car won't start....sometimes.

what about a neutral safety switch.... next time it doesn't work try moving shift to neutral then park again..... or even try starting in neutral...

my wife's jeep wont start from time to time and its the shifter... the fact you get a shift indicator error could be that the car doesn't know what gear its in so it wont start.... I dont know just another thing to look in to!
 
The park neutral switch would prevent the starter from engaging at all.

Cam your issue sounds fuel system related. The injector idea sounds likely. But the swing in fuel pressure kinda leans toward a fuel pump problem.
 
97stscaddy said:
AdvanceTrac is just a more advanced type of Traction Control. The LS could have either one as an option.

The PAT system prevents the engine from starting if the Key isn't recognized. It will still crank (turn over) but it won't fire. You're gonna have to take it to a dealer to have that system diagnosed.
Click to expand...

How is it that a key can suddenly not be recognized? And then later on it is again? That makes no sense. Although when taken in context that this is happening to an LS, it starts to make a little more sense.

I went to the garage this morning to start the car. Crank. Crank. Crank. Finally on the 3rd attempt it fired up. (that's what brought me to this thread). I have a history of charging system gremlins on this car. Totally drained batteries, new alternators, new batteries, and now this.
 
I never have the gauges sweep either or random cylinder fire. when the pats light strobes....all it does is crank....once you turn the key back on and the light shuts off....it will fire on the first crank (not like it was flooded or anything)

idk about the key? how does it work? magnetic? comp. chip?
 
How is it that a key can suddenly not be recognized? And then later on it is again?
Click to expand...
Maybe not so much an issue with the key itself, but with the receiver/transponder in the ignition switch, or the theft system control module. But the key can't really be ruled out either.

Yeah there's a little ICM chip in the key that picks up a signal from the switch when it's inserted. Somehow or another either with a short radio transmission or possibly even through the key itself there is a code delivered to the ignition switch from the key which then disables the PAT system and allows the car to start.
I'm pretty sure the PATS disables the fuel injectors so the engine just doesn't get any fuel. But as I said before, the only way to diagnose it is to take it to Ford.

You could try to program a new key to the car and see if it still does it with the new one, but you need to have 2 keys that are already programmed to the car to do it.
 
So it cranks but won't start?

Just a thought here, does this model have the IAC valve on the throttle body? Maybe it's carboned up. Just a thought.
 
UPDATE---
I have the Optima battery back in the car. The original was a 'non-starter'. (Hah) I have put the trickle charger on every night since this last weekend and have had no trouble. Until this morning. Had to try several times to get going. Finally started. It was only fifteen degrees out and that is the coldest its been, but it didn't act as if the cold was the problem because cold usually makes the engine turn over more slowly and that wasn't the problem today. So its still a puzzle.
Anybody else get a handle on this yet???
KS
 
nope...I went the battery route and bought a new red top but still have the same issue.
 
Happened once on Tuesday, hasn't happened since.

Going to the dealer in the next few days for an oil change, I will see if they have ever heard of this happening.
 
LSblack00 said:
Happened once on Tuesday, hasn't happened since.

Going to the dealer in the next few days for an oil change, I will see if they have ever heard of this happening.
Click to expand...

cool. that would be nice.

last night, I leave my house and about a quarter mile up the road, when I leave the stop sign, boom, car shuts down as if i turned off the key, look up at pats light and its strobing again...shut of key turn it back on, and it takes off as if nothing happened.....grrrr
 
i'm putting my money on that its part of the PATS, not neccesarely the key but maybe the PATS module around the key cilinder or the wiring. again just a guess
 
Found something that may be useful for your PATS issue while I was looking for info on another problem.


http://deneau.info/ls/s6x~us~en~file=s6xj1b06.htm~gen~ref.htm

This caught my attention as well
* The vehicle starts and runs for longer than 1 second, then stalls

* This is not a passive anti-theft system (PATS) issue. PATS never disables a running engine.
Click to expand...
So the stall must have been caused by something else. Which kinda makes this seem like a PCM problem.


For some reason I cant get it to link straight to the section about the PATS system. So anyway, scroll down and click on section 19: "Electronic Feature group" then click on the PATS section and you can hunt around and see if you find anything else that you can look into.
http://deneau.info/ls/
 
97stscaddy said:
Found something that may be useful for your PATS issue while I was looking for info on another problem.


http://deneau.info/ls/s6x~us~en~file=s6xj1b06.htm~gen~ref.htm

This caught my attention as well So the stall must have been caused by something else. Which kinda makes this seem like a PCM problem.


For some reason I cant get it to link straight to the section about the PATS system. So anyway, scroll down and click on section 19: "Electronic Feature group" then click on the PATS section and you can hunt around and see if you find anything else that you can look into.
http://deneau.info/ls/
Click to expand...


nice find:D
 
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