bradleyheathhays

Turns out I've got a problem starter. Cleaned both batt terminals and engine ground and got nothing. Tapped the starter a few times and it fired right up. So what kind of starter should I look for? Want something decent with a warranty but not too expensive. Do most people just go for something like an Ultra from Oreiley's with the lifetime? I've got a 70$ credit at Napa so I was thinking maybe one of their reman Bosch around $120.

Anyone?

'96 Cherokee here and right now I'm dealing with a no start after a few weeks of suspicious symptoms. She's been driven a lot less over the past year and about a month ago she began starting a little slow. I've got an oversized battery in there so usually she cranks right up no problem. I started monitoring batt voltage and saw around 12.04 V with engine off and 14.10 V or so running. Right before I get the new battery I head to Advance and they run a battery/alternator test. Kid tells me my batt is bad but alternator is still good. So I lay out the $ and install the same size 34N EverStart Maxx 800 cca from Wally's and the slow start persists. Measuring the new battery with engine off yields consistent readings of just under 12.7 V, so for the past few weeks I began charging the batt at 2A which seemed to help. A few days ago I venture out for an errand and the engine doesn't restart to get me back home. I get no clicks or cranking at all with a key turn. Batt measures 12.67 V at the terminals. Dash gauges seem to react with the key on, voltmeter reading ~11.5 V, although I'm not sure how accurate that is. Fuel pump pressurizes. Something that happened right after battery change out, which may or may not help in diagnosing the problem, is that my pass side headlight only illuminated half way while the driver side stayed full bright. I have an LMC Truck aftermarket headlight wiring harness giving 55/100w low high beam. It's the kind where you run the lights straight off the battery through additional relays. Had to tinker with the light harness a bit to get the new batt in and may have compromised a connection? Maybe a ground? Either way the pass headlight started showing full bright after only 1 or 2 occurrences and has been right ever since. With my alternator testing good and a new battery I wondered if maybe a loose connection was draining my voltage. I was in the middle of testing batt V connected vs. disconnected over time but this no start happened before I could get it done. Last thing to mention is that recently I've been removing both my fuel pump and starter relays for security reasons. The way it's acting now is exactly like when trying to start with both relays removed. Being that the fuel pump is pressurizing should I consider testing the starter relay? Other than that could I have caused some kind of part failure by removing and reinstalling the relays maybe around 5-6 times over the last month? All ears

Unfortunately it looks like I have some people in my new neighborhood paying a little too much attention to my auto and for the first time I'm feeling a need to add some security system(s) to old yeller. I think just a basic remote arm system would do, not interested at all in remote start or unlock. I'm not familiar with modern alarm systems, but here's what I 'think' I need... - Door switches for all 5 doors (rear hatch). Probably a PITA to install but that's only an initial idea. - 'Bump' alarm (not sure what it would be called) for if a window breaks or if something is jarred - Geo-location function like a low track or something similar Additionally I'd like to install possibly 2 start kill switches. I'm not sure where inline these are normally installed but my impression is that directly in line with the key ignition switch would be common. But then what if someone jumps the starter with a screwdriver...would this type of switch work in that instance? So that leads me to the idea of a second ignition kill switch which would either be wired between the battery and starter motor, or between the starter motor and ground. And last...security lugs. So am I over thinking this here? What's your recommendation for what I really need and maybe a good but economic alarm system that can get this done?

Thanks so much for the advice and the video. Just what I needed.

Thanks yall. Can't believe I didn't mention this is concerning my 02 Ford Taurus. Yes, looks like I posted this issue about a month ago but forgot. Getting old I guess.

Just now rolling over 100k miles. Been feeling some steering weirdness so I get one front wheel up in the air and push at 3 and 9 and sure enough there's some wobble. Pushing at 12 and 6 gives no play at all. Although I'll probably be replacing the worn part myself I need some help diagnosing what all might need to be replaced. And since I need an alignment anyway I've made a deal w/ my local Goodyear tire shop to do a pre alignment inspection and identify my bad part(s) so I can replace them before they do the job. When I drop the car off what specific parts should I ask them to look at? I'm sure tie rod ends but what other kind of worn parts could be causing movement on the 3-9 push test?

I've got an '02 Ford Taurus with 99k miles that's got something loose in the front end but I'm not entirely sure what it is. When under moderate to hard braking there's a quick shaking in the front of the car and the steering wheel jerks in sync with the shaking. Jacked up one front wheel, left the other on the ground, and sure enough the wheel moves when pushed at 3 and 9 o'clock, but not at 12 and 6. Any advice on where to go from here?

I don't think this would have anything to do with it but it's worth mentioning. Two months back I did a slow speed rear end into the back of a lifted pickup. The front of my hood hit his trailer hitch right at the hood latch point which crumpled the hood and broke and pushed back the upper radiator support...what the hood latches into. The equipment on that support, radiator ect were also pushed back but luckily nothing came in contact with the engine. Pushing the upper radiator support back had the effect of pushing both front fenders outward about 3/8 inch. Just yesterday I got the car back from having the front bumper plastic and that upper radiator support piece replaced. I was referred to that shop but I'm not too sure how good they are..definitely cheap though. What I'm wondering is...is it possible something got disconnected then not reconnected properly from that job that's resulted in my transmission misbehaving?

