New here.

[markmoses1968]

Hello all,


I don't own a Jeep Liberty yet but the one I'm supposed to buy from a roommate won't start any longer. Was at an Autozone where they used their plug-in diagnostic tool, it said Cranshafr Position Sensor. A person changed it out today. It still won't start. WTF? He said he could smell fuel and it is probably the fuel pump. I know nothing about autos and am looking for some guidance. When it would start it would usually not start the first try and then start strong on the 2nd try. Any ideas? Tried tightening the gas cap but no dice.

 

[The gov]

Welcome to a great site for getting information on your Liberty, I think the best chance for your friend is to find the source of the fuel smell, if buddy said he smells fuel and it is not starting easily on the first try, chances are a possible fuel line leak in the lines from the fuel tank to the common fuel rail for the injectors, or if the engine is flooded from now spark plugs firing, remember an engine requires 3 important things to function #1is a good fuel supply, #2 is good compression to mix the fuel and air mixture and #3 good spark from the ignition system ie spark plugs in order to run. so check to see if there is anything missing from this list. Start with the fuel line and see if there is a supply of fuel under pressure in the fuel rail, be careful it's under pressure but check at the Schrader valve on the passenger side it looks like a valve cap on a car tire, if it's good put the cover on and pull a coil of a spark plug and fit it on a good sparkplug then have someone turn over the engine while you check for fire on the plug to know if it is an ignition problem, no fire means no go! I strongly recommend that you become familiar with the mechanical aspect of these old Liberties if you're purchasing one, there are many great people on this site who can help you out with pretty much anything related to your Jeep, but it is great to be able to do as much as possible and understand how things work especially when you are dealing with older vehicles. Good luck and I hope this long winded response didn't deter you from buying your Liberty!

 

[LibertyTC]

Welcome to the forums. What year Jeep are you considering/ working on?

 

[DadOSix]

Hello all,


I don't own a Jeep Liberty yet but the one I'm supposed to buy from a roommate won't start any longer. Was at an Autozone where they used their plug-in diagnostic tool, it said Cranshafr Position Sensor. A person changed it out today. It still won't start. WTF? He said he could smell fuel and it is probably the fuel pump. I know nothing about autos and am looking for some guidance. When it would start it would usually not start the first try and then start strong on the 2nd try. Any ideas? Tried tightening the gas cap but no dice.

First off -

Welcome!

second - IMO, if it doesn't run, it isn't worth much. Couple hundred bucks at most if it is a kj. Especially, if you've never heard it run!

third - just bc the scan tool said crank sensor doesn't mean that is the actual problem.
you or your trusted buddy who works on things need to learn / understand how these things work. Learn to diagnose, rather than fire the 'parts cannon'.

fourth - these kj's are old and often develop electrical gremlins that are time consuming (and thus expensive) to find. Things as simple as a bad ground can cause all sorts of intermittent issues.

fifth - the fuel ecenomy ***** for a daily driver - around town. 12-16 max, if that is important to you.

There is a reason he's selling that jeep. Take your time and don't fall in love with the first one you see.

Us mechanic types ask a lot of questions for good reasons. We are trying to help you get up and running and save your cash in he long run.

Again - Welcome to the party!

 

[markmoses1968]

Welcome to a great site for getting information on your Liberty, I think the best chance for your friend is to find the source of the fuel smell, if buddy said he smells fuel and it is not starting easily on the first try, chances are a possible fuel line leak in the lines from the fuel tank to the common fuel rail for the injectors, or if the engine is flooded from now spark plugs firing, remember an engine requires 3 important things to function #1is a good fuel supply, #2 is good compression to mix the fuel and air mixture and #3 good spark from the ignition system ie spark plugs in order to run. so check to see if there is anything missing from this list. Start with the fuel line and see if there is a supply of fuel under pressure in the fuel rail, be careful it's under pressure but check at the Schrader valve on the passenger side it looks like a valve cap on a car tire, if it's good put the cover on and pull a coil of a spark plug and fit it on a good sparkplug then have someone turn over the engine while you check for fire on the plug to know if it is an ignition problem, no fire means no go! I strongly recommend that you become familiar with the mechanical aspect of these old Liberties if you're purchasing one, there are many great people on this site who can help you out with pretty much anything related to your Jeep, but it is great to be able to do as much as possible and understand how things work especially when you are dealing with older vehicles. Good luck and I hope this long winded response didn't deter you from buying your Liberty!

 

[markmoses1968]

Thanks! I haven't purchased it yet and won't unless it gets fixed. I will help out as much as I can. Once again, thanks for your insights, but I have to ask you, you don't think it's a fuel pump?

 

[The gov]

Thanks! I haven't purchased it yet and won't unless it gets fixed. I will help out as much as I can. Once again, thanks for your insights, but I have to ask you, you don't think it's a fuel pump?

I would check the fuel pressure at the fuel rail on the passenger side of the engine, it's a Schrader valve similar to a tire valve it has a black plastic cap on it. try to see if the fuel is under pressure, the proper way is with a fuel pressure gauge, old school is to just push the valve stem in and if it sprays fuel as far as the strut tower it's ok, proper working pressure should be above 47 to around 50 psi.
also wear proper safety glasses and no open flames.
another thing is pull the oil dipstick and smell the oil if you have a strong smell of gasoline you're dealing with other issues such as low compression from ring failure, if the oil level is higher than it should be on the dipstick it's probably unburned fuel which will destroy the engine by washing the wear surface of the bearings and all other moving parts. if you knew the vehicle's service history and if was well maintained that's one thing but if it's just been driven till it died thats a walk away situation.
All I can say is good luck and keep us posted on your progress.

 

[markmoses1968]

I would check the fuel pressure at the fuel rail on the passenger side of the engine, it's a Schrader valve similar to a tire valve it has a black plastic cap on it. try to see if the fuel is under pressure, the proper way is with a fuel pressure gauge, old school is to just push the valve stem in and if it sprays fuel as far as the strut tower it's ok, proper working pressure should be above 47 to around 50 psi.
also wear proper safety glasses and no open flames.
another thing is pull the oil dipstick and smell the oil if you have a strong smell of gasoline you're dealing with other issues such as low compression from ring failure, if the oil level is higher than it should be on the dipstick it's probably unburned fuel which will destroy the engine by washing the wear surface of the bearings and all other moving parts. if you knew the vehicle's service history and if was well maintained that's one thing but if it's just been driven till it died thats a walk away situation.
All I can say is good luck and keep us posted on your progress.

Will keep you posted on the findings. As I've said if it isn't repaired, I'm not purchasing it. I will look on CraigsList for something else.

 

[DHBirren2]

I noticed that several people wrote about checking the fuel pressure at the valve on the right side. Since you wrote that you're not very mechanically inclined, you should know that the fuel system has to be pressurized before you check for pressure. Fuel pressure decreases to zero over time after the engine is shut off.

First, open the hood and have your friend turn the key to the Run position (not Start). Listen for the fuel pump noise. It takes about three seconds for it to do its job. Also listen for any splashing or squirting noise near the top of the engine. Turn the key off and then you can unscrew the valve cap and check for pressure. Use a very small screwdriver to press the button in the valve, not your fingernail.