1998 ford escort zx2 wont start
Asked by asphalt1972 Feb 01, 2014 at 11:12 PM about the 1998 Ford Escort 2 Dr ZX2 Cool Coupe
Question type: Maintenance & Repair
friend has a 98 escort zx2 was running but not now...he said he was driving and it dies at stop light he turned key off then started back up, did this 3 more times that day and then the next day while driving died and would not start...I have checked fuel pressure at the key on position it is 60 psi...spark to all 4 cylinders,would not attempt to start off starting fluid.....timing belt is intact, not sure if it has jumped time or a compression issue.....hoping something simple that I may have overlooked,,,any help is appreciated
6 Answers
Possibly dirty or faulty idle air control valve. Could also be egr stuck open.
I've seen a loss of vacuum due to a hose pop off (like pcv) cause stumble and running problems. Have that checked... When my alternator died it did like yours after the battery ran down.
BTW, ZX2's are DOHC 2.0L Zetec engine and do not have an EGR valve... The Ford engineers designed it so that timing is changed on the exhaust cam to account for emissions such that the EGR valve was not necessary..
Spray some starting fluid in air filter box and see if it runs for a few seconds. You may have fuel pressure but the injectors aren't pulsing.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=IovufM6dlpc -- check this out. This guy had same car and problem and after changing lots of stuff found the issue to be pcv valve and hose. He replaced the damaged/faulty pcv valve and hose and it runs good now.
My sons car did this and it was his internal timing. Dual over head cams timing has to be perfect