Have an '02 Ford Taurus that's been grandma driven for all of it's 95k miles. After doing some very easy driving in town for a couple hours today I accelerated up to about 50 and noticed the car didn't seem to be responding to the gas pedal anymore. Looked down and the engine was doing 4k rpm so I let off the gas. Pumped the gas a couple times to see if the car responded and got nothing. Coasted to a stop in a safe lane and tested it in all the gears...nothing. The car stays put if you put it in park but you can roll it back when in any other gear position. The gear leaver on the tree does still give resistance when you move between gears. No music was playing and there was no noticeable sound whenever the breakage occurred. Called a friend and was advised to check the gear shift linkage at the top of the transmission. I'm not familiar with what the arm's full range of motion is supposed to be but I noted it's position while in park and low 1 and it seems to be moving well. Felt the connections and they seemed solid. Without the benefit of being able to do a proper run-up to a transmission fluid check I wiped and re-dipped the stick and it read fairly high although I hadn't added any fluid for at least 10k miles. The fluid was just a shade darker than light pink and although I didn't check specifically it didn't seem to have a burnt smell. There's no way low engine oil could cause something like this is there? Any ideas?

Damn, it took 30 years of driving to cause my first accident, and on Friday the damn 13th. Did a low speed rear end into the back of a lifted truck and got into it's trailer receiver. The only place it made contact with was at the very front center of the hood close to where it latches. Unfortunately the impact was enough that there's a longitudinal hump in the middle of the hood now, bowed 6 inches on each side above the quarter panels, which weren't involved at all thank God. Both my headlights are cracked at the top, but not because they got hit; I think it was because the hood and it's latch was pushed back during the collision possibly deforming the support structure, causing the to separate. The hood is lifted up about 3 inches above each headlight and when looking in at the support material just behind each headlight, one side shows cracks and the other cracks and about a 1/2 gap in the material. Can't tell but it may resemble fiberglass, not really sure? My best guess is that the whole front bumper is gonna have to come off and that entire front support piece be replaced. Any advice on how hard this can be? I do a lot of my own work but I really don't want to be getting into this especially with the weather getting so bad now. When I go junkyard shopping for parts, what year Tauruses are compatible with my '02?

I'm outfitting my middle aged '02 Taurus with a new starter and need some advice on what brand starter to get. I'm tempted to get this reman Motorcraft, the fourth one down in the orange remanufactured section. CLICK HERE For $123 that seems reasonable for a OE reman. If not this one I'll probably be going for a reman of another brand so why not go OE? The other reman options I'm seeing at the car stores are... Napa brand Bosch Denso Driveworks at Advance Carquest Duralast Valucraft Ultima Bestest Should I go with the Motorcraft or one of these? $123 sounds almost too good although I really don't know.

So this '02 Taurus with only 87k miles on her starts right up every time multiple times a day except for twice in the last 3 weeks. The first time was 3 weeks ago and the second was today. It happened the same both times. Turn the key and stop to let the pump prime, then when I turn to the start position the engine turns real slow and sort of in fits. Usually when a battery is low the engine turns slow but in rhythm. During my 2 starts the engine barely seemed to turn and the crankshaft rpm seemed to vary. On both starting events I let off the key and tried to start 2-3 times with rests in between. But then eventually on the 4th try it starts right up just as quickly as a normal start. I have No clue as to what might be causing this. Only thing I know to do is, next time it does this to put a voltage meter on the battery to see if it's weak. Actually though, because both events the engine ended up starting up like normal that would indicate something other than the batt. Electrically this car is a little odd though. The interior light never comes on when the doors are opened, for years, and then last week it comes on twice when one of the rear doors is opened.

Last time I installed a remote start system it was on an old Dynasty whose wiring was too delicate to work on really. A couple weeks after installation it started ok but a ton of white smoke came from under the dash. I uninstalled the entire system and everything was fine after that. So in picking out a starter for this '02 Taurus I want something simple that will work with this car well. The start systems I'm seeing are generally designed to do door locking and unlocking, trunk release, etc. As this car already has those functions on a fob I won't be using any function on any future remote start system other than the remote start. Can anyone with knowledge of my car recommend a decent but low cost / low extra functions start system that would work well with my Taurus? Thanks

I've since been told Ford designed it to turn on in the mode I was running it and the only mode the compressor doesn't come on is the floor only. Who knew.

I have an '02 Taurus with 85k miles on her that I just bought. Today when I was checking something under the hood I noticed this metal line cold and dripping with water... I had the air on but turned to the position of arrows pointing out of the dash and floor vents only. The defrost or a/c function was not selected. It seems to be doing it consistently. I haven't traced all the parts of this car's a/c system yet but I don't know of anything else under a hood that turns cold and sweats. Why would my compressor be working when it's not selected? What tests should I run?

