Au 2 xr6 starting problem and running issues

jonnyblazing187 · 01-07-2011, 12:53 AM

Hi

I have a 2001 au2 xr6 automatic running on petrol and I bought brand new so I know the complete history of the car.
These problems sound bad but the car is not a bomb and it runs well all the time but I like to get the most out of the car and if I could resolve these issues it would make it an even better car.

I have done the following repairs over the last few months.

spark plugs and ignition leads
fuel filter and added injector cleaner to fuel
oil and oil filter
cleaned k&n panel air filter
replaced gearbox
radiator, thermostat and replaced coolant

Firstly, every morning when i start the car or after it has been sitting for a few hours, the engine cranks for how ever long i hold the starter motor on and will not start until i stop cranking and try again. on the second attempt the car starts in the first few cranks.( I know you need to let the fuel pump prime first but it still happens)

Also once the car starts it sounds like not all cylinders are firing at first because it splutters for a few seconds and then runs as normal.(this was before the fuel filter and the injector cleaner)

After i changed the fuel filter and used the injector cleaner the problem seamed to go away, once the injector cleaner was no longer in the petrol the car started to do this again.

Then I read through the forums following similar problems and found one person put metholated spirits into the petrol tank and I tried this before i bought new parts.
To my surprise this actually fixed the problem temporarily
the splutter didn't happen while the metho was in the tank.

Now that there is no more metho in the tank the splutter is greatly reduced at start up and now i don't need to wait for the fuel pump to prime and it start after the first turn of the key but still has a little splutter sometimes.

What else could i do to fix this problem? from my experience this issue seems to be caused somewhere in the fuel system.[I am going to put more metho in to the tank and replace the fuel filter again just to be 100% sure]

Secondly, the first problem contributes to this issue.
When i am at a complete stop and push the accelerator in quickly the car hesitates for a moment just as the rpm gets past idol(less than a second)[sounds like a misfire or just one cylinder not igniting),then takes off normally and accelerates without a problem.{the reason I know this is because of the first problem is it went away with the injector cleaner in the tank**

The third problem is something I have noticed over time,
last year the car was overheating and needed the thermostat replaced.(This caused some parts to break. the gearbox went at the same time and I found out that the oil cooler for the box was blocked so i replaced the radiator)
After I changed the thermostat its housing leaked like a sieve(This was fixed with gasket goo)

The problem that i have noticed is when the car is running cold it runs better and accelerates much faster that when the engine is warm.(After the car warms up there is a small loss in performance)like in the first 1km until it warms up.

Then when the car is running with the air con on there is even more of a performance loss this gets even worse on hot days.(this is not like a small loss of power it feels like 30-40% in the worst case hot with air con) The car starts to idle roughly in traffic and you can feel the break pedal vibrate like the transmission is under strain.

Also with the air con running on hot days driving the car is reluctant to accelerate and doesn't want to kickback gears even when it does it take what feels like 3 times longer to get to the speed limit.[ I know that air cons use some hp but this causes the car to struggle to find power]

To me this problem seems like it is caused by the engine not being cooled properly because the hotter the engine the more the performance drops.

Has anyone ever had a similar problem or know what causes this?[tomorrow i am going to buy a coolant and radiator flush, Then i am going to check the thermo fans are operational.

After I do this I will update this post with the results.

If any one has the problems or something similar happen to their car please ask me or post what happened to you because I have done almost all repairs myself so i can help you with anything you want to ask. This will also give me a better idea on how to fix the issues that I am having.

I appreciate any comments or ideas.
Thanks

mik · 01-07-2011, 01:59 AM

dunno mate , but some things i would look at would be the coil pak, fuel pressure, battery in good order, earths etc, overheating due to thermo fans not running? i `m thinking a down battery might play havoc with the electronics? if you still have the old fuel filter check the contents for blockage,gunk /water, i`d make sure the electricals are up to scratch first, vacuum leaks? blocked cat? does it blow any smoke? let us know how you go.

The Monty · 01-07-2011, 08:18 AM

Check your intake manifold gasket as well, and clean out your throttle body. Simply get someone in the car while its off to hold the asccelerrator down, get a little bit of WD40 on a rag and get your fingers in there and wipe out all the blackness.
I would also check your cat. Sounds like it could be a little blocked, or collapsed.

Mr Hardware · 01-07-2011, 08:37 AM

I had an AU1 classic that behaved like this a little bit
I flogged it off before i fixed the issues, but i always suspected it was fuel system related
I did injector cleaner and changed the fuel filter but they didn't really fix the issue
The more i booted it off the lights the more obvious the problem was
I always suspected I had either a slight leak in the fuel system (either in a line or in the rail), or i needed new injectors, or needed to rotate the sock on the fuel filter (do a search) or needed a new fuel pump

The Monty · 01-07-2011, 09:07 AM

Mr Hardware, I had a problem in my modded au 3. when I would put my foot down, lift, and put it down again, it would just burble and backfire. same as if I coasted up to the lights and then nailed it, it would just splutter until I lifted and got into it gently. Never fixed the issue, couldnt find ot what it was. this was with new fuel filter, fuel pump, plugs, leads, cat, everything except injectors. I always suspected leaky injector, but could never pinpoint it.
It first started when I ran dry ice in the airbox at Willowbank.

