New LS owner here, with long cranking issues.

R

RyLS

Active LVC Member
Joined
Aug 16, 2021
Messages
148
Reaction score
36
Location
Florida
Hello everyone, and thank you for reading this thread in advance. Today, I bought a 2002 Lincoln LS V8. During the test drive, I noticed that the car took a little bit long to turn over when starting. But, seeing that the car was a good deal ($3500 for a clean one with no rust and barely 100k miles) I couldn't pass it up. As I kept driving during the day, the car kept taking longer, and longer to crank. Now it won't start on the first try unless I leave the key pegged for uncomfortably long. The car says the charging system is OK, and hasn't thrown any codes at me (and yes, I checked, the CEL isn't burnt out lol). I'm just curious as to what could be causing the long crank.

Thank you
 
Well, there are many possibilities.

First, lets agree on some terms. To me, "turn over' means that the starter spins the crankshaft over, also known as cranks. I think that maybe you are using turn over when you really mean is starts up (engine runs).


Let's start with a simple test. Next time you go to start it, turn the key to run, but not all the way to start. Wait three seconds and turn the key off. Repeat that a couple more times, going all the way to start the last time. Does the engine start faster that way?
 
joegr said:
Well, there are many possibilities.

First, lets agree on some terms. To me, "turn over' means that the starter spins the crankshaft over, also known as cranks. I think that maybe you are using turn over when you really mean is starts up (engine runs).


Let's start with a simple test. Next time you go to start it, turn the key to run, but not all the way to start. Wait three seconds and turn the key off. Repeat that a couple more times, going all the way to start the last time. Does the engine start faster that way?
Click to expand...
Got me thinking its fuel related since I just did that and she came to life right away!
 
RyLS said:
Got me thinking its fuel related since I just did that and she came to life right away!
Click to expand...
So, you could have a bad check valve in the main (passenger side) fuel pump, or an issue with the jet/aux (driver's side) fuel pump or the plumbing there. The LS fuel tank has two sumps, so there is a transfer pump on the left side that is driven by the fuel flow from the right side.

The other possibility is that you have one or more injectors that are leaking down. If that is the case, you will likely have hard starts even when doing the key trick if it has only been several minutes (not hours) since the last shutdown.
 
joegr said:
So, you could have a bad check valve in the main (passenger side) fuel pump, or an issue with the jet/aux (driver's side) fuel pump or the plumbing there. The LS fuel tank has two sumps, so there is a transfer pump on the left side that is driven by the fuel flow from the right side.

The other possibility is that you have one or more injectors that are leaking down. If that is the case, you will likely have hard starts even when doing the key trick if it has only been several minutes (not hours) since the last shutdown.
Click to expand...
Could I get away with it being a dirty fuel filter? Car has 108k and I've heard that those are to be changed frequently and I don't know the last time they were changed.
 
joegr said:
So, you could have a bad check valve in the main (passenger side) fuel pump, or an issue with the jet/aux (driver's side) fuel pump or the plumbing there. The LS fuel tank has two sumps, so there is a transfer pump on the left side that is driven by the fuel flow from the right side.

The other possibility is that you have one or more injectors that are leaking down. If that is the case, you will likely have hard starts even when doing the key trick if it has only been several minutes (not hours) since the last shutdown.
Click to expand...
Just went out and did the same thing again, and it took a little longer to start. But nowhere near the amount of time it took to start before
 
Changing your fuel filter is definitely a good idea, but I'm pretty sure it won't help with this problem. I'd also put a couple of bottles of Techron in when the tank is fairly low (say 50 miles to go) and then drive it another 25 miles before refilling the tank.
 
joegr said:
Changing your fuel filter is definitely a good idea, but I'm pretty sure it won't help with this problem. I'd also put a couple of bottles of Techron in when the tank is fairly low (say 50 miles to go) and then drive it another 25 miles before refilling the tank.
Click to expand...
Good idea. I'll run some injector cleaner through her. Too bad I just put a full tank of 93 on it!
 
most likely a faulty pump check valve. new pump is like 10 bucks on ebay

see if it persists with a full tank
 
And the more I drive it, the more I think it's my fuel pump going bad. Went to floor it on a hill and the car just sputtered, didn't go anywhere.
 
That's certainly a possibility, particularly with that added symptom.
At least the fuel pump's not that difficult to change (no dropping the tank or anything like that needed). Stay away from Airtex fuel pumps.
 