Right on thanks for the advice. I don't think it's running uncharacteristically hot right now. It's had this slightly stalled start behavior before during the rare times I've had to run it as much as I am now. I'm just seeing it more now because of how much I'm using it right now.

This may sound like a stupid question, as I'm prone to ask sometimes. But...I drive a '96 Cherokee with the inline 4.0 non-interference engine and it doesn't like driving in the heat so much. Since I'm a car down right now I'm driving it a LOT more than I used to. After a lot of driving in this hot weather it starts slower, but still starts and runs ok. So to help it out I've been raising the hood and putting 2 box fans right on top of the engine to help it cool. I hadn't thought about it but my Mom asked if cooling it down too quickly could be bad for the engine. And since I don't know I thought I'd ask here. Any harm in using my method to cool an engine down much more quickly than normal?

Wow after all this and it turns out to be the rear end. Just got it to my mechanic and he watched the driveshaft when I gave it some gas, in gear, and it turned. So I guess that's where the sound was coming from. Although my trans fluid smells a little, a mechanic who works on these crown vics a lot says the fluid always smells somewhat burned. I'm super easy on this car so I'm not sure why the fluid would smell like that. Newly changed out like 15k miles ago.

Just now got back from trying to get it going for the first time and no success. First I disconnected the battery for a few minutes like someone had suggested. Checked trans fluid and it seemed at a good level, but definitely dark and burnt smelling. The coolant I had put in there before was still in there so the reservoir was full. The front of the engine was caked with white which I'm assuming was caked on and dried coolant. Started the engine and moved the shift lever through all the gears and that felt normal. Put it in drive and didn't feel anything engage at all. Gave it some gas and something whirred in the trans. The more rpms the louder the sound got. Almost sounded like something rotating...but it seemed to be coming right from the transmission. I just checked the trans fluid last week and it seemed to look fairly new. What in the world could have happened to cause this? So what do I do now? Is the trans toast or could I maybe try putting new trans fluid and filter in and see what happens?

Actually I remember the shift handle seemed to move more freely through the gears. That common friction between gears didn't seem to be there. It wasn't floping back and forth or anything but there def seemed to be a difference. I'll have to pay close attention when I go back to it here in an hour and try to restart it. The other possibilities that have been mentioned to me so far is a broken input shaft or the MLPS, and I don't know what either one of these is. Was told if it ws the MLPS that it would be throwing a code. So wouldn't you know I'm having a problem getting it read. Wonder if there is a way to get a multi-meter on whatever the MLPS is and test it? Also, what is the input shaft and is it something in the drive line?

It seemed to respond like I wasn't shifting at all. I think when I put it in one of the gears it got some kind of ticking sound but that was only briefly. The shift lever seemed to move thorugh all the gears without hesitation. I checked the trans fluid last week at it was full but I'll check it before I try to start later tonight, although I know that's now how you correctly measure trans fluid.

Sadly this may be the last post I make on the old '11 Crown Vic (320k). So yesterday I heard a quiet hiss coming from the front which turned out to be a very small radiator leak...in the middle of a fin somewhere. Doing errands around town today I kept extra coolant with me and added it as it needed. After filling it up I make a 60 mph trip to a nearby city about 20 miles away. When I get to a stop at the bottom of the off ramp, I hit the gas it it doesn't move. No extra lights on the dash except for the check engine light which was already on for something else. I put it in park and back in drive, tried all the gears but got nothing, not even in reverse. Thinking it might have something to do with my coolant situation I checked it and ended up putting in like 1.5 gal of coolant which is much more than it's taken before. Only thing I can imagine is that the leak got worse on the interstate and I didn't notice it. Did the no coolant issue cause the transmission to overheat somehow? There was a slight burning smell in the cabin so something definitely overheated. The overheat light on the dash never came on (I think I have one?) and the engine ran fine the whole time. I was traveling at 60 mph though so I wonder if that would be enough to cool the engine off while the transmission still overheated? What in the heck happened and what do I do, besides sell the damn thing.

So far I've been able to run a couple tests.. Hooked up a fuel pressure gauge and first key turn got it up to only 20psi. Second turn got it up to 45. And third and subsequent turns got it up to 48. It only fell to 43 after 2 minutes so I think that means the fuel pressure is good. Hooked up a spark tester between a plug and wire and it didn't light at all when cranked so I'm guessing I've got a spark problem. I'll start by doing a tune up with new rotor, cap, wires and plugs then see what happens.

So I got this '96 Jeep Cherokee XJ that cranks but doesn't start. It's got around 180k on her but I keep everything in good shape. Batt seemed strong. I used to drive it everyday but this past year I've driven it only about twice a week. It's been just slightly slower to start in the last couple of months, but just barely slower. Was guessing it had something to do with aging plugs or something. Drove it yesterday and everything was normal like always, sat overnight and today it cranked but didn't catch. Any ideas on where to start?