[RE: [xj] Problems starting]

Evan Holzwasser <@Evan_Holzwasser>

Thank you for your reply, Tim. I went back to the house at lunch and tried to
start it up. This time in addition to just turning over, it almost sounded
like it would catch a couple of times. And in fact, it did start up once on
the 4th try, but only lasted a second or two. Then it was back to the same old
story.

I didn’t get a chance to try your idea. By then the tow truck had arrived and
I sent the car back to the mechanic (50 miles away). Tonight we’re expecting
30 degree weather will sleet and rain tomorrow, so I’m hoping the dampness (if
in fact that’s the cause) will stress things so much the cause will be
obvious.

Now I’ve been going on about damp/cold only because this has occurred twice on
what’s been cool mornings (40 degrees). I’ve only had the car 2 months so I
don’t have a history on it, except that it’s been towed back twice before (not
including today). Last week the mechanic changed out the alternator and
traced a short in the antenna relay (which presumably had been causing it
drain the battery every other day until this was fixed).

It seems like this particular problem is different than a charging system or
drain on the battery. It sounds like there’s sufficient voltage, but it’s not
finding its way into the distributor.

By the way, when I did run the 12V to the coil, I could hear a
hissing/clicking sound coming from the top of the engine (almost like the
sound of a woodpecker). The mechanic said that was my fuel injectors working.
Does that sound right to you?

Thank you again for all your help.

Cordially,

Evan Holzwasser
“Wasson, Tim” WassonT@kochind.com

The ignition module will not put a constant 12 volts across the coil, it
must go from 0 volts to 12 volts to 0 volts in order to cause the coil to
fire (the coil being just a transformer, it only works with AC or pulsating
DC).

So running 12 volts to the coil would ensure that it wouldn’t fire. 1/2
inch seems a pretty big gap to try to jump. Have you tried pulling a plug,
leaving it connected to the wire, and laying the plug on the engine, then
cranking and looking for spark across the plug? The dampness sensitivity
would point me toward the distributor cap, dampness can bleed off the high
voltage quickly if there are defects like cracks or some buildup in the cap.

I’d guess the electronics are OK since they work when it’s a little warmer.

Tim Wasson
84 VDP “Lamb Chop” 111k"Wasson, Tim" WassonT@kochind.com wrote:

-----Original Message-----
From: Evan Holzwasser [SMTP:@Evan_Holzwasser]
Sent: Monday,April 17,2000 10:25 AM
To: xj@jag-lovers.org
Subject: [xj] Problems starting

Evan Holzwasser <@Evan_Holzwasser>

Hi everyone !!

Here’s what I know. The car has a new alternator, any/all potential
electrical shorts have been tracked down and fixed. The battery and
charging
system is strong.

For the most part the car now starts up without any problems at all.
However,
wen I try to start up the car on (so far) cold/damp mornings, the engine
turns
over strong, but it never catches. There is 12V across the battery, but
no
spark comes out of the center wire of the distributor cap when it is
placed
1/2" from metal. Chasing that wire back to the coil, there is no voltage
across the coil either.

Now here’s where it gets interesting: when I place a 12V lead from the
battery
to the coil and try to start it up, still the same situation. This, if
anything, should’ve caused this cat to jump to life.

Any thoughts what would cause this cat to refuse to go to work?

Thanks!!
Evan


Get free email and a permanent address at Net@ddress Mail

===================================================
To remove yourself from this list, go to
Jag-lovers Forums - Jag-lovers

===================================================
To remove yourself from this list, go to


Get free email and a permanent address at Net@ddress Mail

===================================================
To remove yourself from this list, go to Jag-lovers Forums - Jag-lovers

Arthur Blackwell <@Arthur_Blackwell>

Sounds like the cold start system isn’t working. The thermotime switch regulates how
much fuel is injected when cold ( assuming you have FI. Without the cold start system,
you would get the symptoms you describe, like no fire or " almost starts " Did that on
my xj12 until the thermotime switch ws replaced and the cold start injectors
fired…-art-

Evan Holzwasser wrote:> Evan Holzwasser eholzwasser@usa.net

Thank you for your reply, Tim. I went back to the house at lunch and tried to
start it up. This time in addition to just turning over, it almost sounded
like it would catch a couple of times. And in fact, it did start up once on
the 4th try, but only lasted a second or two. Then it was back to the same old
story.

