my 2005 liberty wont start

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keith829

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I have a problem with my liberty that the mechanic cant figure out the car starts fine when its cold but when i run it for awhile and let it sit for 5 minutes the engine doesn't want to turn over .I got stranded the other day came back to it after a fiew hours and it started no problem, i took it to the mechanic and he said there was a misfire on the spark plugs he loooked at the plugs and they were fine it said cylinder 6 was misfiring, and also the o2 sensor by the manifold is bad but i dont think that is what it is because its been bad for 2 years, ive tried cleaning the throttle body, putting injector cleaner in it all doesnt appear to be working. Oh and also the jeep is 2005 limited 3.7 4x4 it has 170000 miles on it and im hoping to get more but if it strands me again at my job id have to get rid of it our get fired so someone please help
 

keith829

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One suggestion i have been looking up is a engine coolant sensor is there a way to test that to rule it out
 

belvedere

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"engine doesn't want to turn over"...this means the starter won't crank, but I have seen people on forums say this when it will crank but not start. So, just to clarify, is the starter running?
 

keith829

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Yes sorry i just had it replaced i should have added that it cranks its just not getting fuel our something it starts sometimes for a sec but cuts off the engine i have to restart it usually works the second time
 
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ltd02

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Mine has been slow to start when warm since I got it 8 years ago with about 80k on it. Now, with about 175k, still the same but it always does start.

I've heard cam or crank sensors can get flaky and act up especially when warm. Probably need a good scan for those. Also, always the possibility the fuel pump is getting tired. Could check pressure at rail.
 

keith829

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Yeah i suspected the fuel pump myself i put some injector cleaner in and fingers crossed it hasnt done it yet but i haven't really drove much on it. My mechanic scanned for fault codes but all he got was a bad o2 sensor and a misfire from a couple cylinders bit he pulled the plugs and they were good this thing is pretty much a mystery i know this is kinda a common problem with the libertys as they get older but i just put new tires on it and im really hoping to get more miles out of it.
 

belvedere

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Honestly it could be a lot of things. If it were mine, I'd start by measuring the fuel pressure. If you could put a gauge on it and then get it to act up, that would be great, but it's hard to "catch them in the act"!
 

CzarKJ

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Three things... Fuel, Spark and air. He pulled the plugs but are you getting spark? Then fuel pressure gauge test. Air filter not clogged grossly.
 

Billwill

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Try swap the Fuel Pump Relay over with an identical one next to it in the relay box under the hood. While you are there swap over the ASD relay with an identical one.

Check fuel filter is not clogged and I have seen on many forums that only properly gapped NGK plugs are acceptable.
 

JasonJ

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Is this a common problem on older liberty's? Really? I've never heard of it being common.

Nonetheless, I have heard of this issue, cranks but no start when hot, before. On other cars. On one it was a fuel issue, I believe something to do with proper venting in the tank itself.

On another, it was the engine bay mounted PCM getting heat soaked. The internal electronics on the PCM would fritz out and not send the proper signals and commands needed to start the engine.

I concur with the others, air/fuel/ignition at the proper time is all that is needed to run the engine. Check these things before and during one of its fits, and see what the results are.
 

johnnygrace

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Was there ever a solution for this problem? My 04 liberty with about 165k does this sometimes. A few times in the last month. I drive about 30mins on the hwy, stop to pickup my son and when I try to restart it turns over but but won't run.

Sometimes I'll try cranking 10 times and finally get it going. Once it does start it is rough like it's not getting enough fuel or air and then it normalizes and runs fine.

A couple weeks ago it happened and after trying to start it a bunch of times it finally stopped turning over at all. I got a jump and it started right up. Went to AutoZone and they ran a test on the battery and alternator and said both were fine. IDK what to do if anything honestly....don't have a lot of time to screw around with it.
 

Billwill

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There are known problems with the cam and crank sensors whereby they can fail when they heat up.

You can disconnect the connector on the sensors and measure the sensor resistance when cold. Then heat up the sensors a bit with a heat gun...if the resistance rises than the sensor is bad.

Best to replace with Mopar parts from what I have read!

If the engine does not crank at all there is a common problem with the Actuator Pin Assembly which is what turns the ignition switch when you rotate the key. The cluster lights will come on but the actuator pin is starting to break and does not have the strength to turn the last few degrees to the Start position.

You can try the following.

Check fuse #8 40 Amps under the hood is good.
Try start it in Neutral instead of Park.
With the ignition turned ON and in Park or Neutral so you do not run anybody over, remove the Starter Relay under the hood. Identify female pins 30 and 87 inside the empty socket.

Briefly jumper these two female pins together.... engine should turn over and run if fuse #8 is OK.

This procedure bypasses the ignition switch, the actuator pin assembly and the Park and Neutral interlocks and definitely points to a broken Actuator Pin Assembly or faulty ignition switch

If this procedure above does turn over the engine you need to remove the plastic covers over the steering column..two female Torx screws.

Remove the ignition switch off from the Actuator Pin assembly..one smaller Torx screw which needs a male Security Torx driver which has a hole drilled down its centre.

If you see bits of debris falling out then the tip of the actuator pin has broken off. Dealers do not sell this assembly but you can get it from Dorman.

In the meantime with the key in the ignition and in Park or Neutral you can turn the ignition key with a small flat screwdriver to start and run the Jeep.
 

johnnygrace

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There are known problems with the cam and crank sensors whereby they can fail when they heat up.

Thanks Bill - I replaced both of these sensors a few years back but it's possible I need to replace again. This sounds like the most likely situation as it only happens when the engine is already hot from 30 mins of driving and has only been off for 5-10mins. Never had this issue
or any other starting issues with a cold start. Changing that crankshaft sensor was a bear last time...

Wondering if it could be the fuel pump as previously suggested? Hard to imagine it would only happen when the engine was hot. Possibly feels like an air or fuel delivery issue.
 

turblediesel

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Back when I was young "vapor lock" could jappen to a hot engine with metal fuel lines. The fuel line would get hot enough to vaporize the fuel in the line so no flow to the carburettor.

The other thing that would cause these symptoms was a cracked, leaky, rubber diaphram in the mechanical fuel pump. Worked until it warmed up.
 

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