Technical > Automotive > Tough starting 03' Ford Escape in cold weather

Tough starting 03' Ford Escape in cold weather

The line is not frozen, if it was, it would not start.

If the battery is 9 years old it likely has lost alot of its CCA. You can bring it somewhere and the battery load tested...

You can also listen to how fast she is turning over, if it is going slower than normal... battery = weak.

I would look into the battery first...

reply to cypherstream
You mentioned misfires after a rain. Bad plug wires can give you similar symptoms as well, as they can 'leak' to ground. Do you hear a ticking or snapping sound at all? What shape are the wires in?

Matt is correct in saying listen to the crank speed, and the first thing to do. It shouldn't be laboured at all.

Also, you may want to check the wire ends at the coil packs for corrosion etc.

reply to cypherstream
In addition to the other possibilities, weak compression rings will cause hard starting in cold weather. With good maintenance I'd not think this ot be the problem, but a compression check while cold might be in order if other cuases aren't found.

You said no CEL "right now", but has there been one, and have you read any DTCs?

reply to cypherstream
I know on the Saturns, there's an issue with the coolant temp sensor going bad, and the engine can be fed erroneous data about the engine temp. This would result in a low amount of fuel being injected on startup, way less than is really needed on a cold morning.

I don't know if your Ford has the same failure issue with their temp sensor, but it's a direction to look in.

reply to cypherstream
Sounds like bad coil packs to me. Actually its the boots that go bad. But i would just go online VIA ebay or something like that and buy a set of chinese knockoffs. They work good and cost a lot less than what places charge. They are like 80 bucks a piece from a dealer and about 80 dollars for a whole new set from ebay.

Ebay coils are GARBAGE and should never be used. I bought some against my own good judgment and they all failed within a week. I used accels for a cheaper alternative and Ford OEM coils are the best to use. They are more expensive but then you wont have to hunt misfires down with you cheap POS china junk. You can find OEM coils on rockauto for a better price and you can find them online as well.

Im going make a suggestion to look into the fuel system. Your fuel filter may be clogged and or the fuel pump may be weak trying to get fuel to the engine in the cold.

Change the fuel filter and get a fuel pressure test.

Also, try to "prime" the fuel system first but turning the key from off to on a few times before turning the key over all the way to engage the starter.

Yet my china junk is still going strong 5 years later. You can also get top quality parts off ebay. Some of that ebay stuff is straight off a ford dealers shelf. Accels can be had off ebay for about 100 a set for new ones. My main point was that a ford dealer charges like 80 bucks a piece compared to ebay. When your dealing with a 4 popper it might not be much. but when you go up to the v10s and such you are looking at a lot of money. Even ford OEM parts can be had off ebay for a fraction of the cost. Since you said it had or has a miss when it rains its pretty certain to need coil packs and maybe more. A miss when its wet is a VERY common symptom of coil packs going bad with fords. Its not actually the packs usually that goes bad but the boots.

What are you smoking?! Find a set of Accels for 100 bucks PLEASE. Also, there are many other ways to obtain ford parts at a discounted rate. I can get a Motorcraft coil DG508 off ebay for 25 a piece or a full set for 195ish...

Either way I tried a few different sets of china coils and they all gave me noticeable misfires within a week that almost made my car undriveable.

reply to cypherstream
If this only happens when it's really cold, like 20' F and below, as others have mentioned, start with the battery. All the more reason since it's possibly the OEM battery. They do simply wear out, especially in colder climates. Nine years on a battery ain't nothing to complain about either !

reply to cypherstream
Thanks for all the suggestions. I still haven't had time to look under the hood yet... been very busy and with different schedules her car is not here when I am.

We've been parking her car in the garage on cold nights, and then she has absolutely zero problems starting the car.

I have a mountaineer and it does the same thing. There is an "alert" from Ford, but not a recall for it. When I finally get mine started it goes into diagnostic mode until I restart the truck.

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