Mustang 2001 difficulty start engine :(
02-27-2018, 06:22 PM
#1
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2018
Location: santiago
Posts: 8
Mustang 2001 difficulty start engine :(
Hello, I have a Ford Mustang 2001 V6 3.8L, the problem is that it costs a lot to start the engine, it has spark plug wires, spark plugs, ignition coil and fuel pump, all new. the strangest thing is that when I try to start the engine, after a while it begins to emit a strong smell of fuel, which tells me that the fuel pump is working well, all the fuses are ok, when I can start the engine, the vehicle behaves excellent, any ideas? Why is it so difficult to start the engine? What other components may be defective?
02-28-2018, 05:00 AM
#2
2nd Gear Member
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: The Netherlands
Posts: 215
If you can smell fuel in the compartment, that indicates a leak somewhere. The only time I smelled that was when one of the plugs in my car had decided to come loose. So that's definitly not normal.
Also take note of the fuel economy, does it seem like the car is using more fuel than needed? Have you spotted leaks (or fuel remaining on the street after the car has been parked for a while)?
If you say it's hard to start the engine (costs a lot?) what do you mean? You have to start it, and keep the key going for 5 or 10 seconds before the engine comes alive? Of do you need to start the engine muliple times in order to get it to stick?
Also take note of the fuel economy, does it seem like the car is using more fuel than needed? Have you spotted leaks (or fuel remaining on the street after the car has been parked for a while)?
If you say it's hard to start the engine (costs a lot?) what do you mean? You have to start it, and keep the key going for 5 or 10 seconds before the engine comes alive? Of do you need to start the engine muliple times in order to get it to stick?
02-28-2018, 01:04 PM
#3
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2018
Location: santiago
Posts: 8
I have to give many times start, for the engine to turn on (it costs a lot) when I manage to teach it, it works great, the fuel consumption is quite good, when I try to start the engine many times, it starts to smell like fuel (it gives me the imprecion that the engine is drowned with fuel) when this happens, the only way to start the engine is '' cutting the passage of fuel '', to achieve this I have to go to the trunk of the car, and hit the impact button that is behind the rear light on the driver's side, once the fuel passage has been cut off, I can start the engine, once it turns on, I have to quickly go to press the red button of the sensor that is in the trunk , sorry for my inglesh is bad
02-28-2018, 07:01 PM
#4
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2018
Location: santiago
Posts: 8
If you can smell fuel in the compartment, that indicates a leak somewhere. The only time I smelled that was when one of the plugs in my car had decided to come loose. So that's definitly not normal.
Also take note of the fuel economy, does it seem like the car is using more fuel than needed? Have you spotted leaks (or fuel remaining on the street after the car has been parked for a while)?
If you say it's hard to start the engine (costs a lot?) what do you mean? You have to start it, and keep the key going for 5 or 10 seconds before the engine comes alive? Of do you need to start the engine muliple times in order to get it to stick?
Also take note of the fuel economy, does it seem like the car is using more fuel than needed? Have you spotted leaks (or fuel remaining on the street after the car has been parked for a while)?
If you say it's hard to start the engine (costs a lot?) what do you mean? You have to start it, and keep the key going for 5 or 10 seconds before the engine comes alive? Of do you need to start the engine muliple times in order to get it to stick?
I have to give many times start, for the engine to turn on (it costs a lot) when I manage to teach it, it works great, the fuel consumption is quite good, when I try to start the engine many times, it starts to smell like fuel (it gives me the imprecion that the engine is drowned with fuel) when this happens, the only way to start the engine is '' cutting the passage of fuel '', to achieve this I have to go to the trunk of the car, and hit the impact button that is behind the rear light on the driver's side, once the fuel passage has been cut off, I can start the engine, once it turns on, I have to quickly go to press the red button of the sensor that is in the trunk , sorry for my inglesh is bad
03-01-2018, 01:45 AM
#5
2nd Gear Member
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: The Netherlands
Posts: 215
That button in the rear does nothing but cut off the power to the fuelpump.
Meant to cut off the fuel in case of a rear-collision. Normally that one is depressed, allowing the fuelpump to pump. If you need to push the button to start the car, it sounds as if it cut off the fuelpump beforehand, resulting in no fuel to the engine.
I'm not quite sure what else (besides a collision) could cause this. I've heard of switches that disconnect if the power on them is too low (which might be if your battery was bad), but I doubt that's the case here. I've switched batteries on my car without the need of getting to that switch.
In any case you can test this, by just turning the key, but not starting the car. You should hear the fuelpump do something. If it doesn't the switch may be the culprit. If it does run, I doubt anything you've done with the switch would be of influence on starting the car.
But from the sounds of things, I'd say the flow of fuel is your problem. That switch in the trunk controls the fuelpump, and you smell a strong fuel-smell after a while of starting. Now where that problem is exactly I can't really say.
