I have a Fiesta mk 3 on a K plate.
For the past month or so it has had problems starting the car mainly in the morning.
I have taken it to a Ford Dealer, and they say that there was an inherent problem with these cars and dont seem to be able to help!! - other then sell it!!
Things started to go wrong after we changed the starter motor. The Engine management system took a long time to "kick in" again and a week or so later i started having problems getting it to start. It would turn over fine, fire and then die. I was then advised to pull out fuse 20 ( fuel inj) when this happened - start the car....engine will then stall......put fuse back and start it again and it went fine. As this was intermittent i was relatively happy to continue doing this.
However, things have now progressed!! It now turns over but doesnt fire!! If you keep trying,just at the point where you are about to give up and walk it will eventually go. - and then go fine! This is also intermittent, but extremely annoying as i need a reliable car to get to work!!
Does anyone have any idea what i can do? I am in desperate need of help here as my budget doesnt run to another car!
PS have read all the past messages on here relating to "the dreaded 1.1 fiesta!!)
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This is an inherent problem with the 1.1 Fiestas ,& is more apparent as the weather gets colder.The basic problem is that the engine management system over-fuels the engine from cold &eventually floods the engine ,making it difficult to start.There is no 100% cure,but a few checks & mods can improve things.Basic engine checks should be made ;spark plugs ,HT leads & valve clearances & engine compression.If all these check out ok,I would suggest you take car to fuel injection specialist & ask for the coolant temp sensor circuit to be modified.(we use a 180kohm resistor soldered in parallel with sensor wiring.)This basically fools the engine electronics into thinking that the engine is actually warmer than it really is .Worth a try!!
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Thanks so much for that. We have put the resistor in and are now hoping that it will make a difference. With the weather being warmer the past few days it has of course started ok!
So i will wait and see. Will keep you posted.
Thanks again...
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Didn't one of the Tune-up gents mention this a while ago? They used a 47k resistor, the original enquirer was 'kev the rev' I think. I suppose the lower the resistor value is, the more the ecu is fooled into thinking 'the engine is warm, less fuel required'. If you reduce the value too far the engine wiil be very reluctant to start. Good luck.
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thanks everyone for all your help. Husband is an electronics engineer so he can change the resistor if needs be.I shall keep you posted!! By the way, it started ....reluctantly.....today!
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Did you ever need to change the resistor? I'm having similar problems!
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