A1EK

Hi Guys, In the last 2 days my car has been taking ages to start, the car turns over but does not fire, then suddenly it will start about 10 mins later! and then drives fine? I have read many posts and I am thinking to check my Crank position Sensor. I dont have any warning lights on the dash, and the when the car does start it seems to drive fine ,so I am doubtfull its the plugs or fuel pump?

Can you help tell me where the Crank Shaft Sensor is in the engine so I can check it and see if its dirty? Any photos ?

thanks

maxwerks

I doubt that it is the Crank Position sensor , I am not sure if it is different on the six cylinder engines but on the V8s..M113 it is on the back of the engine toward the fire wall on the driver side ..low half way down from the edge of the firewall ....not very easy to get to but with a small mirror you can see it in there.........have you checked the ignition coils?

A1EK

Maswerks

If the ignition coils were bad, would they not effect the normal drive of the car, because once started it drives fine! I will check though tonight, can you advise how I will know if they are good / bad?

gregory13lil

If the car starts normally when it is cold and fails to start when the engine is hot then it is more than likely the CPS sensor. Also, it is the cheapest and easiest part to replace and the best place to start.

Greg

maxwerks

Greg is right, the CPS is a cheap change and it is a good thing to do anyway, specially if you have never changed it . You never mentioned anything about cold starts vs hot starts... it sounded like you re having problems starting regardless.. and mainly you are right.. if the car is running normally after it starts .. the coils could be fine.. but if you have one or two bad coils and pending firing sequence that may also cause that , best and easy way, start the car , open the hood and listen.. is it idling smooth, any hickups .. if it is idling at the right RPM steady with no noise, chances are your coils are fine.

A1EK

For me it the opposite. The car starts fine when warm. If I leave the car for 15 mins it will start ok.. if I leave about 45mins it takes many turns to start. once it does start though, it drives without any problems, and does not stall or anything.
I have just removed the CPS and thought I had found the problem as it was really dirty, but despite a clean the car still did not start .
I have Denso irridium plugs for about 6 months now, so and I was thinking of putting the old on bosch ones back in to see if it starts better.

A1EK

just changed the plugs no difference, whers the fuel pump>?

MarcusF

Fuel pump is underneath, in the back of the car, under the plastic cover, right next to the fuel filter

A1EK

Thanks guys for all your help, I have managed to find the fault thanks to your advise and thoughts. This was my process of elimination:

CPS - removed checked and cleaned, not likely as my car ran fine when warm but not when cold.

MAF - Checked and cleaned, again not likely as my car ran fine when it did.

Plugs - checked and replaced with spares, not likely coils as there was no probelm once started.

Fuel pump - Could not hear any buzzing sound !? ----> checked relay by openeing it up and cleaning contacts. Put it back and the pump buzzed away ! and now my car started perfect again !

gregory13lil

Damn good troubleshooting!!! Congrats and glad the car is back up and running well. Could you explain the relay that you are talking about. Are you talking about the fuel pump relay that is in the fuse box under the hood? I would like to know for future knowledge.

Greg

A1EK

The relay on my car was next to the fuse box under the rear carpet in the trunk. I simply pulled it out, opened it up with a small knife, cleaned the contacts carefully with a very fine grit paper because visually you could see loads of dirt build up preventing it from making. Then popped the cover back on and plugged the relay back in the car , and away she started!

Chappy

How old is your battery?

A1EK

Not sure it was in the car when I bought her, so maybe 3 years old? why?

Chappy

Moot point, I guess...I see your issue is resolved.

However, a weak battery (they normally last an average of 4 years or so) can cause erratic electronic issues, and lead to expensive parts replacement.

Glad you got your issue taken care of.