Might be the pump, might be bad gas, or the fuelfilter being clogged, could be the injectors. Does the car throw any codes that may indicate a problem?
Meant to cut off the fuel in case of a rear-collision. Normally that one is depressed, allowing the fuelpump to pump. If you need to push the button to start the car, it sounds as if it cut off the fuelpump beforehand, resulting in no fuel to the engine.
I'm not quite sure what else (besides a collision) could cause this. I've heard of switches that disconnect if the power on them is too low (which might be if your battery was bad), but I doubt that's the case here. I've switched batteries on my car without the need of getting to that switch.
In any case you can test this, by just turning the key, but not starting the car. You should hear the fuelpump do something. If it doesn't the switch may be the culprit. If it does run, I doubt anything you've done with the switch would be of influence on starting the car.
But from the sounds of things, I'd say the flow of fuel is your problem. That switch in the trunk controls the fuelpump, and you smell a strong fuel-smell after a while of starting. Now where that problem is exactly I can't really say.
Might be the pump, might be bad gas, or the fuelfilter being clogged, could be the injectors. Does the car throw any codes that may indicate a problem?
03-01-2018, 12:45 PM
#7
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2018
Location: santiago
Posts: 8
That button in the rear does nothing but cut off the power to the fuelpump.
Meant to cut off the fuel in case of a rear-collision. Normally that one is depressed, allowing the fuelpump to pump. If you need to push the button to start the car, it sounds as if it cut off the fuelpump beforehand, resulting in no fuel to the engine.
I'm not quite sure what else (besides a collision) could cause this. I've heard of switches that disconnect if the power on them is too low (which might be if your battery was bad), but I doubt that's the case here. I've switched batteries on my car without the need of getting to that switch.
In any case you can test this, by just turning the key, but not starting the car. You should hear the fuelpump do something. If it doesn't the switch may be the culprit. If it does run, I doubt anything you've done with the switch would be of influence on starting the car.
But from the sounds of things, I'd say the flow of fuel is your problem. That switch in the trunk controls the fuelpump, and you smell a strong fuel-smell after a while of starting. Now where that problem is exactly I can't really say.
Might be the pump, might be bad gas, or the fuelfilter being clogged, could be the injectors. Does the car throw any codes that may indicate a problem?
Meant to cut off the fuel in case of a rear-collision. Normally that one is depressed, allowing the fuelpump to pump. If you need to push the button to start the car, it sounds as if it cut off the fuelpump beforehand, resulting in no fuel to the engine.
I'm not quite sure what else (besides a collision) could cause this. I've heard of switches that disconnect if the power on them is too low (which might be if your battery was bad), but I doubt that's the case here. I've switched batteries on my car without the need of getting to that switch.
In any case you can test this, by just turning the key, but not starting the car. You should hear the fuelpump do something. If it doesn't the switch may be the culprit. If it does run, I doubt anything you've done with the switch would be of influence on starting the car.
But from the sounds of things, I'd say the flow of fuel is your problem. That switch in the trunk controls the fuelpump, and you smell a strong fuel-smell after a while of starting. Now where that problem is exactly I can't really say.
Might be the pump, might be bad gas, or the fuelfilter being clogged, could be the injectors. Does the car throw any codes that may indicate a problem?
the fuel pump is new, send the injectors to check a specialized workshop and they are ok, in the pressure rail, it has a valve that when pressed, expels fuel, right? when pressing this valve the rail ejects fuel in abundance, could it be a problem of excessive pressure? Another very important fact that I forgot to mention is that the car is M / T and the ECU failed, and I could only get an ECU A / T, could this be ECU's problem? I also read that there could be a problem with the FPDM, which is the FPDM specifically?
03-01-2018, 01:47 PM
#8
2nd Gear Member
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: The Netherlands
Posts: 215
Basically the ECU monitors and controls the engine. It sets the rate of fuelflow and amount of fuel to inject among a heap of other things. Changing out the ECU could definitly have an effect on engine performance. There is definitly a reason for the A/T (Automatic transmission) and M/T (manual transmission) to exist, so there is a definite difference between the ECU's.
Not sure what that difference is (besides the additional checks it does for the automatic being in park or neutral before starting, or the clutch to be depressed on a manual), all I can do is search on the web, and conjecture from standard things. Not like I'm a car mechanic, or really know my way around an engine. There's bound to be people on the forum that have that kind of knowledge tho, so hoping they'll chime in.
Some potential reading in the mean time:
http://forums.corral.net/forums/eec-...al-tranny.html
https://mustangboards.com/modular-4-...-question.html
https://www.stangnet.com/mustang-for...o-auto.814901/
Basically the verdict there is that the ECU's are interchangable, IF they have been flashed and reprogrammed properly. And probably getting that information is going to be hard to impossible. Tho if it is wrongly programmed it'd probably toss a code, and I gather yours doesn't, so that does hint at a correction being done to the unit.
