1995 Chrysler Cirrus startup problems

To make a long story short,

My 1995 Chrysler Cirrus won't start after one or more stops when
running errands. After turning the vehicle off, it sometimes has
troubles starting back up again. This often results in a few minutes
to an hour of waiting before it MIGHT restart again. Lately, as the
weather has gotten hotter, this problem has occurred more and more
frequently. However, one episode happened that after driving for
about 10 miles, I stopped (parked and turned car off) in front of my
own business store to retrieve my mail. Then I jumped back into my
car, but it failed to start again. I opened the hood, took a fan and
extension cable from my shop and blew directly into the engine area,
BINGO! After about a few minutes, the car started like it was in its
brand new condition. Someone help me explain this?

But some other times, I used the same gimmick-- it might or might not
work. Starting our car seems to be run on luck and superstition.

The main concern is that this problem worsens as the weather becomes
warmer and warmer.
By the way, we had a new PCM replaced last summer due to this bizarre
starting problem. Seems like the problem is not going away, though.

Can anyone help? My car mechanic recommended me to sell the car, but
ethically, I can not do that. HELP MEE PLEASEEEE. I already spent
over $1000 trying have the car fixed.

 

Whenever you see something directly heat related (as in, it goes away when
it cools), think "electronics". When you say it wouldn't start, did it crank
over but not catch? Or did it do absolutely nothing when you turned the key?
With all the electronics in modern cars, it could be anything from an
almost-dead sensor up to the engine computer...

 

you may get more replies if you post the egine size

Glenn Beasley
Chrysler Tech

 

Please describe in detail the SYMPTOMS of "failing to start" since we have
no idea of whether the engine turns over or not. Do you hear a click and
nothing more? No click of the starter solenoid?

Bob

 

Thank you guys for your response!

Sorry for not including the specifics earlier:
-Engine size 2.5L

Symptoms:In answer to Ron and Bob
-when it fails, it cranks "normally" but doesn't catch. Also, at
times, when it does restart, the engine speed is much slower than the
normal idle speed and the noise seems to be coming from a diesel
engine (I'm trying my best to describe this).
Usually when the car fails to restart, the car seems to be really hot
(compared to my other cars) when I open the hood. At the same time, if
the car, say after a short while, like 5 minutes, is lucky enough to
restart, the radiator fans (dual fans) never turn on unless the A/C is
turned on subsequently.

To reiterate, here is more info about my car:
-I bought it used in 2005 with 110k miles
-battery was replaced
-new computer board (PCM)installed last summer

 

1. If the fans don't come on regardless of heat, it could be the temperature
sensor, the relay, or the fans themselves. Test the fans by connecting a
jumper wire and see if they run (unlikely they'd both go at once ... unless
one was already dead and then the other finally gave up). You *could* get
out your VOM (electrical testing meter -- cheap but "good enough" ones
available from Radio Shuck) and test the sensor (cold and then after soaking
in boiling eater) or just pull one from a car like yours in a junkyard. You
could also test the relay. My (and friends') experience has been that the
sensors (generally screwed into the radiator) tend to go -- we got pretty
good at pulling them from junkers whenever we could find them (as others had
also been grabbing them...).
('Course, there was the used car I got whose electric fan wouldn't come on.
Turned out the connector on the fan wire had unplugged itself. 2 second free
fix.)
2. The "new" computer board could have gotten totally fried from the heat or
might work okay once you get the heat back under control. (Consider that it
might have been replaced because the original one got heat killed...)
3. For the long run, consider a modification a friend did for his car that
suffered from short-lived fan temp sensors: We wired in both a pilot light
that would show when the fans came on and a toggle switch to manually turn
on the fans. If he saw the temp going up without the pilot light coming on,
he'd just hit the switch to keep the fans running until he could replace the
sensor (again!). (For this modification, you could try tapping the switch
into the circuit the A/C uses to turn on the fans...)

Two simple rules of thumb: If something fails or acts weird when it warms
up, think electronics (even something as simple as the condensor on an older
points-based engine). And, if there's more than one element to solving a
problem, start with the simplest, cheapest fixes first. (Wouldn't you feel
silly for spending time and money only to find out it was the easy thing all
along...)

 

Thank you so much.

 

Same issue

I am having the EXACT same issues.... it is really hard to start somedays.... plugging it in the summer seems to help.... also It will not start if I run errands... today my daughter took it to work and the car would crank but not turn over.... it will stall while I am driving and always have to drive in the far lane in case I need to exit.... then it may start or it might not for awhile. Sometimes while trying to start the car it will start but I have no power to the windows, horn etc... I will drive like that just to get home to find out if I start the car again... the issues seem to go away. I know people have said the fuel pump, while others say computer or sensors, battery or even alternator.... What I have read no one really knows what the issue is. i am no car expert but I wonder if the electrical is not totally screwed up