I didn’t get a chance to try your idea. By then the tow truck had arrived and
I sent the car back to the mechanic (50 miles away). Tonight we’re expecting
30 degree weather will sleet and rain tomorrow, so I’m hoping the dampness (if
in fact that’s the cause) will stress things so much the cause will be
obvious.

Now I’ve been going on about damp/cold only because this has occurred twice on
what’s been cool mornings (40 degrees). I’ve only had the car 2 months so I
don’t have a history on it, except that it’s been towed back twice before (not
including today). Last week the mechanic changed out the alternator and
traced a short in the antenna relay (which presumably had been causing it
drain the battery every other day until this was fixed).

It seems like this particular problem is different than a charging system or
drain on the battery. It sounds like there’s sufficient voltage, but it’s not
finding its way into the distributor.

By the way, when I did run the 12V to the coil, I could hear a
hissing/clicking sound coming from the top of the engine (almost like the
sound of a woodpecker). The mechanic said that was my fuel injectors working.
Does that sound right to you?

Thank you again for all your help.

Cordially,

Evan Holzwasser
“Wasson, Tim” WassonT@kochind.com wrote:
“Wasson, Tim” WassonT@kochind.com

The ignition module will not put a constant 12 volts across the coil, it
must go from 0 volts to 12 volts to 0 volts in order to cause the coil to
fire (the coil being just a transformer, it only works with AC or pulsating
DC).

So running 12 volts to the coil would ensure that it wouldn’t fire. 1/2
inch seems a pretty big gap to try to jump. Have you tried pulling a plug,
leaving it connected to the wire, and laying the plug on the engine, then
cranking and looking for spark across the plug? The dampness sensitivity
would point me toward the distributor cap, dampness can bleed off the high
voltage quickly if there are defects like cracks or some buildup in the cap.

I’d guess the electronics are OK since they work when it’s a little warmer.

Tim Wasson
84 VDP “Lamb Chop” 111k

-----Original Message-----
From: Evan Holzwasser [SMTP:eholzwasser@usa.net]
Sent: Monday,April 17,2000 10:25 AM
To: xj@jag-lovers.org
Subject: [xj] Problems starting

Evan Holzwasser eholzwasser@usa.net

Hi everyone !!

Here’s what I know. The car has a new alternator, any/all potential
electrical shorts have been tracked down and fixed. The battery and
charging
system is strong.

For the most part the car now starts up without any problems at all.
However,
wen I try to start up the car on (so far) cold/damp mornings, the engine
turns
over strong, but it never catches. There is 12V across the battery, but
no
spark comes out of the center wire of the distributor cap when it is
placed
1/2" from metal. Chasing that wire back to the coil, there is no voltage
across the coil either.

Now here’s where it gets interesting: when I place a 12V lead from the
battery
to the coil and try to start it up, still the same situation. This, if
anything, should’ve caused this cat to jump to life.

Any thoughts what would cause this cat to refuse to go to work?

Thanks!!
Evan


Get free email and a permanent address at Net@ddress Mail

===================================================
To remove yourself from this list, go to
Jag-lovers Forums - Jag-lovers

===================================================
To remove yourself from this list, go to
Jag-lovers Forums - Jag-lovers


Get free email and a permanent address at Net@ddress Mail

===================================================
To remove yourself from this list, go to Jag-lovers Forums - Jag-lovers

===================================================
To remove yourself from this list, go to Jag-lovers Forums - Jag-lovers