Hi all-

So occasionally on damp mornings only my truck takes a minute to start. Cranks and cranks but eventually catches with a little help from me with the accelerator pedal smashed to the floor under my foot.

This morning after not driving it since Friday evening and having a freak winter rain storm last night it wont start again. This time it really wont start though. I am not sure what it is. I've searched the forums and came up with nothing. I really need to go to work today so i was hoping for some help to figure this out.

Today it cranks over and seems like it wants to catch but nothing successful yet. I hold my foot to the floor though still nothing. I had let it sit for a little bit after cranking on it and tried it again and got a backfire. Then it went right back to cranking with a sputter on occasion.

Help me please.

Thanks

 

I would start by replaceing the plug wires first.

Dave

 

They were replaced less than 10,000 miles ago along with the plugs. I will pull them and inspect but money is tight and would only like to purchase what I might actually need. Is there something I should be looking for besides being brittle and cracked?

 

Definitely sounds like ignition.

I have seen fuse 9 in the cab blown before causing these Rams not to start.(though that's fuel related)

I have seen the coil go out causing these trucks not to start.
I'm hesitant to say its the wires, because even if a few of your wired were shot, your truck would still start-up just run really rough.

I would focus on the coil, now I've never even looked at a V-10 before, so I don't know exactly how it is laid out.

Always start with the obvious.
To start a truck needs three things, compression, fuel and spark...

You know you have compression, so rule that out.

Fuel flow is okay? you said this problem was persistent before, which does lead to spark.

You need to check for spark.

Anything from a bad coil to a bad distributor can cause this. I've seen rotors in the distributor cap that just needed their contacts clean in order for the engine to run.

How long has it been since the last tune-up?

Definitely troubleshoot your ignition system, use the "Merry Christmas" thread/ Factory Service Manual in the FAQ/DIY section.

 

Okay, I see you only have 10k on the wires and plugs, they are probably not to blame. Unless you have serious deposit build-up.

How about your distributor (like I said, I know nothing of the v-10, may even be distributor-less for all I know)?

Anyway, you need to troubleshoot the ignition.

It really sounds like you are not getting spark, easy to just take off a plug and have some one turn the engine over while you look for spark on the plug.

Or to test the coil you can do almost the same thing, just pull the wire that leads to the distributor, and hold a srewdriver next to the coil output and look for an electrical arc.

That would at least let you rule out whether or not you have a spark.

 

V10 uses coilpacks with multiple coils I dont know that coilpacks would all die at once.
Backfire can be caused by spark jumping to ground from bad wires.
Bad wires that are cracked and damp from moisture in the air can cause the starting issues he was haveing
and finally just got to bad to even start.
Thats why i suggested starting with plug wires.

Dave

 

Only in rain huh? sounds like something could be getting wet and shorting...? Any codes or other lights on in the dash?

 

Yes I had been wondering about the coil packs. If I removed them and took them to the auto parts store can they test them. I will check out the wires now one by one.

After repeated attempts to start I am getting slight catches like it wants to start. I never had a problem in the freezing cold or warm weather. only when damp....

 

no check engine light. once started I will take it up to have the codes read.

 

Ok- so I had the coil packs checked at my local Autozone. According to them they both checked out good. Spark plug wires all look ok as far as I can tell. No cracking or brittleness anywhere.

I have to be missing something somewhere. Anyone have any more ideas. Please