jaramys

i have a 96 2.8 that i am so close to giving up on. ive seen alot of people with the same problem but i cant find out the solution. my car turns over but it only turns on if i hold the key for about 10-15 seconds while cranking then it struggles to start at that. ive heard it is the ecu relay which is under the ecu box but mine is not there. any suggestions. im going crazy

4Driver4

Any codes?

turbo510

It could be any number of things, but common problems are temp sensor, ignition switch, fuel pump. I just changed my '96 fuel pump for the second time in 15 months, had bought an aftermarket (China) pump instead of VDO, installed another $31 special temporarily last Saturday.

If you've never changed the temp sender, start there, unless you have VAG-COM and can see that the reading is OK.

You can test the output of your pump in a rough way by disconnecting the blue return hose at the fuel pump access cover, and fitting an extension hose to it that dumps into a container. When you try to start the engine, there should be fuel coming from that hose, which indicates the pressure is enough to open the pressure regulator.

For the ignition, watch the warning lights on the dash while cranking. They should stay on. Also, remove a plug wire from its plug, insert a spare spark plug and lay that on the manifold. Watch for sparks while cranking.

jaramys

codes are p1400 which is the egr, p1409 evap purge valve and 1500 which says fuel pump relay which i have already changed but still the problem occurs. one more issue is when i finially have the car running, the idle is really high and after about 18 mins it goes back to normal. i have come to relize that when the idle is high the purge valve has not engaged but after that 18 or so minutes.

turbo510

I'd still change the temp sensor. Clear those codes and see if they come back. When the engine finally starts, how does it run other than the fast idle?

jaramys

It runs pretty good. Would u no anything about y the purge valve would kick on after about 18~20 mins each time? I was thinking a relay