Shut off while driving and will not start

Tiny
NCOFFIN18
  • MEMBER
  • 2003 LINCOLN NAVIGATOR
  • 5.4L
  • V8
  • 4WD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 190,000 MILES
I recently purchased the vehicle listed above. When buying everything ran fine, it would take about 10 seconds to crank up, but I chalked that up to a bad fuel pump. About a week ago it shut off while driving, when running tests, it seemed as if the alternator was bad. I replaced the alternator with a 2011 Crown Victoria alternator since I know they produce a higher voltage and it started but eventually shut off again. Gave up for the day and came back the next morning to try again, car decided it wouldn't even crank over so I tried forcing the starter by using a screwdriver to connect the power post to the relay post and it just whirred. Opted to replace the starter and it allowed the car to start one more time and it shut off again. Checked the IACV and it was basically seized and completely full of carbon and debris, so I swapped that as well as cleaning the MAF. After that the car refused to crank, tested battery at 13.6v and was confused so since the new starter had lifetime warranty, I just did the screwdriver trick again and it still didn't start. Tested fuel pressure on the fuel rail and it was only at 5 PSI. So again, instead of doing the fuel pump I opted to swap fuel filter, which was horrendously bad, and after swapping it the fuel pressure got up to 40 PSI, but quickly dropped after. Still assuming bad fuel pump check valve on that one but couldn't be bothered to drop fuel tank yet. After doing all this it still didn't crank, and I found the battery was drained. Tried jumping the car and just letting it charge for a while and still nothing. Eventually once the battery was at 13v again I left it for about an hour to try and check for a parasitic draw on it and found that it was being drained by like 10+ amps which I thought was insane. Nearly burnt my multimeter leads just by touching it for a few seconds. Pulled fuses one by one and never saw a drop so I opted to pull them all at once and still no drop. Drained the battery rather quickly and it entirely refuses to even try to crank over. I'm a tad bit in over my head on the electrical side now and wanted to see if there was any advice for me or anything I should try to do next. Next thing I'll try is probably disconnecting the starter and seeing if the draw goes away, assuming it might be the relay cable just got fried and is resting on the frame somewhere just drawing you but shouldn't removing the relay prevent that? Any help whatsoever would be greatly appreciated.
Tuesday, May 10th, 2022 AT 8:46 AM

10 Replies

Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 108,179 POSTS
Hi,

If you had a draw with all the fuses removed at the same time, the short is likely between the battery and the fuse/relay box.

You may want to start pulling one relay at a time to see if you can find one that stops the draw. There are three different relay box locations under the hood However, the relays should be getting power from a fused circuit, so I question if this will help identify an issue.

Let me know.

Joe

See pics below.
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Tuesday, May 10th, 2022 AT 7:48 PM
Tiny
NCOFFIN18
  • MEMBER
  • 6 POSTS
As of currently I have all relays pulled that I know of. Do you maybe know where the under the hood relays might be? I wasn't aware it had any. I won't be able to check it until next week, but I was assuming it may be one of the positive battery cables leading to the alternator or the battery.
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Wednesday, May 11th, 2022 AT 11:20 AM
Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 108,179 POSTS
There are three auxiliary relay boxes. Take a look at the pics below and let me know if they help.

Also, here is a link that explains how to test a relay:

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/how-to-check-an-electrical-relay-and-wiring-control-circuit

Take care and let me know what you find.

Joe

See pics below.
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Wednesday, May 11th, 2022 AT 7:38 PM
Tiny
NCOFFIN18
  • MEMBER
  • 6 POSTS
So got that issue fixed. It still doesn't stay on; acts like it's being flooded. Will run fine for a while then shut off and won't want to start for about a minute and it'll start fine. Tested fuel pressure and getting 30-40psi and replaced fuel filter. I guess the next step might be Regulator or damper?
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Tuesday, May 17th, 2022 AT 10:22 AM
Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 108,179 POSTS
Hi,

The regulator is working. The specs indicate between 35 and 45 PSI. If it was flooding, you would likely see black smoke from the exhaust.

What you described sounds more like a crankshaft position sensor. Do me a favor. Take a look through this link and let me know if anything mirrors what you are experiencing:

https://www.2carpros.com/articles/symptoms-of-a-bad-crankshaft-sensor

Let me know.

Take care,

Joe
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Tuesday, May 17th, 2022 AT 7:27 PM
Tiny
NCOFFIN18
  • MEMBER
  • 6 POSTS
Seems like all of it mirrors, especially the warming up portion. When cold the car runs fine for a while then after it starts to get even slightly warm it stalls and stalls very quickly after starting up again. Assumed it was a Regulator or something that's just giving it too much gas, but the crank sensor lines up perfectly.
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Tuesday, May 17th, 2022 AT 8:49 PM
Tiny
NCOFFIN18
  • MEMBER
  • 6 POSTS
So, I swapped the cam and crank sensor. It still landed up shutting off, but when it shut off, I saw the A/C compressor clutch engage and stutter like crazy, mind you the A/C was turned off. Also makes a really bad burning smell. When turning A/C on it grinds like crazy but, the engine doesn't stall, every now and then it'll stutter but never stalls. Think I might have found the issue and ironically it may just need the A/C compressor clutch removed so it can spin freely all the time. That's my next goal since A/C doesn't work anyways. I will keep updated if that doesn't fix it.
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Wednesday, May 18th, 2022 AT 12:41 PM
Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 108,179 POSTS
Hi,

That certainly sounds like the problem. Also, since you smell something burning, that is likely the belt turning against a pulley that won't turn.

You can't just remove the compressor because it changed the belt routing. What I recommend is to get an AC bypass pulley. It is just that. You remove the compressor and bolt it in the compressor's place. Then you can use the OEM belt size and not change the belt routing.

I attached a pic below so you can see what it looks like.

Let me know if I can help.

Take care,

Joe

See pic below.
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Wednesday, May 18th, 2022 AT 8:01 PM
Tiny
NCOFFIN18
  • MEMBER
  • 6 POSTS
I really appreciate all the help. Ended up just taking the A/C clutch off so that it's impossible to engage. A/C compressor doesn't work as is so not too bothered. After removing the clutch, I was able to drive it around town just fine without any hesitation so far. Going to keep driving it around for a little bit tomorrow and hopefully everything just works out.
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Wednesday, May 18th, 2022 AT 10:53 PM
Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 108,179 POSTS
Hi,

You are very welcome. I'm glad to hear that took care of the issue. If anything changes, let me know.

Also, please feel free to come back anytime in the future if you have questions. You are always welcome.

Take care,

Joe
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Thursday, May 19th, 2022 AT 7:08 PM

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