As to the FPDM - https://www.autozone.com/engine-mana...e/ford/mustang - See https://itstillruns.com/purpose-fuel...-12179655.html for an explanation of what it does.
Not sure what that difference is (besides the additional checks it does for the automatic being in park or neutral before starting, or the clutch to be depressed on a manual), all I can do is search on the web, and conjecture from standard things. Not like I'm a car mechanic, or really know my way around an engine. There's bound to be people on the forum that have that kind of knowledge tho, so hoping they'll chime in.
Some potential reading in the mean time:
http://forums.corral.net/forums/eec-...al-tranny.html
https://mustangboards.com/modular-4-...-question.html
https://www.stangnet.com/mustang-for...o-auto.814901/
Basically the verdict there is that the ECU's are interchangable, IF they have been flashed and reprogrammed properly. And probably getting that information is going to be hard to impossible. Tho if it is wrongly programmed it'd probably toss a code, and I gather yours doesn't, so that does hint at a correction being done to the unit.
As to the FPDM - https://www.autozone.com/engine-mana...e/ford/mustang - See https://itstillruns.com/purpose-fuel...-12179655.html for an explanation of what it does.
03-01-2018, 04:46 PM
#9
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2018
Location: santiago
Posts: 8
Basically the ECU monitors and controls the engine. It sets the rate of fuelflow and amount of fuel to inject among a heap of other things. Changing out the ECU could definitly have an effect on engine performance. There is definitly a reason for the A/T (Automatic transmission) and M/T (manual transmission) to exist, so there is a definite difference between the ECU's.
Not sure what that difference is (besides the additional checks it does for the automatic being in park or neutral before starting, or the clutch to be depressed on a manual), all I can do is search on the web, and conjecture from standard things. Not like I'm a car mechanic, or really know my way around an engine. There's bound to be people on the forum that have that kind of knowledge tho, so hoping they'll chime in.
Some potential reading in the mean time:
http://forums.corral.net/forums/eec-...al-tranny.html
https://mustangboards.com/modular-4-...-question.html
https://www.stangnet.com/mustang-for...o-auto.814901/
Basically the verdict there is that the ECU's are interchangable, IF they have been flashed and reprogrammed properly. And probably getting that information is going to be hard to impossible. Tho if it is wrongly programmed it'd probably toss a code, and I gather yours doesn't, so that does hint at a correction being done to the unit.
As to the FPDM - https://www.autozone.com/engine-mana...e/ford/mustang - See https://itstillruns.com/purpose-fuel...-12179655.html for an explanation of what it does.
Not sure what that difference is (besides the additional checks it does for the automatic being in park or neutral before starting, or the clutch to be depressed on a manual), all I can do is search on the web, and conjecture from standard things. Not like I'm a car mechanic, or really know my way around an engine. There's bound to be people on the forum that have that kind of knowledge tho, so hoping they'll chime in.
Some potential reading in the mean time:
http://forums.corral.net/forums/eec-...al-tranny.html
https://mustangboards.com/modular-4-...-question.html
https://www.stangnet.com/mustang-for...o-auto.814901/
Basically the verdict there is that the ECU's are interchangable, IF they have been flashed and reprogrammed properly. And probably getting that information is going to be hard to impossible. Tho if it is wrongly programmed it'd probably toss a code, and I gather yours doesn't, so that does hint at a correction being done to the unit.
As to the FPDM - https://www.autozone.com/engine-mana...e/ford/mustang - See https://itstillruns.com/purpose-fuel...-12179655.html for an explanation of what it does.
What I find more strange is that the vehicle turns on, I have to press the clutch to start it, soon I will perform a scanner, to know exactly what the problem could be and I will publish it here, but nevertheless, if the fuel pressure is greater than normal, what problems could it cause? When I start the engine, in the instrument panel, it turns on the O / D light (it blinks constantly) and the check engine light, obviously, since it does not have the automatic transmission, it does not detect it, therefore it turns on the light O / D, I really do not know what to do
03-01-2018, 05:33 PM
#10
2nd Gear Member
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: The Netherlands
Posts: 215
Pressing the clutch to start with a manual transmission is normal. Mine does that too.
Since the check engine tiurns on, and the o/d comes in, the ecu was probably not modified for a manual transmission. And since the ecu is the brain of the engine management, there is no telling what input it might receive, and how it would behave as a result.
My first test would be to change it with an m/t one, and see what that does, if only to localize the problem. The unpredictability I see with the wrong ecu is my first guess at the culprit.
But maybe someone else on the forum has any other ideas?
Since the check engine tiurns on, and the o/d comes in, the ecu was probably not modified for a manual transmission. And since the ecu is the brain of the engine management, there is no telling what input it might receive, and how it would behave as a result.
My first test would be to change it with an m/t one, and see what that does, if only to localize the problem. The unpredictability I see with the wrong ecu is my first guess at the culprit.
But maybe someone else on the forum has any other ideas?