aporter

This is my first post so I want to start out by saying howdy and thanks to anyone that that can help me.

I just bought a 1996 Grand Cherokee. It looks nice but it was real cheap...the previous owner was at wits end. He would not tell me what was wrong with it but was very clear that I was buying "as is". It was so cheap I decided to take a chance.

It is obvious from looking at the engine that everything electrical has been either reviewed or replaced...including the brain. Everything electrical is either new or all taped up after being checked out.

I test drove the car before buying...no problem. I drove the car home after buying it and parked it. The next day I tried to start it and it turned over but would not start. The engine reeked of gasoline. I decided to wait five minutes and turn it over again, and the second time it did start but shut down after one minute. I didnīt have time to mess with it because I had to go to work.

The next day I repeated the exact same thing. No start...gasoline smell...wait five minutes...start...die after one minute running.

It is obvious that this is why the previous owner sold it. It almost seems that the computer is shutting down the car as a failsafe feature. Before I start to tear into it and replace the whole car piece by piece like the previous owner, I thought I would ask all you guys for any ideas.

I tried to search for previous threads, but I donīt even know what to search for.

Any suggestion is welcome.

trucker

Gasoline smell would indicate a leak or computer mess-up holding injectors wide open. Fail safe could be the roll over switch, but that would not turn the pump on. I would pull a plugs and see if they are wet.

aporter

The computer was replaced but I think they just put in another used one. The connections to the computer are loose and once I had to wiggle the wires to get it to start, so there is more to look at there.

I pulled the plugs and they were not wet but they were a little dirty so I cleaned and gapped them, but this didnīt change anything.

I replaced the fuel filter and that did nothing, either.

I removed the throttle body and it was black. It seems that the throttle was sucking up all the oil that flies around when the engine is running. I cleaned it and noticed that there is a little hole on the right side that allows air to bypass and this was almost completely clogged. When the whole thing was totally clean I put it back together and she started right up and ran fine. I was pretty happy.

The next morning she went back to her old ways. The next step will be to tie down the computer real tight to eliminate that possibility. Also, I forgot to mention that this jeep is an automatic and I understand that there is a sensor on the tranny that can fail and cause shut down. I donīt have the do-dad that lets the computer talk to you but I will see what it says in trouble-light language.

Any ideas are welcome. I am curious where the roll over switch is located. Thanks.

jouzts77

I had the exact same thing going on with my 96 ZJ. The people I bought it from were at their wits end also. I checked everything out and found that when I would wiggle the middle connector at the brain it would die. I bought a used brain at a junk yard for 50.00 about a year ago and she has not died on me since. I can't guarantee that it is the same problem with yours, but I think you are in the right location. The previous owner of mine had the entire wire harness checked and also replaced the brain at the dealership. Good Luck!

ol"blue

You can check to see if it has any codes stored yourself. Here's how: http://jeephorizons.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=2719
And Welcome to CF!
Dan

aporter

Thanks guys for your help. The problem was a broken wire in the harness to the computer. A really smart mechanic figured it out. The previous owner couldnīt find the problem and gave up. We spliced the one broken wire and now she runs like a charm. Thanks again!