup once its warm.

 

[2stroke]

Thats just how it is, you flooded the engine. Let it warm up more before you drive it. If it does happen again, hold the throttle wide open while you turn it over.

 

[stx4.0]

I didn't flood it..the computer did.It's virtually impossible as far as I know to flood a computer controlled engine as its whats in control of how much fuel is fed to the engine.Not like the old carbureted setup where you can get in and pump as much gas as want with your foot.Also,I never have gotten a rich odor of fuel like it was flooded.I can assume thats some of it but like I also said the guy at the ford garage blamed it on the batch fire.Maybe it is and maybe it isnt.I haven't found anything yet on that subject to back it up.It does make some sense as both of the ones I have had did it.Also I have tried to hold my foot down while cranking it and that didnt do anything unfortunately.

 

[natenkiki2004]

Since opening the throttle didn't do anything, try priming the pump a couple times (key on, key off, key on, key off, key on, start). See if it runs better that way. If so then it's a fuel issue, whether it's a pump going bad or clogged fuel filter or leaking one-way valve or...

You might try cleaning the MAF sensor and looking for vacuum leaks.

 

[FR-425]

Thats just how it is, you flooded the engine. Let it warm up more before you drive it. If it does happen again, hold the throttle wide open while you turn it over.

X2

If you accidentally kill the engine while it is still in cold start mode it will be flooded. No way around this.


However it is also possible that the PCM engine temp sensor is bad causing it to stay in cold start too long, and can also cause it to dump too much fuel in on the initial start making the flooding situation more severe.

 

[stx4.0]

That makes sense.All the sensors are working properly so they shouldn't be making it any worse.

 

[Gadget X]

Also, iirc, they did away with the batch fire system on the 94. I think 93 was the last year for it.

 

[stx4.0]

Both of mine have been 93s but still not sure that plays any part in it.

 

[2stroke]

The fact is you can flood any gas engine. I've never tried it, but if I had to, I would pull the fuel pump relay, and turn it over at full throttle. I would try maybe 15 seconds or until it fires. Then just put the relay back in and fire it up. Can anyone confirm if this would work?