Out Of Ideas... Dead Ranger!!!

[corona]

Bout 3 weeks ago I pulled into a gas station to get gas. Turned off the engine, pumped gas, then when I went to turn it on.. well... it didnt turn on!! So I popped the hood and saw that a boot was completely off a spark plug. Thought it'd be as easy as plug and go but still nothing. I'll admit I had recently changed the plugs, I made sure they were properly gapped but clearly I didnt put a boot back on all the way.. After the new plugs the truck wasnt nearly as shakey as it was before. It ran perfectly for about 2 weeks until this incident. Ended up gettin towed cuz it was late.. Ive checked all the plugs and wires for spark and also the 2 coilpacks (2.3L 8 plugs). All checks out fine. The timing belt is still intact, and the fuel cutoff switch button didnt need to be reset. Not sure what else to do. The last thing I want is to have to tow it to a shop so any suggestions would be very greatly appreciated

 

[wrecking-crew]

fuel pumps or filter maybe? check your fuses and grounds

 

[Captain Ledd]

darnit, I made a post on the other one and it got deleted and now I have to type it all again... brb

So to cover the basics, I apoligize if some of these seem silly.

How many miles are on it?

When you checked the timing belt, did it spin with the engine? (had an "issue" with someone once)

I'm assuming it still cranks?

3 things are required for ignition, Air, Spark and Fuel. I'm going to assume it's getting air, Spark checked out. So we'll probe deeper into Fuel.

Your fuel pump may have just plain old died. I'd check that.

Clogged fuel filters can lead to hard starting depending on how clogged it is. That will also lead to a shorter pump life. They can become clogged by a particularly bad batch of gas.

X2 on Fuses and Grounds

Water in the tank can also lead to the engine dieing. IIRC water is heavier than gas, and the pickup is of course at the bottom of the tank. Excess water can also be from a bad batch of gas.

Since you found one of the plug boots off, I'd check around your injectors to see if a plug came off of one of those (an electrical plug). When I did my plugs I forgot to plug the electrical connector back into one of them. It's started but it ran terrible (go figure), maybe one of these popped loose? (just to double check)

 

[triumphrider-1]

Get in your truck, turn the key to on, you should hear the fuel pump prime the system. If not, thats probably it (its what I'm leaning towards).

 

[cocoasranger]

A little more information from you may help. As mentioned, whether the fuel pumps hum when key is turned to run position, but also when you turn the key to crank position, does the starter crank the engine without firing, or is there nothing? Also, if it does crank, does it sound like it's trying to start or not?

You can check fuel delivery by spraying A LITTLE starting ether (fluid) into the air cleaner. I guarantee if there is spark you will get a momentary response from the engine.

 

[MountainMike]

A mechanics rule of thumb is that the fuel pump always fails when the tank is full. I'd listen to see if it primes when you turn the truck to 'ON'

 

[Ranger4657]

it could also be the EEC relay... had a similar problem with myne, the fuel pump wouldent prime the system, engine would die randomly and when wose got even worse engine wouldent start but would turn, turned out to be the EEC relay as i just replaced the fuel relay

 

[thedave]

did you check the cutoff switch inside the cab on the passenger side firewall?

 

[corona]

I made a quick video just to add a visual..
http://video.therangerstation.com/video/10576
I checked all the fuses. Not sure how I'd go about checking the relays.. Grounds look fine. Truck has 145k miles.

 

[ianthegreat]

Now I don't know anything about your engine, but mine did the exact same thing (2.0L) when a connection on my coilpack jiggled lose and fell out. I don't know how different out engines are but it would be a good place to check also. I would pop each one of those sparkplug cables and replug them back in.

 

[Bryan22]

prime it a couple times then press the valve on the fuel rail to see if fuel comes out. I'm guessing it's dry. This will confirm weather or not the problem is fuel related. let us know.

 

[SMTGREG]

My guess would be the fuel pump.Test for 12 volts at the pink/ black wire on the Inertia switch. when turning the key on the wire should have power for about 3 seconds, then should stay on during cranking. If this is the case you need to replace the fuel pump, also replace the fuel filter at the same time. On the Ranger sometimes its easier to remove the 6 bed bolts and remove the bed to replace the pump.

 

[corona]

I finally got a chance to check out the truck yesterday so I swapped the eec and fuel pump relays just to see if i got a reaction out of the truck. It kind of hesitated but sounded a bit better than before. Convinced, I went to autozone and picked up a new relay. Of course it didn't fix it but hey i have a brand new relay... I checked the schrader valve and I got a tiny hiss.. No pressure.. Changed the fuel filter but surprisingly didn't need the fuel disconnects that the DIY on this site recommends. I simply used a flat screwdriver to take out the retaining clips and the hoses came off. No springs or any other fancy work.. Is that a prob? (By the way my filter looked pretty bad, rust and all). I primed it a few times then went to check the valve and still no pressure.. I checked the inertia switch, primed, and still nothing.

I know the next step would be to hook up the pump directly to the battery but im not sure how or what wires to look for. I reaaaaally don't want to take off the bed again either so if theres some other way I can access the wire (under the truck?) that would be preferable. Lastly, what wire should I use? standard jumper cables? test leads?

 

[Bryan22]

your fuel filter is fine, thats how it's supposed to be. did you try bypassing the inertia switch?

 

[corona]

your fuel filter is fine, thats how it's supposed to be. did you try bypassing the inertia switch?

I'd like to but I'm not sure how to connect the pump directly to the battery.. I was hoping someone could clear that up