So I've had my 8 in my garage since Thanksgiving (about a month and a half) and I decided to start it this morning and run it for a little while because it hasn't been started since Thanksgiving. It started up with no problem whatsoever but after running for maybe 5 seconds it died without any warning. I tried cranking it again (held the key for about 3-4 seconds) but it didn't start and the cranking seemed really slow.

So I assume my battery is low because the cranking seems weak and I also assume that my 8 is now flooded. What I don't understand is why it started with no problem and then immediately died.

Has anyone else encountered this situation after their 8 has been sitting for 1.5 months? My garage never gets below 55 degrees.

I'll be doing the DIY de-flooding when I get home in a few hours. Not really looking forward to it.

Thanks for any info.

-Jake

 

make sure the battery is charged fully before you attempt to start again.

Is your car manual or auto?

 

Sorry,

It's a 2004 manual with 65,000 miles. New coils plugs and wires as of about 4 months ago. Haven't had a problem with it up until this morning.

 

I missed your sig...

Fully charge your battery and try starting. If flooded, pull start. Try testing your battery, as well. It could be finished.
That brings me to another question: Did you have your battery unplugged when stored?

 

No, I didn't unplug the battery. I wasn't planning on not starting it for so long. It just happened ya know.... I'm really hoping it's not too flooded. I only cranked it for a few seconds after it died.

I don't have a battery charger but I do have a jump box that i'm fully charging while I'm at work. Hopefully that'll give me a few good cranks to start her up.

 

If its going to sit for a long time you need to have a battery trickler for it. I got one for my 8 in the fall and it has wires that you can permanently install on the nodes and just plug it in under neath a tire well. I know it works great because my truck wouldn't start to day so i had to drive my 8 to work in the rain.

As for a cure to your problem charge it full. Then if you charger has a start mode switch it to that and leave it connected and start your car with the peddle completely depressed when you go to start it up. (look in your manual for the flooded engine thing i am pretty sure that is what you do.) When it starts up it will dump out lots of exhaust so make sure your in a vented area.

If it still wont start i would check all your connections and make sure that you don't have any moisture in your contact points to your battery. This can happen when you pull you car in the garage and don't remove the engine cover.

If it still doesn't start i don't know then i hope you can get her running soon i hate to see a sick 8 makes me sad.

 

So I bought a battery charger and charged the battery all the way. Did the standard de-flooding procedure of removing the fuel pump fuse and cranking multiple times. Put the fuel pump fuse back in and tried cranking. It sputtered a few times and then went back to just cranking.

I then pulled the spark plugs. They weren't that wet and when I cranked it a few times with the plugs out....no fuel/carbon leaked out of the plug holes.

I cleaned the plugs, reinstalled and am now waiting for the battery to charge back up.

This is such a bummer

 

Get a new battery

 

I honestly don't think the battery is the problem. I have the battery charger charging the battery and a fully charged jump pack hooked up to it. It's cranking fast enough and sounds normal. It just won't fire up.

 

sounds like youre battery, i think its completely done for. try that first.

 

if it's not battery, then it could be your fuel system. Do you smell any fuel while cranking?

 

Yeah. I definitely smell fuel while cranking. And it sputters after I have the fuel pump fuse out for a few cranks. I guess I'm just going to wait for the morning to try it again after everything has charged all the way back up.

 

So it seems like I'm getting the most success when I leave my fuel pump fuse in while cranking with the pedal all the way to the floor. After doing that a few times I then release the pedal and it wants to start. Once I had the rpms up to about 3000 but it stalled again. Should I be giving it gas while it's trying to start or keep the starter engaged?

 

why not just pull start it?

 

That'll be the next step I suppose. I don't have access to a truck until Saturday though. Plus I'll have to buy tow straps.

The process is tow at 25mph with ignition on and let the clutch out in 3rd?....or 2nd?

 

Check the battery one last time. Charge it until the meter on the charger indicates a "full" charge. Note the battery voltage with a volt meter. Let it sit overnight, in the car, but without the charger hooked up, then check the voltage again. Does the voltage conform to this chart?

http://www.buchanan1.net/lead_acid.shtml

If a cell is dead, there may be enough voltage to turn the starter, but not enough to properly run the ignition system.

 

Well I finally got her started last night. I took out and cleaned the plugs again, cranked a few times to clear out the plug holes, re-installed plugs then did the Mazda deflooding process for about 20 minutes.

She really didn't smoke all that much. I was surprised.

 

So how did you eventually get it started? Did your battery have any issues?
My car is dead as well... Where is the fuel pump fuse?
Really ticked because the bodyshop flooded the car and I can't get it restarted!

 

1. I cleaned the plugs really good
2. reinstalled them
3. cranked for about 5 seconds with the accelerator all the way to the floor
4. let sit for about 1 minute
5. Crank again with accelerator to the floor for one second then release accelerator while still cranking
6. repeat steps 3-5 until it starts (took me about 20 minutes)

be prepared to feather the gas once it does start

No damage was done to my battery, it still holds a full charge.

The fuel pump fuse is inside you fuse box under the hood. It's labeled on the inside of the fuse box cover.

good luck