Starting problems 2000 Ford F150

Starting problems

I’m having starting problems. It cranks over just fine but will not fire. This has happened 4 times in the last 3 years. After letting it sit over night, it will fire right up as if nothing had been wrong.
I’ve tried doing the following with no positive results;

1. Sprayed starting fluid in the intake while cranking the engine.
2. Tried locking/unlocking the door to see if it was a security/anti-theft issue.
3. Installed a new battery.
4. Installed a new fuel filter.
5. The ignition key is the chip type, so I tried using my spare key.
6. Disconnected the battery then reconnected it after a couple minutes.
Please help me resolve the problem.

Is the check engine light on?

First if there is a check engine light on it would be the best place to start. Pull any codes and post them below in the comments. For now we will assume the check engine light is not illuminated. Next we need to determine what the engine is not getting when it will not start.

• 4 Things an Engine Needs in order to Run

Once we know what the engine isn’t getting we can concentrate on the “Why” of your starting problems. Since you tried spraying starting fluid in the engine and got nothing there is a good chance you do not have spark. This would be a common cause for starting problems. We can check for spark and confirm this with a spark tester.

Engine Ignition

The ignition system consists of the following:

• ignition coil
• ignition wire and bracket
• spark plugs
• crankshaft position CKP sensor

The ignition system is:

• an electronic distributorless ignition system (EDIS) controlled by an electronic engine control (EEC) integrated into the powertrain control module (PCM).
• set at 10 degrees before top dead center (BTDC) for base timing and it is not adjustable.

The ignition coil :

• changes low voltage pulses from the powertrain control module to high voltage pulses.
• sends high voltage pulses to the spark plugs through the spark plug wires.
• has three transformers.
• has six spark plug wires, one to each end of each transformer.
• is mounted on top of the intake manifold.

Spark plug wires carry high voltage pulses from the ignition coil to the spark plugs.

The spark plugs:

• change high voltage pulses to spark at gap which ignites fuel and air mixture.
• have a platinum-enhanced active electrode for long life. The active electrode is different for LH and RH sides.

Original spark plugs on the RH side (cylinders 1, 2 and 3) spark plugs are AGSF-34EG.

Original spark plugs on the LH side (cylinders 4, 5 and 6) are AGSF-34E.

Replacement spark plugs are AGSF-34EE; the electrodes are platinum-enhanced and can replace either a RH or LH spark plug.

The crankshaft position (CKP) sensor:

• is a variable-reluctance sensor.
• senses a missing tooth on crankshaft damper pulse ring.
• generates a crankshaft position signal which is sent to the powertrain control module. The powertrain control module counts this signal for engine rpm and spark advance.