Hey guys, I own a 2005 crossfire limited and today I had an issue that has me really worried. When I tried to start my car leaving for work this morning it wouldn't crank. The lights didn't dim so it's not my battery,it just sounded like it was trying to start but wouldn't ignite... I attempted to start it around 4 times in a row with no success. I let it sit for 1min while I was looking in my owners manual and when I tried it again it cranked up fine but the check engine light came on for the first time ever, this is also the first time my car has ever stuttered when trying to start.

I drove to work with the check engine light on and when I get to the parking garage I shut my car off/on about 10 times in a row to see if it would stutter again. It cranked up fine everytime and around the 4th time restarting my engine the check engine light went off and wouldn't reappear again. I'm taking my car to the shop tomorrow for a transmission flush/oil change but when I called and asked him if he could do an OBD2 reading he said that if the check engine light isn't on then nothing is going to come up.

Is this something I should be worried about? I was thinking that maybe I flooded my car and that's why it stuttered and why the check engine light came on but a co-worker of mine said that since it's an automatic he wouldn't think it would be possible for me to flood it. My warranty just expired literally 2 weeks ago so i'm freaking out that this could be something big =(

 

No need to freak out, and the guy you talked to was wrong. If your check engine light came on, the code will be stored in memory until it is cleared. Do yourself a favor, and go to your local autozone. They will read your error codes for you for free. Come back here and post the error code(s), and more advice will be given.

 

https://www.crossfireforum.org/forum...-no-start.html

 

Ask your co-worker why the transmission type would cause or not cause a flood condition. Sounds like crazy talk to me.

As for diagnosing your car here is fairly impossible. But flooding is not uncommon even for fuel injected engines. If the CEL was on that long, you should have a code stored. If it was a flooded condition, your code is probably a "rich" or misfire conditon until it cleared itself.

If you suspect it again, turn key off, press gas pedel to floor, turn key on and crank. If it starts, release gas pedal. If it won't start after 10 seconds, do not let up on pedal, turn key off and try to restart without letting up on pedal. If it won't start then, chances are it is not flooded.

Holding the pedal down is telling the ECU to "clear flood" and will not allow more fuel in the cylinders until you let up on the pedal.

James

 

Well, on the way to work today my car died at a red light it was the weirdest thing... everything was still on but the engine just stopped... put it in park and it cranked up fine. Left to get lunch today at work and car wouldn't start, it would turn on but wouldn't crank... waited 1min, tried it again and it came up fine.

Going to try that RCM soldering fix tonight, i'm praying that's my issue.

 

Sounds like it is!

Let us know.

 

if it shuttered for a moment...don't forget about the crankshaft position sensor....good luck...

 

Given your symptoms and the fact that the CEL cleared after 3 retries, I am going to say you need a new Crank Position Sensor...... if the CEL code is still stored it will likely be P0335...... or just check it when it happens again..(it will!)

 

Yeh i'm heading to AutoZone right after work to get the codes pulled, if it's P0335 it would be a crankshaft error and not an issue with the soldering?

 

Even if you have a P0335, I would still check the solder on the RCM. And, in case you don't already have it, here is the link for the CPS for $39: Your Parts Search Returned 1 Part(s)

I replaced mine about a month ago.

 

Thanks so much for the help guys... so it is the P0335, is there any difference between that crankshaft you just listed and this one posted below from autozone? I'm asking b/c they have this one from autozone in stock and i'm supposed to be taking a 4hr car trip this saturday... really scared it's going to stall on me somewhere.

AutoZone.com | | Crankshaft Position Sensor | CRANK POSITION SENSOR


So I just took out the RCM and my soldering iron just wouldn't get hot enough, it's 30w.. I left it on there for a good 30-45secs and still wouldn't liquefy but it would melt the solder instantly so I know it was working. I don't think it's the RCM anyway, under magnifying glass I didn't see a single crack.. the pins are protruding but it's not as bad as either of those pics in the how to guide. Was scared to leave the soldering iron on any longer didn't want to screw anything up... hopefully it's just the crankshaft sensor since that's the only error I was getting.

Quick question, i'm not exactly car savy... I understand why the crankshaft sensor would stall when trying to crank up initially but why would it kill the engine while I was just waiting at a red light?

 

That part from autozone looks like the correct one......

 

So does the crankshaft sensor affect acceleration at all? I switched it out today and my car is running 1000 times better... I don't have to put nearly the amount of pressure that i had to before to accelerate from a complete stop, would a fault crankshaft sensor be the reason why this was so bad?

 

Did you do a throttle reset... I dont recall if disconneting the battery will reset the thottle... anyone?

The CPS change shouldnt cause the effect of better throttle response....