Only Sometimes My Car Won't Start!

[Greg Z]

OK, Lets say I drive it 3 days in a week. And all throughout that day. One of those days sometime once during the day after I kill it and go inside a store, when I come back it simply turns over but will not fire. If I wait a few minutes or so, then it will usually fire, never have I had to tow. This has been in the past. Yesterday I went to the Garage and it would not start at all. This was the first time that the first start of the day it would not start. I tried for several minutes but no start. Went out this morning and it started!!! What should I look for and will I have to wait till it won't start again? It seems to be getting worse so now I don't want to drive it at all for fear of being stranded!

[t70]

carbed or gm fuel injection or bosch???

[Artie]

OK, Lets say I drive it 3 days in a week. And all throughout that day. One of those days sometime once during the day after I kill it and go inside a store, when I come back it simply turns over but will not fire. If I wait a few minutes or so, then it will usually fire, never have I had to tow. This has been in the past. Yesterday I went to the Garage and it would not start at all. This was the first time that the first start of the day it would not start. I tried for several minutes but no start. Went out this morning and it started!!! What should I look for and will I have to wait till it won't start again? It seems to be getting worse so now I don't want to drive it at all for fear of being stranded!

New battery? Check the battery posts to see if they are covered with corrosion. If so then this is your problem.

Artie

[islandbloke]

Surely Artie, if it turns over but doesn't fire it's not a battery problem?

Sounds like a duff sensor or similar, although an intermittent like this could be ANYTHING.

Do you have Freescan Greg?? That might be a good starting point. Have you checked for a spark on the times she won't fire?

I think it's usually a process of elimination, tracing things like this.

[Greg Z]

Surely Artie, if it turns over but doesn't fire it's not a battery problem?

Sounds like a duff sensor or similar, although an intermittent like this could be ANYTHING.

Do you have Freescan Greg?? That might be a good starting point. Have you checked for a spark on the times she won't fire?

I think it's usually a process of elimination, tracing things like this.

Artie must have had a long day! LOL

No, I don't have freescan yet but I plan on getting it based off Arties advice on some other stuff.

Problem with diagnosing it now, is that I have to hope it won't crank in my Garage because I'm not getting stranded anywhere. will Freescan work if it is just turning over and not fireing up?

What is a duff sensor? and how do I check it?

[s4simon]

Could be an alarm issue. Occassionaly would have the same problem - turn over but no fire. The alarm cut the spark to the sparkies. The cause was moisture in one of the connections.

[Artie]

Don't be so sure it's not a battery problem Mark. If the battery gives just enough juice to turn over but doesn't allow for enough juice to generate strong spark, this could be the problem, especially if the terminals are corroded. Now, this may not be the issue, but I'm always of the mind to start with the small/easy things then work my way to the more complicated problems.

Artie

[Setras]

I had the same problem with an RX7. This was a problem of the rotary engine wearning tips and flooding the chambers/pistons after you had switched it off. got round it by pulling the engine management fuse and turning over for 5 secs to clear the excess fuel, but doing every other start was a chore which ultimately resulted in it being found a new home........

When the probe gave me this problem it was the moby...... got it bypassed and never had an issue since.

I have know a battery to turn a car but not fire it, admittidly a ford escort

[esprits4de]

OK, Lets say I drive it 3 days in a week. And all throughout that day. One of those days sometime once during the day after I kill it and go inside a store, when I come back it simply turns over but will not fire. If I wait a few minutes or so, then it will usually fire, never have I had to tow. This has been in the past. Yesterday I went to the Garage and it would not start at all. This was the first time that the first start of the day it would not start. I tried for several minutes but no start. Went out this morning and it started!!! What should I look for and will I have to wait till it won't start again? It seems to be getting worse so now I don't want to drive it at all for fear of being stranded!

Had exactly the same problem ! Do you still have the stock chip in the ECU ?

After I got an update on the code, went for the 310 Hp chip code.

The phenomena never returned !

I was talked into exchanging the ECU , but even with a new ECU it still hapened.

Good Luck !

[Greg Z]

Had exactly the same problem ! Do you still have the stock chip in the ECU ?

After I got an update on the code, went for the 310 Hp chip code.

The phenomena never returned !

I was talked into exchanging the ECU , but even with a new ECU it still hapened.

Good Luck !

How do I check to see if I have the factory chip? I would very much so like to have an aftermarket chip.

[superdavelotus]

Are you starting with ot without foot on gas pedal?

Sounds like engine temp sensor if you are starting the car properly. They are only a few pounds/dollars, try one of these.

What's your temperature reading say just before you stop?

[Greg Z]

Are you starting with ot without foot on gas pedal?

Sounds like engine temp sensor if you are starting the car properly. They are only a few pounds/dollars, try one of these.

What's your temperature reading say just before you stop?

My foot is not on the gas. Temp, seems to be normal. Maybe it a lil on the high side, but still in the normal range. Can the switch be bought from a Lotus Dealer?

Sorry for all the questions, but I've owned a lot of cars before, but this Lotus is definitly a different species!

[sid1]

My foot is not on the gas. Temp, seems to be normal. Maybe it a lil on the high side, but still in the normal range. Can the switch be bought from a Lotus Dealer?

Sorry for all the questions, but I've owned a lot of cars before, but this Lotus is definitly a different species!

Had the exactly the same. I have tried to find the intermittant fault since 2 years, now I found the problem. My car has a piranha alarm system installed, after I cleaned the relays (they are open without a housing) inside the alarm box with contact spray and paper, the problem never appears again (now two months).

cheers andre