my xj overheated and shut off... I have let it cool downand checked all my fluids but it will not start again. My fatherin-law says it is turning over just fine... any ideas? looks like also my battery is low so I am going to charge it and see if that helps any... any other ideas?

I smell something like burnt plastic, but I figured if the engine was shot would it try to turn over?

 

Job #1 is to figure out WHY the engine overheated. Overheats are very hard on the engine, particularly the cylinder head.

Job #2 is to be sure that the battery is charged and up to the task. Have it load tested if you are unsure of the condition.

Job #3 if it still doesn't start is to figure out if you are missing spark or fuel, or BOTH

 

ok overheated because I got stuck and when I finally got out it seemed to smell of plastic, then I drove (not hard) another 100ft? maybe and it stalled and died.
and will not restart. it turns over fine my father says but it will not actually start

 

bump... any more Ideas... double checked all my fuel lines, battery is charged... gonna give it the old ether in the air intake test tomorrow... kinda confused now because minus the overheating earlier it all seems like it should be starting atleast? gad gauge shows 1/4 a tank? I dunno

 

Did the car "smoke" from the tail pipe after you overheated it? White or blue smoke if it did?

 

Also, what year is it and did it throw a check engine light?

 

ok I will recheck my engine light codes I already had one going for unplugging the battery so I will let you know on that later... ummm there was white smoke from under the hood then it stopped after I was not stuck anymore...

 

ok checked my codes this morning and besides the battery recently disconnected code 12 I got an 11. Which says "No ignition reference signal detected during cranking (bad hall effect) OR timing belt skipped one or more teeth; or intermittent loss of either camshaft or crankshaft position sensor".

any help would be appreciated. I am saddened by the jeep not starting.

 

Check the wire bundle coming out of the distributor. Make sure those wires aren't fried.

What where you stuck in? Mud? Have you taken the distributor cap off to see if there is crud in there?

 

no stuck on rocks and a deep hole... finally got out of it. I will check the wire bundle and stuff today. I figure though I am no mechanic if it was the actual camshaft that it wouldn't turn over? maybe I am just for wishful thinking.

 

Camshaft sensor. It would be difficult to break a camshaft in a push rod motor.

 

shows how much I know about motors... plus I was looking at price tags lol. well it turns over but will not start... my guess is the sensor but I will do more investigating today.

 

Get one of these

http://www.harborfreight.com/inline-...cker-4424.html

plug it into the coil and ground the other end to the block. Have a helper crank the engine while you see if the lamp flashes. If there is no flashing then you have a spark problem. If you have flashing then hook the coil back up to the distributor and move on to the plug wires. Do the same thing. If you get no spark here but you are at the coil then you have a distributor issue.

If you are getting spark from the wire you need to pull the plugs and test them to see if they are sparking. It isn't unheard of for a plug to fail due to heat. It has happened to me on my street bike twice.


If you are getting spark everywhere you need to move onto fuel. Go to a local auto parts store and see if they will let you "rent" a fuel pressure gauge with their loan-a-tool program. (with the program you put a deposit down which you get back when you return the tool)

Check the fuel pressure by hooking the tester up to the schrader valve then turn the key to "Run". Check the pressure it should climb and hold decently. If the pressure plummets after the fuel pump kicks off then you may have a defective fuel pump assembly or leaking injector.

 

turns out I am replacing the camshaft sensor and a couple of other things friday seems this is the answer according to a mechanic friend

 

Job #1 for a no-start is to ALWAYS check for spark. Easy to do.

If you have no spark at all, the #1 suspect is the crankshaft position sensor. It is the most common sensor failure on the 4.0 Without the input signal from the crank sensor, you will not have spark, and you will not have fuel going TO the fuel injectors (even though you may have good pressure in the fuel rail).

That code can mean either a crank sensor or a cam sensor. And the crank sensor fails way more often. Both of these sensors can be tested with a meter and a manual if you are so inclined.

Good luck and let us know what you find!