FGII-XR6 · 01-07-2011, 11:28 AM

I'd look at the intake manifold gasket and the coilpack, does the problem improve when running E10?
as mentioned above injectors are also a possibility there are mechanics that can do an on car injector clean I had it done a while ago and it worked well.
welcome to the forum

Good luck

Mr Hardware · 01-07-2011, 11:40 AM

Yeah i always had my quiet money on the injectors

jonnyblazing187 · 02-07-2011, 02:58 PM

Thanks every one for your help. its been about four day since i have put the metho through the fuel and the starting problem has completely gone, so what i think happened is that some where in the fuel line could have been blocked or or there was a build up some where further up maybe closer to the injectors.

I have had my injectors cleaned last year, i pulled them out and took them to a specialist.

My exhaust is new i had carline make me one. 2.5in pipe with pacemakers and a hi-flow cat

The radiator flush and new coolant fixed the running issue completely there is
no struggle when hot and now no lack of performance when the car is warm just have to wait till summer to see if it gets worse.

I have checked the themo fans they work.
and the battery is new

About checking the fuel filter when the car was new the car was serviced at a ford dealership and the never did everything that you paid for and if you didn't inspect all the parts changed or repaired they just wouldn't do it.
one service i bought iridium spark plugs and they didnt even replace them but i took the car back and made sure they did.
Then when i was getting the fuel pump replaced at the dealership the so called mechanic didn't put the fuel pump back in correctly and the car was leaking fuel and smelled all through the car.
that was dangerous and i think the bloke got fired for that.

so after i stopped going to ford i did the work myself i found the fuel filter was the factory original filled with black shi* but i have since put 2 new filter in the car and each time they were clean i think one filter every year is enough.

I would just like to say a big thanks to every body that commented you have given me more thing to think about

Cheers

**SSD-85** · 02-07-2011, 03:37 PM

I had this problem with my XR6 VCT too. If you blip the throttle while turning it over it will start (as you know). It also happened to my AU2 XR8. Another observation I made is that it happened to my AU2 fairmont only when I used Caltex fuel.

So id agree with the idea of a clogged fuel system. E10 works wonders.

midgetyone · 03-07-2011, 09:17 PM

I have the same issue and I notice people mentioning E10 and metho as solutions to fuel issues and wondering how the help exactly?

The Monty · 03-07-2011, 10:49 PM

By loosening crud in the lines/injectors. But it will make the problem worse if the crud is in the tank, as it will go through the pump and filter.

FGII-XR6 · 04-07-2011, 01:03 AM

the metho and E10 helps get water out of the fuel tank. alcohol is soluable in both water and petrol so it acts as a medium to allow the 2 to mix clearing minor water contamination. this will not work if you have litres of water in the tank but small contaminations that can cause problems will be resolved

TheSly1 · 04-07-2011, 09:05 AM

Gee raving review for going to dealerships, my god, not only are they way overpriced they dont do the work?

When is that acceptable anywhere else.. pffft

Quote:

Originally Posted by jonnyblazing187

About checking the fuel filter when the car was new the car was serviced at a ford dealership and the never did everything that you paid for and if you didn't inspect all the parts changed or repaired they just wouldn't do it.
one service i bought iridium spark plugs and they didnt even replace them but i took the car back and made sure they did.
Then when i was getting the fuel pump replaced at the dealership the so called mechanic didn't put the fuel pump back in correctly and the car was leaking fuel and smelled all through the car.
that was dangerous and i think the bloke got fired for that.

so after i stopped going to ford i did the work myself i found the fuel filter was the factory original filled with black shi* but i have since put 2 new filter in the car and each time they were clean i think one filter every year is enough.
Cheers

midgetyone · 04-07-2011, 01:24 PM

Cool. Thanks guys

jonnyblazing187 · 04-07-2011, 01:32 PM

Thanks TheSly1 I really appreciate your lack of caring about the topic and just commenting about what ever get your rocks off.

The reason I brought up the dealership was because the service history before I started working on the car might not be as reliable. I know what i have done and changed but I do not know nor trust the reliably of ford after my experiences with them

TheSly1 · 04-07-2011, 02:07 PM

mate, didnt mean to offend, it seems the topic was sorted and i learnt something from the thread, it wasnt a dig at you..

Quote:

Originally Posted by jonnyblazing187

Thanks TheSly1 I really appreciate your lack of caring about the topic and just commenting about what ever get your rocks off.

The reason I brought up the dealership was because the service history before I started working on the car might not be as reliable. I know what i have done and changed but I do not know nor trust the reliably of ford after my experiences with them

mik · 04-07-2011, 02:34 PM

good to see problems resolved, well done.

22heritage22 · 28-09-2016, 10:02 PM

G day all, i just resolved an issue i had with heavy fuel usage ,on my vct au2 xr6 ,Two mechanics had said there were no codes ,which i think maybe the battery terminals weren't supplying enough current to get em working?. i had done all the usual stuff gaskets etc and found that ford have different plugs for vct and non vct 4.0l engines.changed plugs and the issue went away.back from 380 ks a tank to around 570 klm,s a tank or so it states on the DTE on dash.also check the battery leads / terminals . i filed mine like new and it also gave extra klm,s.cheers fords also stated they have had issues with platinum plugs and the vct xr6 au2,s.I hope this helps someone as it took me a while to figure out.cheers. JACK