tdg1x

Hi everyone,
I have a 1997 xj that i absolutely love. It has had very few problems in the time that i've owned it since last august. Yesterday I went to start it and it just sputtered. I turned the key again and the same thing happened. It was trying to turn over but it just wouldn't. I can get it started if while i' turning the key i lightly pump the gas a few times. The weird thing is that after I got it started and drove it around I noticed that the temperature gauge was no longer working at all.

I got home and turned it off and back on again. Like before I had to pump the gas a few times. Then i shut it off again and turned it back on and it started up just like normal with the temperature gauge right where it should be. I thought maybe it was just an abnormal thing so i drove it up to work today. I went out in the parking lot and it started up just fine. However, on the ride home i noticed the temperature gauge wasn't working. Just as i predicted I got it home, turned it off, and sure enough it wouldnt start without me feathering the gas pedal again. Any idea what this could be?

Thanks guys

salad

Welcome to the site. We're going to need some more detail. First of all this is the 4.0L inline 6, right?

Is it cranking at normal speed? What exactly is "turning over" referring to? (everyone seems to have a different definition) When do you pump the pedal? This has no effect on computerized fuel injected engines unless it's actually trying to run, unlike in a carbureted engine. When you say it sputtered, did it not crank at the right speed? Did it crank normally but ended up sputtering when you released the key?

You got fuel in the gas tank yeah?

tdg1x

Its the 4.0 inline 6. Its cranking like it usually does but it just doesn't want to start up and run unless i push the gas pedal down while the key is turned in the ignition. It seems to only do it if i turn it off and then go to turn it right back on.

for instance if i park it and run inside and go back to start it, it will sit there and crank. It won't actually start up until i push the gas down while turning the key. Like you said I don't know why that would have much of a difference but that is the only way I can get it started and i have tried a few different ways.

Now if i park it overnight and go to start it, then i turn the key and it starts on the first or second crank of the starter.

Heres the weirdest part, i only have this problem when the temperature gauge isn't working. When the temp gauge is working fine i can cut it off and start it right back up like nothings wrong. I hardly see how the temperature gauge should have any effect on the fuel or injection system though. I've never seen anything like this before so any help would be appreciated. At first i thought it might just be a coincidence that it happens when the temperature gauge isn't working. But its happened so frequently now that I'm pretty positive that its all the same problem.

Thanks for any help guys

2WDUnderachiever

I'm gonna' guess you need a new fuel pump. Try turning the key, letting the pump prime, then pulling the key out, putting it back in, letting it prime again, then turning it all the way and starting the car.

If it starts from that, you either need a new fuel pump, or have a horribly clogged fuel filter.

Best of luck!

NewKindOfClown

Try this first:
https://www.cherokeeforum.com/f2/ins...83/#post962860

Sounds like it could be a bad Coolant Temperature Sensor, though. Symptoms include inaccurate gauge readings, trouble starting, and stalling under heavy throttle.

Easy test is to unplug it from the thermostat housing and see if the problem goes away. If it does, replace that sensor.

NewKindOfClown

If that is the case, it's most likely a bad check valve in the fuel line. Late model Cherokees had a problem with the internal check valve, and the fuel rail wouldn't hold pressure once it failed. The fix for this is to prime the fuel pump a couple times before starting, and 2WDUnderachiever explained. The proper fix is to pay a stealership a lot of money to fix it, but it wasn't serious enough for me to worry about it on my '01.

I didn't suggest that, though, due to the associated temperature gauge problem.

tdg1x

Thanks so much man. I unplugged it and it started up just like normal. I'll have to order a new sensor tonight.

Thanks everybody for your help

NewKindOfClown

Glad to hear it, bud. Feel free to post up if you have any other questions.

ckysodkorn_xj

i have the fuel straniner issue, i just want to know who the bright guy was that made that "inserviceable"