hard starting durango

Posted By: ken65

hard starting durango - 02/07/10 05:36 PM

i have a 2003 durango with a 4.7. it use to start right up when you turned the key, but now it has to turn over several times before it will fire. is there something plugging up or something going out? please help.

Posted By: RapidRobert

Re: hard starting durango - 02/07/10 07:22 PM

Might pull the plugs & see that they're not fouled. That's the extent of my knowledge on the new stuff

Posted By: 340dart4spd

Re: hard starting durango - 02/07/10 07:31 PM

Quote:

i have a 2003 durango with a 4.7. it use to start right up when you turned the key, but now it has to turn over several times before it will fire. is there something plugging up or something going out? please help.

when is the last time it had a tune up?

Posted By: HotRodDave

Re: hard starting durango - 02/07/10 10:14 PM

Sounds like the fuel pump is loseing its prime. To test it just screw a fuel preasure gauge on the test port and see if it still has preasure after you shut the car off. It should hold preasure for a long time, as in days after the car is shut off. If preasure goes down it will take a little time for it to pump back up after it drains down. Another less acuratre but easier test is to wait till you know it will have a long crank time and try turning the key to the run position for about 2 seconds before cranking, this will allow the pump to build the preasure back up and if it fires right up after letting the pump run a couple seconds first you know your pump is in the early stages of dying.

Posted By: 62maxwgn

Re: hard starting durango - 02/08/10 02:19 AM

Did you ever change the fuel filter? Besides shocks,one of the most neglected parts on a car.

Posted By: HotRodDave

Re: hard starting durango - 02/08/10 03:58 AM

Fuel filter is not servicable on that, you have to replace the pump to do it. You can thank the democraps for that. The fuel in a return style system heats the fuel n the tank after a while and makes it evaporate and destroy th atmosphere so on the return less systems that all new cars have put the filter in the tank as part of the pump, luckily they tend to be very large capacity filters so they hold a lot of crap before they cause problems and usually the pump dies before the filter gets full of crap anyhow.

Posted By: bbtrux

Re: hard starting durango - 02/08/10 06:45 AM

what in THE HELL do you possibly want to blame a political party for a fuel filter design you dont like for?!?! the filters in those do pretty much last a lifetime.they are a fabric design,and if the media was unrolled,is tens and tens of square feet more area than the paper element in a conventional style filter.id bet five that its not a fuel filter related problem.

Posted By: 340dart4spd

Re: hard starting durango - 02/08/10 12:13 PM

Quote:

what in THE HELL do you possibly want to blame a political party for a fuel filter design you dont like for?!?! the filters in those do pretty much last a lifetime.they are a fabric design,and if the media was unrolled,is tens and tens of square feet more area than the paper element in a conventional style filter.id bet five that its not a fuel filter related problem.

I think he is out of his tree...

Posted By: GTXKen

Re: hard starting durango - 02/08/10 02:50 PM

Quote:

Sounds like the fuel pump is loseing its prime. To test it just screw a fuel preasure gauge on the test port and see if it still has preasure after you shut the car off. It should hold preasure for a long time, as in days after the car is shut off. If preasure goes down it will take a little time for it to pump back up after it drains down. Another less acuratre but easier test is to wait till you know it will have a long crank time and try turning the key to the run position for about 2 seconds before cranking, this will allow the pump to build the preasure back up and if it fires right up after letting the pump run a couple seconds first you know your pump is in the early stages of dying.

I agree that the pump is likely losing its prime. Not sure I agree with the second test though. I don't know that it will actually build any fuel pressure until after it starts cranking. I did have a similar situation with my Durango, it wouldn't start with the remote starter until the second try. 1st try it was priming the fuel rails and on the second try it would start. Interesting test because the auto start uses a defined crank time. After changing the pump it started 1st time every time. Fuel pump is easy to change but you have to drop the tank, make sure you run it low on fuel, like 20 miles past 0 DTE. A couple gallons of fuel sloshing around when you are dropping the take feels like a ton of weight.

Ken

Posted By: 340dart4spd

Re: hard starting durango - 02/08/10 02:54 PM

Quote:

i have a 2003 durango with a 4.7. it use to start right up when you turned the key, but now it has to turn over several times before it will fire. is there something plugging up or something going out? please help.

I know this might sound stupid..but is there a check engine light on? and is your charging system charging......

Posted By: wheelsup68dart

Re: hard starting durango - 02/09/10 01:31 AM

Next time you go to start the truck turn the key to on position and wait 5 seconds, shut off, then try to start. If it starts quicker then it is a pump prime pressure problem. This could be pressure bleeding back thru the pump or out of the injectors. If it is leaking out of the injectors then it could be flooding a little and needs to run to clear them out. To test that you need to hold foot to the floor when inital cranking and it will keep any additional fuel from entering cylinders.

Posted By: HotRodDave

Re: hard starting durango - 02/09/10 02:40 AM

I just went out and timed my 2000 durango fuel pump and it runs 3 seconds after turning the key to run and then stops. After sitting two days you can flip the key from off to crank as fast as you can and it fires right up. Most modern fuel systems will hold preasure for days or weeks or even months, I have pulled apart fuel systems in junk yard cars that have been there for a long time and had gas spray on me.

I just said that about the dems because they are the ones pandering to the greenies to pass stickter emmisions laws such as this one, would it make you feel better if I blamed the greenines instead?

Posted By: FuryUs

Re: hard starting durango - 02/09/10 11:32 AM

Quote:

I just went out and timed my 2000 durango fuel pump and it runs 3 seconds after turning the key to run and then stops. After sitting two days you can flip the key from off to crank as fast as you can and it fires right up. Most modern fuel systems will hold preasure for days or weeks or even months, I have pulled apart fuel systems in junk yard cars that have been there for a long time and had gas spray on me.

I just said that about the dems because they are the ones pandering to the greenies to pass stickter emmisions laws such as this one, would it make you feel better if I blamed the greenines instead?

You could say it however you want as long as you don't bring politics or religion into it. That tends to get things locked up around here. I'm just saying...