Still probably wouldn't hurt to change the fuel filter. Especially if you don't know maintenance history of the vehicle... or if the filter is original to the vehicle.
 
04_Sport_LS said:
Still probably wouldn't hurt to change the fuel filter. Especially if you don't know maintenance history of the vehicle... or if the filter is original to the vehicle.
Click to expand...
I'll change it along with the pump once I got some $$ on me. I'm not mechanically inclined and I bought this car because it was cheap and I needed transportation to get me to my new job and back.
 
RyLS said:
... I'm not mechanically inclined and I bought this car because it was cheap and I needed transportation to get me to my new job and back.
Click to expand...
Oh Wow. Sorry, but this will not end well at all.
 
RyLS said:
I'll change it along with the pump once I got some $$ on me. I'm not mechanically inclined and I bought this car because it was cheap and I needed transportation to get me to my new job and back.
Click to expand...
facebook.com/marketplace
 
RyLS said:
I'm not mechanically inclined and I bought this car because it was cheap and I needed transportation to get me to my new job and back.
Click to expand...

Please don't take this the wrong way... but you bought the wrong car for that.

The LS can be expensive to maintain... and requires a fairly high level of mechanical experience to work on and repair properly.

What I just said has been "echoed" on this forum many times over the years. People will be here to help you... but you may be in for a sharp learning curve.
 
Well, I'm willing to learn. And so far, I'm in love with it. If anything I'll just do what BMW owners do, dump them after the first sign of trouble.
 
LOL... you already have your first sign of trouble... or you wouldn't be on this forum.

Not trying to discourage you... but there is a big difference between "willing" to learn... and "able" to learn.

If you are serious about what you said... go to your local community college and sign up for some automotive classes.
 
04_Sport_LS said:
LOL... you already have your first sign of trouble... or you wouldn't be on this forum.

Not trying to discourage you... but there is a big difference between "willing" to learn... and "able" to learn.

If you are serious about what you said... go to your local community college and sign up for some automotive classes.
Click to expand...
Pretty sure I could turn a wrench here or there. I just have never done it because I've never had the need to. I always had the money to get other's to fix my stuff, but not now.
 
Big difference between "turning a wrench" ... and knowing how to diagnose and repair a problem

I suggest you go on Ebay and purchase the 2002 LS repair manuals. There are 3 of them... depending on what part of the car you are working on. Get all 3.
 
I had similar problems with my 03, fuel tank was all full of crap, previous pump disintegrated. not sure if they're the same though because I believe the O2 is a different generation than 03. Fuel pump and jet pump combo for my car cost about 1000 if you can even find them, lots of parts for this car are difficult to source, fuel pumps pretty cheap but that jet pump is ridiculous, I ended up taking mine apart and cleaning it cuz it's literally just a piece of plastic with a little metal nozzle and a sock filter in it, a couple of hoses, and like 800+ bucks for a new one, eat my nuts, lol!

04 sport is knowledgeable about these cars but he's a negative Nancy about people fixing things you'll notice if you read some posts on here, don't let him discourage you, there's a lot you can do yourself. Read the manuals, watch YouTube videos about it, take your time and be patient. He's a dealer mechanic and thinks everything should be by the book, he doesn't like or understand the need for temporary fixes because he gets to spend other people's money so take his negative attitude with a grain of salt.

Heres an online manual for free. 2006 Lincoln LS Workshop Manual -- brought to you by Owlman
 
Don't start SG. Don't carry things over from the other thread. If you persist... you won't like the end result.

And if you read RyLS's first post... you'd see that he has a 2002 LS. There were a considerable number of changes and re-designs between the Gen 1 (1999-2002) and the Gen 2 (2003-2006) ... with 2003 being a transition year.

Once again, (for the 4th or 5th time), I am no longer a dealer mechanic. I haven't been for the last 30 years.

And using Youtube can be problematic... depending on the knowledge and skill level of the person doing the video.
 
I'm not starting shit, I'm just stating facts. YOU don't start shit home slice. If you read my post you'll notice my second sentence states they are different.

You're correct about YouTube, I usually watch 2 or 3 to see who knows what they're doing and who doesn't. There's lots of great info on there if you can find it though all the bad ones.

Don't be so negative buddy, everyone has to start somewhere!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Members online

Total: 51 (members: 1, guests: 50)
Back
Top