Biceps

Hi guys,

I have an X-Charged '08 with about 24,000 miles on it. Recently, when I go to start her up in the morning (cold start), the crank turns over a few more times than usual...almost to the point that it might not start.

Yesterday, my car barely started and when it did, the idle was very rough and shaky. My wife said she saw a lot of exhaust come out of the tail pipes when it finally started (not sure if this is related). And at some point during the cranking, there was a loud squeal or screech prior to starting up.

BUT....I don't have this problem when the engine is warm. If I drive for 10 minutes, turn off the car, then come back out and start her up EVEN AFTER 2 hours, she fires right up. No problem at all.

The weird thing is, I use to have somewhat of the opposite problem. My car would fire up great from a cold start. But if I drove it, turned her off, and then turned her back on, the idling would be a little shaky.

Any ideas on what might be wrong, guys?

I work from home, so I don't drive my car too often. A few times each week for a few miles each time.

I put the battery on a battery charger and the green light indicated she was well charged. So I don't think it's the battery. Although I've heard that leaving the car sit for extended periods of time can drain the battery.

A bad spark plug or fuel injector, perhaps?

Thanks in advance for any help.

JimC

Check the pulleys on the idler plate and the belt for the screech. The plastic pulleys will fail over time a lot of us X-men found. The only time I had a sound like that was a pulley hitting the idler plate or the belt stretched out. Do you have 24,000 miles on this belt? I found I had to replace mine every year (and drove about 30,000 miles a year).

Mine for some reason was always a slow start and I drove every day.

Biceps

Hi JimC,

Thank you for your time and the info. What am I looking for on the pullies and how will I know if they've failed? A crack? And how will I know if the belt is stretched out?

I have about 6,000 miles on the X-Charger.

When I first installed the X-Charger, the engine fired up crazy fast. I barely had to turn the key. Now, the crank turns and turns way more than normal during a cold start. When the engine is warm, it fires up no problem.

If the pulley is stretched out, would I be getting residue like you see here in this photo?

Thanks for your help. I appreciate it.

http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/864/img0565n.jpg/

JimC

Looks like belt dust, is it around the two idler pulleys down below as well?

Seeing the dust in that picture it looks like a stretched belt. Quite early with only 6,000 miles on it but could be. Try starting the car and mist some water on the belt and see if things get quiet. Get a picture of the two pulleys and the idler plate as well.

Most of the Xcharger guys are on mustangcollective.com and you will get a lot of answers there. Not as many of us on mustangforums.com.

Biceps

Just checked, and oh yeah, the dust is all around the two idler pulleys as well. Take a look at these pics I just snapped. I take it I need a new belt already?

http://img706.imageshack.us/img706/1478/mmspictures.jpg

http://img341.imageshack.us/img341

http://img803.imageshack.us/img803/8...spicture2h.jpg

http://img651.imageshack.us/img651




I'll start the car up tomorrow and mist some water on the belt. I'll let you know how it goes. I'll also check out mustangcollective, too, and post over there.

Thanks again for your time

JimC

That's a lot of belt dusting. The pulleys don't look like they are bad though. Check to see if that belt is rubbing somewhere too. Make sure you have clearance around every bolt head and that it isn't touching something on the side toward the engine.

I'm JimC over at the Collective too.

GrayPony

Check your plug gap... too wide will give you a rough start cold. Are you running the stock coil?
The dust looks like the belt is slipping, it might be time for a new belt and/or pulleys. I had slippage with the composite pulleys so I went with the Steeda billet... problem solved.

Biceps

I cleaned up the belt dusting and she fired up much better today. I checked the belt - it's not rubbing anywhere that I can see.

The belt dust is really concentrated below the Supercharger pulley, and especially around that right idler pulley (looking at the engine from the front of the car). There is barely any belt dusting built up around the left idler pulley, though, and the other pulleys.

Biceps

That engine of yours is looking HOT! Thanks for stopping in to help

Check the spark plug gap?

Yes, I am running the stock coil.

You know, I have long suspected that something is up with the belt. Sometimes, when I accelerate, I'll hear the supercharger whining a couple seconds before I actually FEEL it pulling/engaging.

How did you know you had slippage with the composite pulleys and where did you buy your Steeda Billet Pulley's?

Thanks for your help!

JimC

At the Collective there is a thread regarding the aftermarket pulley set ups and what people have been running. One upgrade will be to go to a bigger idler pulley so you get better belt wrap to avoid slippage. That means you need a different belt from the standard Xcharger set up. In the thread it lists what pulleys have been used, sizes and brands, and what belts were needed.