2002 Won't Start

[Florida Birdman]

Hi..I've had a 2002 since new...never problem one with it...just under 36,000 miles presently...yesterday..I started her up and backed out of the garage as I do every Saturday..when I went to start her up a few hours later...it just turned and turned but didn't start...this has never happened before...she has always started up on the first turn....looked at the fuel injector button ( by the drivers side left ) and it was fine....so I guess I'll have it towed to Ford in the morning...in the meantime...does anyone have a suggestion? I was thinking of disconnecting the battery for an hour and then reconnecting...not sure if this would reboot the engine computer..thanks for any advice.

 

[goverbey]

We had the same problem, fuel pump was varnished from gas going bad needed replaced at about $600 at dealer

 

[Mike]

Hi..I've had a 2002 since new...never problem one with it...just under 36,000 miles presently...yesterday..I started her up and backed out of the garage as I do every Saturday..when I went to start her up a few hours later...it just turned and turned but didn't start...this has never happened before...she has always started up on the first turn....looked at the fuel injector button ( by the drivers side left ) and it was fine....so I guess I'll have it towed to Ford in the morning...in the meantime...does anyone have a suggestion? I was thinking of disconnecting the battery for an hour and then reconnecting...not sure if this would reboot the engine computer..thanks for any advice.

Had the same problem a little over a year ago and almost the exact same scenario as you. It was the fuel injector pump which had to be replaced. I tried pushing the reset button with no success. Had to take it to Ford on a flat bed tow truck and repair was covered under my Extended Warranty.

 

[DiegoThundy]

Yup, sounds like the fuel system. They run fine, and then quit, and no fuel to the engine upon restart means no going anywhere. Do you know anything about cars? Changing a fuel pump yourself is way...and I mean way....cheaper than taking it to a dealer. In my opinion its worth learning how if you have the tools. You might want a friend to help you, though.

 

[George]

Be careful with that advice....I believe there are two pumps and they're both inside the "saddle type" gas tanks. I think birdman is smart, talking to the dealer.

Only issue I see is it's a Ford dealer. The Lincoln dealers know a lot more about our cars than the Ford dealers, since our cars are all Lincoln LS under the hood and drive train.

 

[dchamb9414]

george is right (as usual) about not doing the work yourself. also about the lincoln people being better qualified to work on this car.

 

[DiegoThundy]

I definitely agree talking to a dealer first would be ideal, BUT, if you know what the problem is and don't mind learning something new with some help, I like to encourage people to DIY. But then again, I am more of a DIY myself. When it comes down to it, whatever you are most comfortable with, most qualified for and have someone most qualified for is what you should attempt to do.

 

[dchamb9414]

i too consider myself mechanically inclined. these cars made me re-think that though. the shop i use has to research every issue carefully before attempting any repair, because what one does on most cars may cause new problems on t-birds. they have computer programs that contain all the caviats on each repair. but diego, if you are having succes with diy, certainly proceed on. i gave it up though (on the t-bird). the lincoln shop has a pretty good guarantee policy on repairs too. to be honest, i haven't had but a couple or 3 issues on my 02 with 40,000 miles.

 

[DiegoThundy]

dchamp:

I completely understand. What happened to the good 'ol days when cars were easier and simple to work on? Pretty much anything into the 90s now we have to worry about the chips and computers and garbage. But yeah, I am pretty careful working on cars nowadays. In my case, I have a few very seasoned mechanic buddies that help me out, and if it's even remotely computer related or I have to unhook wires, it's gonna be a long process in most cases.

Do you have a second car you typically work on yourself? I do a lot of work on my Camaro and Accord, too.

 

[tbird]

Hi..I've had a 2002 since new...never problem one with it...just under 36,000 miles presently...yesterday..I started her up and backed out of the garage as I do every Saturday..when I went to start her up a few hours later...it just turned and turned but didn't start.

So what was wrong?

 

[DiegoThundy]

Yeah, I'm kinda of curious as to what the problem is. My guess is it is the fuel pump/clogged fuel line (how??????), or some other system that went out. I would suggest the distributor, but it's way too new and you should have started getting other problems or a code or two before. It's a bit odd. Let us know if you find out, birdman!