Hi, been reading all these forums getting lots of good info and sometimes too much info. we Luv our Jeeps but they can be Headaches! I have two. this post if for my 1990 Pioneer inline 6. auto. 2wd-4wd. over the past few months, it has been starting slower, taking longer. already changed the usualy suspects, cap, wires, plugs, battery. sounds like it will continue to get worse till it won't start. seems to me if it was the Cam position sensor it would just stop starting.. not a gradual slower starting. when the sensor goes it goes...some suggest fuel pressure, have the TB injector cleaned, check for air leaks, so this is normal wear and tear? my other problem is it seems to be consuming more and more gas. I don't smell any gas leak, any ideas? and just this past month, occassionally it gets stuck trying to get it out of 4wd to 2wd. some suggested a vaccum line problem to the front axel? I read going in reverse helps to unlock it but is this bad news? would be a shame, it's a southern car, little rust, 270,000 miles. if you have anything else to check out I might be missing, please let me know. thanks

 

Sounds like you're kinda headed the wrong direction here and have something simple that we're missing. If you're definitely getting significantly worse mileage than you were recently, we're probably lookin for a bad sensor somewhere. Dunno if these cars have coolant temp sensors for controlling cold start mixture. Could be a giant vacuum/air leak somewhere, but usually that causes a lean condition and super good mileage.

If it was CPS, you'd probably just get a no start at all. If it was low fuel pressure, you'd probably be down on power. A dirty throttle body probably won't affect you're mileage suuper badly.

You change the fluid in the transfer case lately?
Just curiously, at 270k, have you ever done a compression test?

 

Longer crank times sometimes means a weak fuel pump. Next time you do a cold start, try the "poor man's prime".

Turn the key just to on, listen for the fuel pump to cycle, about three seconds. Turn the key to off, repeat twice. Then start the Jeep and see if it cranks for a shorter time than it had been doing.

If it fires off quicker, well you know what's next.

 

First off, that's not a cam sensor. You can actually unplug your distributor harness and a Renix Jeep will run.

Do yourself a favor and click on the link in my signature and do posts 1, 3, 4 and 5 before chasing your tail any longer.

Every 30,000 miles you need to replace plugs, wires, cap and rotor.

 

I will copy all these suggestions. this is my oldest jeep of two..(1990+1994) and I want to keep one of them running..LOL I live in OHIO and have no garage, so they do get exposed to the elements. thanks again!