I am new to this forum, I have had a durango in the past but picked this up a month or so ago for $600 bucks. Fixed the brake lines and it was running great with no issues at all. I went to San Diego for work for a week and a half and the battery was dead when i came back so i put the charger on it last night for an hour or so then went to start it, it wasn't starting, it would start and die right away, so i gave it a little gas and it managed to stay on as long as the gas was pressed. No check engine light on, no codes, nothing... temperature has been changing (30 one day 60 the next and back down to 30) here in NJ while i was away. I was wondering if anyone else had this issue... Also any ideas as to what it could be.... i am checking to IAC valve tonight to see if it is stuck or anything and clean it all out. any help would be appreciated.

 

The battery could be bad and that will cause the issue. Also check the connections at the battery terminals and make sure they are real clean. If there isn't enough volts in the battery the PCM can't run (under 12 volts) so the system relies on the alternator. However when the engine idles down not enough voltage can be made so the engine wants to die because the PCM isn't getting enough volts.

I would replace the battery with a Auto Zone Gold that comes with a 8 year total warranty, get the largest one that will fit. They can also load test yours, but charge it full before having them test it. Also just because it might come back still good it still could be bad.

 

That is a possibility i didn't even think of... I did pay attention to the volt meter on the dash and it staid about 14 this morning, even under 1000 RPM... who knows at this point without actually testing it, i could literally hold the pedal at around 700 and it was fine, but as soon as i let the pedal go, it wouldn't even hesitate to shut off, as if i turned the key off... i will check here in about 2 and a half hours once i get out of work and see what the deal it. Thanks for the input Hydra, would have never thought to check the battery and I'm hoping its something that simple.

 

Sounds exactly like what happens when they go out.

Your welcome!

 

I agree with the battery being the issue.

 

Check your Transmission fluid. If it’s low it wont cause the vehicle to start as it’s a fail-safe to prevent damage of driving on a low level transmission.

 

So I got home yesterday and tried to start it, it started with no issue, no hesitation. So I cleaned out the TB anyways, there SaaS a bit of build-up in there and it smelt like it was dipped in gas. Put it back on and it wouldn't fire up, same exact thing as before. I said screw it and I changed out the exhaust with the dynamax cat back ( what I was originally going to do when I got back from cali as the old one was rusted out). After installing the cat back, it started up fine. So I shut it off, put my tools away and went to go start ot and it didn't want to stay on unless the throttle plate was barely open.... I stuck some tape on the throttle adjusting screw to keep it open a tad and it been running fine and idling right around 600-700 rpm... Only thing that comes to mind is either bad injectors or regulator... All I know is it seems there is just fuel being dumped in.... I'm going to change the spark plugs today or aleast pull one out to look at it. BTW, battery was sitting at 12.4 VDC with the car off and 12.1 VDC with the ignition on engine off, and about 13.8 VDC with the engine running. Also, trans fluid is fine, was checked yesterday after the trip to AZ... Thanks for the help and ideas.

 

this actually sounds like a bad IAC motor to me, and when you cleaned it did you move the plunger at all? if so its possible you damaged it internally (very easily could cause your problems)

 

Shrp, I did not move the plunger at all. I remember there being a way to test it but I can't remember. The issue is only happening at idle, its runs and drives perfectly fine, just stubborn to stay on until I put some tape on the throttle adjusting screw to keep the plate opened up a tad, I plugged my reader in and it says the throttle is still at 0% with the tape on there. So it shouldn't be dumping more fuel in, its just without that tape there, all I can smell is gas.

 

It could be the IAC causing the issue. It's not a very expensive part to replace either way. It certainly can't hurt to clean the battery connections really well with a wire brush while you're at it either.

Just curious too, you said your TPS shows as 0% over the obd when closed? I noticed the other day that mine shows 10% at closed and 75% at WOT and was wondering if this was normal or not. I actually have a new TPS on the way in the mail that should be here today so hopefully I'll be finding out.