Cranks forever till it starts

[chpmnsws6]

If you keep cranking for 4-5 seconds it will fire up, but if you bump it, then fire it up, it starts immediately. Any ideas? Runs fine once started

 

[wim hoppenbrouwers]

Hallo Jeeper chpmnsws6, What year is your Jeep and engine?

'92 XJ

 

[jeepman121]

sounds like you may have water/condensation in the fuel...Add some (I think it's called) ISO Heat..2 bucks at gas stations.

 

[birchlakeXJ]

Year/engine a good idea for all posts.

Start by cleaning your battery connections; post and cables. Load test your battery. It could be on the "marginal" side. Gotta start with the basics first and that is ensuring that your electrical is up to snuff. The engine management system on your XJ doesn't like it when available battery voltage is low.

 

[winterbeater]

Possible fuel injector leakdown, or checkvalve at tank. Is it the same on a hot restart, only when cold, or what else? Year and motor matter too. How long have you had it and was it different before or has it always been that way?

 

[chpmnsws6]

Its a 1997. Its done it since I bought it about and have put maybe 3,000 miles on it.

 

[TiRod]

OBDII. Any codes?

At first glance it sounds like it needs to spin the engine enough to figure out the timing, and then is running off that.

OBDII experts chime in.

 

[Rmart30]

My 93 does the same thing.....8-10 seconds of cranking , fires up and runs fine....... Makes ya wonder sometimes if its ever going to crank.

 

[jeepster_259]

my 98 does the same thing. If you prime the fuel pump a few times then it will start quicker. I've been told it's the fuel regulator. But for $150 and a PITA to drop the gas tank, I don't mind priming the pump to start up.

 

[mini=man]

My '94 does it too. I just do a short crank, let off and crank again and if fires right up.

 

[hubs97xj]

Maybe not your issue, but until I changed the plugs,wires, cap and rotor, it needed to be cranked a couple of seconds before it would fire. After that, it turns over twice and fires right up. The PO had never changed the plugs- they were worn horribly- even the rotor was worn to a nub.

 

[birchlakeXJ]

Maybe not your issue, but until I changed the plugs,wires, cap and rotor, it needed to be cranked a couple of seconds before it would fire.

Agreed. Replacing tuneup hardware is "always" a good idea when symptomatic, especially if it's been a while or if you don't know the maintenance history. A strong secondary ignition contributes to a quick start.

 

[Frank Z]

Buy a fuel pressure gauge and do a leak down test.
Connect the gauge to the fuel rail.
Start the engine and get it to it's normal operating temperature.
Your pressure at the manifold should 49.2 psi +/- 5 psi.
Shut off the engine.
The pressure should not fall below 30psi for 5 minutes.
Report your results here.

 

[mini=man]

The tune-up aspect shouldnt be an issue for me I would think. Because it has deffenatly been less then 10k since I put new cap and rotor along with MSD ignition, coil, plug wires, and re-gapped to 45

 

[xcm]

are you talking about how the jeep 4.0 in our xj's takes longer to start then other types of cars? if so, thats intentional to prime the oiling system.

4 or 5 seconds doesnt sound ABSURD to me, but i roll all renix.

 

[Ertsride1]

I would say, do all of the above. Check voltage, Do a leak down test, do a tune-up, if it still has issues...f' it and buy mine.

 

[joe_peters]

sounds like you may have water/condensation in the fuel...Add some (I think it's called) ISO Heat..2 bucks at gas stations.

If you are buying E10 fuel you don't need to use additives to remove water, the ethanol is doing it already (and reducing MPG and eating the fuel system).