[Alan Lipscomb]

Hello,
I have an 86 Lebaron 2.5 TBI. I just bought it. Over a two day period progressively got harder and harder to start. I had to use the throttle pedal to get it to start. Eventually it wouldn't start at all. I put plugs in it. The old ones were blackened. I got a fault code 22. Coolant sensor. So I replaced the sensor. While replacing the sensor, I left the battery disconnected to clear codes. The first time I tried to start the car after the cooland sensor was installed, the car started right up. I'm thinking "awesome". I turned the car off and tried to restart it.It started hard again and continued to start hard over the next couple days. I was back to working that throttle pedal to get it to start. Now i'm not even getting a sputter. The car is throwing a code 22 again. It threw a code 25 once too. but that has cleared and hasn't come back. I inspected the plugs. they were washed clean from fuel. I replaced the plugs again. When I crank it over it soaks the plugs again within seconds and wont start. I've inspected the coolant sensor connector and wires and everything visually looks good. If i crank it over with a plug connected to a spark plug wire, it has spark. i really can't afford to replace every sensor in this car by process of elimiation. Has anybody encountered a problem like this and resolved it?
Thanks in advance for your input!
Al

 

[B10alia]

I think the 22 may be a bit of a red herring. The CTS will make the car run like crap but it shouldn't cause a no-start. A basic tune up, plugs, wires, cap, rotor, fuel filter and check of vacuum lines is probably a good first step. After that, take a look at the MAP sensor and HEP.

 

[Alan Lipscomb]

Thanks B-10,
I did all of the typical tune up stuff when I realized the car started hard. It looks like this car had a transplant from an absent minded mechaninc who forgot what went where, when he went to put it back together. I'll have to find a vaccuum chart in order to check vaccuum lines. What is the HEP?

 

[Bob Lincoln]

Hall effect pickup, the magnetic pickup module in the distributor that fires the coil.

 

[B10alia]

A transplant engine?
It might also be worth it to check the base engine timing, if things look like they were done haphazardly, the mechanic may have forgotten to set timing. Do you have a factory service manual? They're a very good investment if you plan on doing the work yourself.

 

[Bob Lincoln]

Check codes again and be sure that "22" isn't really "13" (MAP sensor). It behaves like a bad MAP sensor. The spacing between pulses can sometimes be confusing.

 

[motormaker1]

In '86, injectors were known to get "lazy" and allow too much fuel into the engine too. I've seen some 2.2/2.5 throttle body injectors drip horrendously at idle.