Flooded Engine?

[Wajman]

I have a problem that seems to have been my fault. I started my 2002 bird last week after a long winter nap, 5 months, and it started right up. I ran it for about 5 minutes and then shut it off becasue it was starting to rain. Yesterday I attempted to start it again and missed on the first try. I tried again and let the key go too soon. The third attempt there was no effort to start. I tried a few more times and figured I flooded it so I waited until the next day. There was no starting effort. Just fast cranking.
I asked the dealer I know and he said maybe the fuel pump fuse. I checked and it was good. Any ideas besides a flatbed to the dealer for many dollars??

[joe166]

Re: Flooded Engine?

I didn't think fuel injected cars could "flood." I think your problem is elsewhere. No fuel or no spark.

[Ediron]

Re: Flooded Engine?

Had the same thing happen to me.Running and starting fine ,went to the store and it wouldn't start .As you said fast crank.Flatbed to L/M dealer ,problem PCM (Program Control Module) was bad.Ford has a recall on them so cost was $0 to me.I would check with the dealer on it as I don't know what yrs. are covered if this is the problem.

[luvbirdz]

Re: Flooded Engine?

You may have another fuel related problem, but YES YOU CAN flood a fuel injected engine. Ever time you trun the key it feeds more fuel, so the old method of hold the pedal to the floor, turn the key and hold until you feel it firing on enough cylinders to keep going by itself will clear a flooding problem.
Martin

[Leroy]

Re: Flooded Engine?

Try resetting the alarm system, it might be not letting it start? Leroy

[bottomtime]

Re: Flooded Engine?

I have a problem that seems to have been my fault. I started my 2002 bird last week after a long winter nap, 5 months, and it started right up. I ran it for about 5 minutes and then shut it off becasue it was starting to rain. Yesterday I attempted to start it again and missed on the first try. I tried again and let the key go too soon. The third attempt there was no effort to start. I tried a few more times and figured I flooded it so I waited until the next day. There was no starting effort. Just fast cranking.
I asked the dealer I know and he said maybe the fuel pump fuse. I checked and it was good. Any ideas besides a flatbed to the dealer for many dollars??

If you had it stored for 5 months, there is a good chance that the gas has gone bad. Gasoline that is refined today, only has about a 2-month "shelf life" insofar as staying relatively fresh. After that time period, is starts going "sour" for lack of a better word, also it starts to chemically turn slowly into a varnish type substance. It can and will clog up the fuel filter in this condition, real quick, as it's being pumped by the fuel pump, into and through the filter, and because it is no longer in a 100% liquid state, it will also clog up the the injector nozzles, and any other small orifices that is has to go through. Stale, or sour gas, which either word you prefer, also will start oxidizing and create a powdery rust type of sediment, which also adds to the problem. This could very well be your problem, and letting it run for about 5 minutes was just about long enough that it could have picked up all this sediment by the fuel pump, that was lying in the bottom of the tank, and plugged everything up.

[jimvit1]

Re: Flooded Engine?

Have you looked under the hood to see if there is any signs of homesteading rodents there? Or check the Fuel Pump shut off switch located in the drivers side side panel. This swithc should not activate unless there had been a large jolt to the car but you might want to check it and reset it just to be sure. Look in the Owners Manual for the exact location. Good Luck.

[Harry's Platinum 04]

Re: Flooded Engine?

You may have another fuel related problem, but YES YOU CAN flood a fuel injected engine. Ever time you trun the key it feeds more fuel, so the old method of hold the pedal to the floor, turn the key and hold until you feel it firing on enough cylinders to keep going by itself will clear a flooding problem.
Martin

Martin--You are absolutely correct in that you can flood a fuel injected engine. However, on most fuel injected engines, when you floor the pedal to clear the gas, the ECM turns off the fuel injectors. The engine will not start in this condition (pedal on the floor and engine cranking). This is to allow the cylinders to be purged without pumping addtional fuel into the cylinders. I use this feature to prime a new oil filter after an oil change--foot on the floor and crank until the oil light goes out, then key off, foot off the pedal and restart. It's easy to check if your car has this feature--after a normal shutdown, just floor it and try to restart.
Harry

[luvbirdz]

Re: Flooded Engine?

Thanks for the tip. Certainly is a good idea to have that feature, will have to check to see if the owners manual mentions it. My main experience with flooding was with an 89 Tempo in the cold weather.
Martin

[Wajman]

Re: Flooded Engine?

The saga has ended. A special thanks to Martin for the old method of wide open throttle and cranking. As it turns out, this method does shut off the injectors and push the excess fuel mixture out. I tried for 30 seconds but that was not enough. I cranked for 4 minutes til the battery started to get weaker and then let up on the pedal. The Bird started instantly with a smoke presentation out the tailpipe. I was ready for the weekend of changing the plugs. Thanks again for all who offered a solution.