I have a 1989 ford bronco Eddie Bauer edition with a 302. I have changed the in tank fuel pump, the fuel pump mounted on the chassis, fuel filter, fuel pump relay, and I also changed the spark plugs but still won't start. It only fires for a second when I spray starter fluid. A so called mechanic came and checked the distributors and he said it looked fine, so I'm completely stumped please help.
Bronco won't fire
- Thread starter Ozzy.
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VaMark
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TFI? Coil? Ignition (EEC) relay? Cap and rotor? Fuel inertia switch? EEC? What kind of fuel pressure are you getting at the injectors? How did the mechanic check the distributor? Did he actually do voltage and continuity checks for the PIP and TFI? These are all possible areas of failure, and questions you should ask yourself.
Some things to consider:
--If the fuel inertia switch needs to be reset, the fuel pump won't be getting power to pressurize the system.
--The coil may not be getting the proper voltage, or it may have gone bad, and not providing sufficient spark to the distributor.
--The cap and rotor may be at end of life and not providing sufficient spark to the plugs.
--If the PIP inside the distributor quit working, then the EEC won't be getting the signal that it requires to tell the coil and injectors to fire.
The problem can be any number of things, and while it sounds like you replaced most of the major fuel related components, it could be an electrical problem within the ignition system (see all the components that I mentioned above). The problem could even be a broken wire, bad ground or failed fusible link.
Obviously, not everything that I mentioned here is going to apply to your situation because it sounds like you're at least getting some spark since it will fire for a second with starter fluid, but it may not be getting a hot enough spark and a bad cap, rotor and/or coil can cause this. I just listed all of this because I wanted to make sure you realized that there are a lot of other things that can cause no start conditions like this besides the fuel-related parts that you mentioned.
If you don't already have one, get a Haynes manual for the truck and use it as a reference for testing all of this stuff. And if I were you, I'd probably first check to make sure the fuel inertia switch doesn't need to be reset, and also replace the cap and rotor. If it still isn't starting after that, then I would fully test the coil voltage and circuits as well as the PIP and TFI voltage and circuits.
Some things to consider:
--If the fuel inertia switch needs to be reset, the fuel pump won't be getting power to pressurize the system.
--The coil may not be getting the proper voltage, or it may have gone bad, and not providing sufficient spark to the distributor.
--The cap and rotor may be at end of life and not providing sufficient spark to the plugs.
--If the PIP inside the distributor quit working, then the EEC won't be getting the signal that it requires to tell the coil and injectors to fire.
The problem can be any number of things, and while it sounds like you replaced most of the major fuel related components, it could be an electrical problem within the ignition system (see all the components that I mentioned above). The problem could even be a broken wire, bad ground or failed fusible link.
Obviously, not everything that I mentioned here is going to apply to your situation because it sounds like you're at least getting some spark since it will fire for a second with starter fluid, but it may not be getting a hot enough spark and a bad cap, rotor and/or coil can cause this. I just listed all of this because I wanted to make sure you realized that there are a lot of other things that can cause no start conditions like this besides the fuel-related parts that you mentioned.
If you don't already have one, get a Haynes manual for the truck and use it as a reference for testing all of this stuff. And if I were you, I'd probably first check to make sure the fuel inertia switch doesn't need to be reset, and also replace the cap and rotor. If it still isn't starting after that, then I would fully test the coil voltage and circuits as well as the PIP and TFI voltage and circuits.
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VaMark
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Correct. If it's tripped (popped up) you need to push it back down.
By the way, in my previous post I accidently typed "ignition (EEC) module". I meant to say "relay" -not module, so I corrected it.
And now that I think about it, if you're indeed getting spark, the PIP in the distributor is probably okay and testing is unnecessary. I forgot that when mine went out, I had no spark whatsoever. That said, double check to make sure that you really are getting a spark, and I'd check it at the coil because if you check it at the plugs, there's still the possiblity that a bad cap or rotor is preventing spark. If you don't have spark, test the PIP and replace it (or the entire distributor) if it fails the tests. If it passes the tests, then test the coil because it could be bad or it's not getting the proper voltage through that little two wire harness.
On the other hand, if you have good spark from the coil, then you should check the fuel pressure at the injector rail. I think the pressure needs to be somewhere between 38-40psi, but someone will correct me if I'm wrong.
And don't forget about testing the TFI module.
By the way, in my previous post I accidently typed "ignition (EEC) module". I meant to say "relay" -not module, so I corrected it.
And now that I think about it, if you're indeed getting spark, the PIP in the distributor is probably okay and testing is unnecessary. I forgot that when mine went out, I had no spark whatsoever. That said, double check to make sure that you really are getting a spark, and I'd check it at the coil because if you check it at the plugs, there's still the possiblity that a bad cap or rotor is preventing spark. If you don't have spark, test the PIP and replace it (or the entire distributor) if it fails the tests. If it passes the tests, then test the coil because it could be bad or it's not getting the proper voltage through that little two wire harness.
On the other hand, if you have good spark from the coil, then you should check the fuel pressure at the injector rail. I think the pressure needs to be somewhere between 38-40psi, but someone will correct me if I'm wrong.
And don't forget about testing the TFI module.
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